At Riverside Raceway in October 1964, Mike Jones demonstrated the twitchy handling that plagued all Cheetahs and precluded countless potential wins over cars much slower on the straights. The sponsorship of Clarence Dixon Cadillac hints at "back-door" factory backing of privateers early during Detroit's auto-racing ban.
A uniquely American sport-custom movement that was inspired, ironically, by Gls' exposure to '40s European sports cars gradually gained steam through the '50s before petering out in the 60s. On that much we can all agree, right? As for exactly when the era peaked and which marque soared that summit —we'll leave that debate to old guys whose idea of the ultimate enthusiast vehicle is some low-production fiberglass or aluminum model that most of us might've heard of but never seen, even in magazines (until Plastic Fantastic, page 42). Nobody's ever asked, but wed peg the pinnacle of sport customs to be 1963-1964, when the only all-American, all-scratch-built cars seriously contending in major sports-car competition were not those British Bristols with swapped-in Ford V8s. In the truest tradition of sport customs, the Cheetah was designed in chalk on the concrete floor by the same two California hot rodders who handbuilt between 16 and 26 complete copies (accounts vary), all ferociously fast. No other new car could catch the flyweight street version between stoplights or timing lights. Almost no race car could keep up on the straightaways, including Cobras.
Don Edmunds and the late Bill Thomas had collaborated on a similar coupe for street use in the late '50s, when both were building factory race cars for Bill Stroppe. In the early '60s, fledgling Bill Thomas Race Cars was doing minor contract work for Chevrolet Performance boss Vince Piggins-whose own bosses were alarmed to see Ford-powered Cobras embarrassing new Corvettes on road courses and dragstrips. Hoping to impress the factory with his abilities and acquire additional contracts, Thomas dusted off the rough drawings of his and Edmunds old, sporty-car project for a GM presentation in 1962. In that stillborn sport custom, Piggins saw a quick solution for the Cobra problem. He sent a shocked Thomas back to Anaheim with a purchase order for the 100 cars then required by SCCA in production classes, along with assurances of a virtually unlimited budget, as many new-model Corvette parts as desired, and less than one year to deliver a small fleet of Cheetahs to contest the full '63 series.
Lacking time to engineer a fresh design, Edmunds rushed over with his chalk, outlined a modified version of their street chassis on Bill's floor, and went to work building the prototype that HRM's Eric Rickman and Tech Editor Don Francisco separately photographed for the Sept. 63 issue. This and the second Cheetah (fitted with a secret, experimental 396 bored to 427 cubes) wore the only aluminum skin, from which molds were made. All other
bodies built through 1966, when a shop fire prematurely ended BTRCs production, plus unknown numbers of copies later cloned by other companies are fiberglass.
In January, despite the impossible construction deadline and dearth of testing, Jerry Titus was making competitive laps in Riverside Raceway's opener. Several more privateers appeared during the '64 season, all running fast. When nobody believed track-record times for lap and top speed at either Road America or Laguna Seca (again, accounts vary), Titus reportedly went back out and made both speeds official at 86.448 and 185-plus mph, respectively. Larry Webb, a Cheetah mechanic, was said to have a timeslip documenting a quarter-mile pass of 10.86 seconds at 136 mph in road-race trim, despite tallish 3.70:1 gears. Another Cheetah was supposedly clocked between 200 and 215 mph at Daytona before blowing off its hood and doors. After witnessing a Cheetah's test laps at GM's Michigan Proving Grounds, Zora Arkus-Duntov reportedly proclaimed its (unspecified) "lateral-accel-eration speed" the fastest ever recorded there. Among many minor wins reported for '64-'65 club-level road races were 11 by Ralph Salyer alone.
What could possibly go wrong?
Plenty: An exhaust system routed through the cockpit proved nearly unbearable for drivers, prompting Salyer's crew chief to hastily produce the only Cheetah roadster, midrace. Engines overheated, too, and failed until effective vents and spoilers could be designed, tested, and installed. The combination of excessive chassis flex and high horsepower caused spooky handling in corners. Even before the race models had been properly tested and improved, GM buckled under pressure to honor Detroit's infamous auto-racing ban, reducing the supply of Corvette and special race parts. SCCA sealed the coffin on competition by suddenly increasing its homologation minimum tenfold (to 1,000 cars) —eons beyond BTRC's production capacity, forcing Cheetahs to race against faster cars in unlimited classes during 64. Last but not least, what remained of BTRC's parts supply was consumed by the 1966 fire, along with wooden body bucks and critical fixtures.
That wasn't the end of the Cheetah story (there’s been a Cobra-like "continuation" series, and continuing controversy), but it's the end of ours-for now. Tune back in next time for a "prequel" tracing the surviving '50s sport custom that builders Bill Thomas and Don Edmunds always regarded as the unfinished prototype for their Cheetah.
-DAVE WALLACE
Don Edmunds and the late Bill Thomas had collaborated on a similar coupe for street use in the late '50s, when both were building factory race cars for Bill Stroppe. In the early '60s, fledgling Bill Thomas Race Cars was doing minor contract work for Chevrolet Performance boss Vince Piggins-whose own bosses were alarmed to see Ford-powered Cobras embarrassing new Corvettes on road courses and dragstrips. Hoping to impress the factory with his abilities and acquire additional contracts, Thomas dusted off the rough drawings of his and Edmunds old, sporty-car project for a GM presentation in 1962. In that stillborn sport custom, Piggins saw a quick solution for the Cobra problem. He sent a shocked Thomas back to Anaheim with a purchase order for the 100 cars then required by SCCA in production classes, along with assurances of a virtually unlimited budget, as many new-model Corvette parts as desired, and less than one year to deliver a small fleet of Cheetahs to contest the full '63 series.
Lacking time to engineer a fresh design, Edmunds rushed over with his chalk, outlined a modified version of their street chassis on Bill's floor, and went to work building the prototype that HRM's Eric Rickman and Tech Editor Don Francisco separately photographed for the Sept. 63 issue. This and the second Cheetah (fitted with a secret, experimental 396 bored to 427 cubes) wore the only aluminum skin, from which molds were made. All other
bodies built through 1966, when a shop fire prematurely ended BTRCs production, plus unknown numbers of copies later cloned by other companies are fiberglass.
In January, despite the impossible construction deadline and dearth of testing, Jerry Titus was making competitive laps in Riverside Raceway's opener. Several more privateers appeared during the '64 season, all running fast. When nobody believed track-record times for lap and top speed at either Road America or Laguna Seca (again, accounts vary), Titus reportedly went back out and made both speeds official at 86.448 and 185-plus mph, respectively. Larry Webb, a Cheetah mechanic, was said to have a timeslip documenting a quarter-mile pass of 10.86 seconds at 136 mph in road-race trim, despite tallish 3.70:1 gears. Another Cheetah was supposedly clocked between 200 and 215 mph at Daytona before blowing off its hood and doors. After witnessing a Cheetah's test laps at GM's Michigan Proving Grounds, Zora Arkus-Duntov reportedly proclaimed its (unspecified) "lateral-accel-eration speed" the fastest ever recorded there. Among many minor wins reported for '64-'65 club-level road races were 11 by Ralph Salyer alone.
What could possibly go wrong?
Plenty: An exhaust system routed through the cockpit proved nearly unbearable for drivers, prompting Salyer's crew chief to hastily produce the only Cheetah roadster, midrace. Engines overheated, too, and failed until effective vents and spoilers could be designed, tested, and installed. The combination of excessive chassis flex and high horsepower caused spooky handling in corners. Even before the race models had been properly tested and improved, GM buckled under pressure to honor Detroit's infamous auto-racing ban, reducing the supply of Corvette and special race parts. SCCA sealed the coffin on competition by suddenly increasing its homologation minimum tenfold (to 1,000 cars) —eons beyond BTRC's production capacity, forcing Cheetahs to race against faster cars in unlimited classes during 64. Last but not least, what remained of BTRC's parts supply was consumed by the 1966 fire, along with wooden body bucks and critical fixtures.
That wasn't the end of the Cheetah story (there’s been a Cobra-like "continuation" series, and continuing controversy), but it's the end of ours-for now. Tune back in next time for a "prequel" tracing the surviving '50s sport custom that builders Bill Thomas and Don Edmunds always regarded as the unfinished prototype for their Cheetah.
-DAVE WALLACE
Designer/fabricator Don Edmunds posed with the first of just two aluminum-bodied Cheetahs. Molds were made from this one for the fiberglass cars that Bill Thomas Race Cars built in 1964-1966. Note the extreme engine setback enabled by eliminating a driveshaft between the standard Muncie four-speed and Corvette IRS differential, which are bolted solidly to Don's chrome-moly frame. For race models, Don routed the exhaust system above the driver's and passenger's legs, creating oppressive cockpit heat.
Bill Thomas (right) graduated from building engines for Chevrolet factory racers to manufacturing complete race and street cars literally overnight. Thirty-five years after ceasing production, Bill authorized a continuation series that delivered another 31 BTM-branded cars in 2004-2009, according to manufacturer Robert Auxier. Does anyone recognize our previously unseen model (who wound up on HRM's cutting-room floor)? Don Edmunds doesn't, nor does Street Rodder Editor Brian Brennan, whose dream job during high school was sweeping up at Bill Thomas Race Cars in the mid-'60s.
It's hard to believe this sexy shape is a half-century old. Twenty individual panels were rough-welded together. The roof sits just 42 inches above ground. Goodyear 6.70 rubber wraps around 15x7-inch Americans. The rear and side windows are 1/4-inch Plexiglass
Our helpful model demonstrates proper entry and egress through Don Edmunds's cool, gull-wing hatch. Rolling weight ranged from just 1,520 pounds to about 1,700.
Thomas applied plenty of the tricks here that he'd learned building victorious Grand National, Pikes Peak, drag-racing, and his own road-course engines since Chevrolet's small-block debuted.
Street Cheetahs got this 327 or a street-race-ready 377-incher, either Weber-carbed or Rochester-injected. Top-of-the-line Stage Ill versions poked Bill's customized, dual-air-meter injector through scoopless hoods.
Street Cheetahs got this 327 or a street-race-ready 377-incher, either Weber-carbed or Rochester-injected. Top-of-the-line Stage Ill versions poked Bill's customized, dual-air-meter injector through scoopless hoods.
Imagine, kiddies: Nary a cupholder anywhere! The Bell wheel directs perhaps the first collapsible steering column ever to appear in HRM. The brake and clutch pedals also adjust, as does the 63 Corvette rear suspension (via the dual-position brackets shown). Also note an integral rollcage— before the term was coined. Less reassuring is a fiberglass (!) scattershield hugging the stock bellhousing and Corvette clutch assembly therein. Stewart-Warner instruments and a mechanical Jones-Motorola tach tracked internal action.
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Taken exactly 12 months apart, these Riverside Raceway shots of a street and race Cheetah illustrate modifications made by Ralph Salyer's team between October 1963 and October 1964 to drop temperatures inside the cockpit and engine compartment. Seeking still more relief for his driver, crew chief Gene Crowe subsequently chopped off the roof. Note the custom-built dual-air meters (right). Bill Thomas charged $7,500 for a basic street model and $12,000 for a full-boogie race car.
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