Four-Links – Michelin’s tire-testing rig, SASCO closing, Kirkland concours, MAX the 100 MPG diesel Seven

* In 1972, Michelin wanted to test truck tires at high speeds, but worried about the disastrous consequences of high-speed blowouts in big rigs, so they built the PLR, a mishmash of Citroën DS parts and two small-block Chevrolet V-8s. Apparently, Ixo made a 1/43rd-scale diecast model of it too.

* News came this week that one of the last (if not the last) vestiges of Studebaker, SASCO, housed in the historic Building 92, was sold off to settle a debt. the story mentions the city’s desire to demolish the building as well, so do like Flickr member jpenrice did and grab your photos of Building 92 sooner rather than later. (via)

* Them boys over at RustyHeaps.com recently took in the Kirkland Concours d’Elegance at Carillon Point in Washington state. The show included some great race boats and Big-C Classics, but very few rusty heaps.

* There’s some neat vehicles competing in the Automotive X Prize, and one of them is MAX, a Seven-type roadster built pretty much from scratch using a Kubota three-cylinder diesel and chronicled in the pages of Mother Earth News. (via)

* Finally, the UK’s Autocar reports that the British cash for clunkers program may get a cash infusion similar to the one that kept its American counterpart going for a couple weeks longer. Though originally designed to last through March, current estimates have the program running out of money next month. A cash infusion would prolong it through February. As for the other Euro clunkers programs, Edmunds has a roundup. Summary: They don’t want it to end.

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The tag clearly said not to run your ‘57 Chevy through the dryer

So along with the Art Gerrick T-based lakes modified, we wanted to highlight another unusual, yet awesome, vehicle set to cross the block at RM’s upcoming Icons of Speed and Style auction: the Deal’s Wheels 2/3-scale 1957 Chevy.

Designed by Dave Deal (who also had a hand in designing the Cheetah Transporter), the show rod was built by Jim Allen for Revell to promote the line of Deal-designed 1/25-scale model kits. From the RM catalog description:

(Est.) 200 hp, 265 cu. in. Chevrolet V8 engine, four-barrel carburetor mounted within a non-functional GMC-style supercharger, GM Muncie four-speed manual transmission, straight front axle with leaf springs and tubular shock absorbers, 9-inch Ford rear end with leaf springs, and rear-wheel brakes.

Body Length: 135″

Best known for his copious artwork in publications including Hot Rod and CARtoons, the late Dave Deal inspired many thousands of car-crazy children of all ages with a multitude of funky automotive caricatures during the 1960s and 1970s. Built as part of a series of four similar cars for show duty to promote Revell’s “Deal’s Wheels” series of 1:25 scale model kits during the early 1970s, “57 cHEVY”, the unique vehicle offered here, is a running and driving 2/3-scale show rod in the style of a 1957 Chevrolet “gasser”. In fact, the kits were so successful and highly coveted, that Revell re-issued the model series in the early 1980s as the “Funsters” series, to the delight of legions of scale modeling enthusiasts.

Originally built by Jim Allen, this incredible creation is based on a 2 ¾-inch boxed steel frame with high-quality construction and welding in evidence throughout, with a rear-hinged, flip-top fiberglass body similar to those of the funny cars of the era. This vehicle can actually be driven, albeit with very cramped seating for up to two people. It is powered by a 265 cubic inch Chevrolet V8 engine equipped with Corvette valve covers, fender-exit headers, a non-functional GMC-style supercharger, and an Enderle-style “bug catcher” hat that conceals the carburetor. While the blower is non-functional with no internal components, its crankshaft-driven belt turns with the engine, and produces a muted “blower whine” sound effect. The considerable power output is sent to a pair of very fat “Good Boot” rear tires by a GM Muncie four-speed transmission, a stubby driveshaft, and a 9-inch Ford rear end. In addition, the battery and radiator are located at the rear of the vehicle, behind the seats.

While the exterior finish does exhibit some fading and spider webbing in higher-stress areas, and the brightwork is no longer show-quality, this unique vehicle nonetheless remains in its original, untouched, and as-built form. Most importantly, the “57 cHEVY” includes a pair of stout-appearing wheelie bars, which are a necessity given its short wheelbase and high power-to-weight ratio. Sure to stop traffic wherever it is shown, this 2/3-scale show rod is truly a fitting link to the inspired creative genius of Dave Deal, one of the most-beloved automotive artists of the 20th Century.

It’s about time Dave Deal started getting his due. RM estimates the nearly-life-size toy will sell for $20,000 to $40,000. Now, where are the other four cars?

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Six Degrees of Automotive Separation: Kaiser and Volvo

Like last week’s Hemmings Six Degrees of Automotive Separation Challenge, we’re placing an American independent on one end of the telephone line and an overseas automaker on the other end and trying to settle the differences between them by showing them just how many connections separate them.

If you’ve been paying attention to past Six Degrees Challenges, you might even have a head start on forming a chain of connections between the two. And if you’re a real student of automotive history, you might be able to do it in two links as we did.

But, of course, that’s not the point. The rules, as before, are simple: A connection consists of one company owning another, merging with another or sharing another’s parts. Explain your connections, and as before, the point isn’t necessarily to do it in the least number of connections, but to do it with style and with obscure connections. If you need examples, check out our previous Hemmings Six Degrees of Automotive Separation Challenges.

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Six Degrees of Automotive Separation: AMC and ZIL

In this week’s Hemmings Six Degrees of Automotive Separation Challenge, we present the battle of A to Z, of East versus West, as we challenge you to link American Motors (USA! USA! USA!) to Zavod Imeni Likhachev. It’s like the 1980 Winter Olympics Miracle on Ice, but with cars and trucks, and with a common link between the two companies – in six connections or less, that is.

We can actually think of a couple ways to do this, so, of course, no answer is wrong.

The rules, as before, are simple: A connection consists of one company owning another, merging with another or sharing another’s parts. Explain your connections, and as before, the point isn’t necessarily to do it in the least number of connections, but to do it with style and with obscure connections. If you need examples, check out our previous Hemmings Six Degrees of Automotive Separation Challenges.

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SIA Flashback - The Reo’s Last Trail Ride

In this time of chaos in the automotive world, it’s probably not a bad idea to look back at the demises of certain American automotive brands, especially the ones that went T.U. during the Depression. That is why we take a look at the 1936 Reo, the last passenger car from Ransom Olds’s second car company, in this story by Jeff Godshall from SIA #45, May-June 1978. Of course, Reo continued to build trucks for decades afterward, but its car-building days were cut short thanks to political turmoil within the company, a board of directors too proud to merge and multi-million-dollar projects that helped seal the fate of Reo automobiles.

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The CJ-3B Pages has an article on three Boy Scouts from São Paolo, Brazil, ...

* We’ve had quite a few South America-related posts lately, and we came across one more. The CJ-3B Pages has an article on three Boy Scouts from São Paolo, Brazil, who decided to attend the 1955 World Scout Jamboree in Canada, and decided to drive there in a CJ-3B. Resisting urge to make a Be Prepared joke… (via)

* Hugo90 over at the Hemmings Nation Flickr pool found this steam-powered Ford F-5 farm truck at the Pioneer Auto Show in Murdo, South Dakota. That is all.

* Wyoming junkyard. Full of classics. Owner selling. Act now.

* Finally, not only an update on the story we linked to last weekend on the auctioning off of a one-family, once-abandoned 1909 Curtiss motorcycle, but also more of the original story and the reason for that family abandoning the motorcycle.

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