1949

Paul Schiefer's 1925 Ford Model T Roadster of San Diego, California. Schiefer was a member of the San Diego Roadster Club. He started racing his roadster in 1947, and it became one of the few cars campaigned on the lakes and the strips that, within a decade, saw its first-year top speeds on the dry lakes exceeded by its later 1/4-mile ETs. In 1949 the roadster received a 1927 Ford roadster body.

Eugene Pereira's 1929 Ford Model A Roadster, was finished in 1949.

Buddy Hinman's 1931 Ford Model A Roadster of Rome, New York. The build was started in 1947 and completed in 1949 when Buddy was 13 years old.

Fran Bannister's 1932 Ford Roadster. Completed in 1949, Fran's roadster is one of the first hot rods of New England.

Mac Schutt's 1932 Ford Roadster, of Bel Air, Los Angeles, California. The build took two years, and it was completed in 1949.

Tom Hunt's 1934 Ford roadster of Chattanooga, Tennessee. Tom was a friend of Honest Charley, and he worked for him after-school, helping him fill mail orders. The build was started in 1948 and completed in 1949. Total build time was 15 months.

Joe "Bud" Simmons' 1936 Ford 3-Window Coupe of Chowchilla, California. Bud was a founding member of the Throttle Benders car club, and photos taken in 1949 shows the car running a filled roof, solid hood sides, dual spotlights, and flipper caps.

Harold Johnson's 1938 Ford Tudor of Inglewood, California. The tudor was Harold's first car, and the build was started in 1948. This photo shows the car as it appeared in 1949.

Harry Keiichi Nishiyama's 1939 Ford convertible of Hilo, Hawaii. Harry's chopped and channeled Ford was built in 1949.

Gil Ayala's 1940 Mercury. Gil's Merc was completed New Years' Day 1949.

Dean Fellows' 1941 Cadillac Convertible

George Shugart's 1946 Chevrolet Convertible of Culver City, California was restyled in 1949.

Vincent E. Gardner's 1947 Studebaker Sportster. The car was designed and built by famed automobile designer Vincent E. Gardner of South Bend, Indiana while he was working under famous industrial designer Raymond Loewy. Known as the Gardner Special the build was completed in 1949. In 1950 it won the Most Magnificent Custom Roadster Award at the National Roadster Show featuring a removable Plexiglas top that could be stored inside the trunk compartment.

Marcia Campbell's 1949 Chevrolet Convertible was restyled by Barris Kustoms in 1949.

The Throttle Benders car club was established in 1949. Joe "Bud" Simmons was a founding member of the club, and according to his grandson, Brian Burnham, it wasn't a big club, "just a bunch of farm kids from the California Central Valley." The members of the club were from the town of Chowchilla, California. Photo courtesy of Brian Burnham.

A Bell Auto Parts ad from Motor Trend October 1949.

A California Bill ad from Motor Trend October 1949.

In 1949, a wealthy client in Sicily commissioned Italian car design firm and coachbuilder Pininfarina to design a one-off sports car. Known as the Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 SS, the elegant coupe is believed to be the first automobile that adopted dual headlights. Photo by Ronnie Krabberød - Right On Magazine.

<-- 1948 - 1940s - 1950 -->

Oldsmobile introduced their new Rocket overhead vale V8 engines.

Nick Matranga purchased his 1940 Mercury for $650 in 1949.

Hot Rods Built or Completed in 1949

Eugene Pereira's 1929 Ford Model A Roadster
Buddy Hinman's 1931 Ford Model A Roadster
Fran Bannister's 1932 Ford Roadster
Mac Schutt's 1932 Ford Roadster
Tom Hunt's 1934 Ford Roadster

Custom Cars Built or Completed in 1949

Joe "Bud" Simmons' 1936 Ford 3-Window Coupe
Harry Keiichi Nishiyama's 1939 Ford Convertible
Gil Ayala's 1940 Mercury Coupe
Dean Fellows' 1941 Cadillac Convertible
George Shugart's 1946 Chevrolet Convertible
Vincent E. Gardner's 1947 Studebaker Sportster
Marcia Campbell's 1949 Chevrolet Convertible

Hot Rod and Custom Car Clubs Established in 1949

Throttle Benders