Tommy Ivo 671 on a Buick Motor Hello, It was a part of our early history in drag racing. The weekends we were at Lion’s Dragstrip from the fall of 1957 to fall of 1960, it was for us an eye opening experience. Participating in the stock car racing against other teenagers from all over So Cal was fun. We lost enough due to not learning the attention span at the start was the most important. All cars in the stock classes were evenly built and so it was all driver from the start. But, while we had our section of the pits laid out with our tools and tires, nearby were the bright red FED racers of Tommy Ivo and his crew from San Fernando area. Then in the closer area was the Dragmaster Team from Carlsbad. Everyone had their own particular spot in the pits. Ours was usually closer to the small pits area snack bar booth. Our teenage friends worked there and it was fun to talk while we were having a hot dog or chili dog during the long day. Jnaki We saw all of Tommy Ivo’s race cars starting with the single Hilborn Injected Buick FED. It was impressive and a show car that won a lot of races and awards, almost every weekend. At the time the single engine injected Buick was winning races and we thought that was a great car for the future, too. But, we were surprised in 1958-59 season. A new Buick powered race car was at the dragstrip and now powered by a 671 supercharger. So, in competition with the big Hemi motors with 671 superchargers, this Buick was now built for faster speeds and lower E.T. races. The team even had a Buick Sedan push car to go with the whole Buick concept program. The 671 powered Buick Motor FED racing at :28 Note: As cool as the 671 supercharger looked on the single Buick Motor and custom chassis, there was a surprise that the locals got before the late December 1959 East vs West drag race at the Riverside Raceway.
The Jalopy Journal
