Q: Greg I saw your article about the VW Thing a couple of weeks ago and it reminded me of the Citroen Mehari. I looked up a piece of literature I had and copied a few pages for you.
In case you aren’t familiar with this “strange one,” it is based on the running gear from an air-cooled 2-cylinder 2CV Citroen from France with a plastic body. They were never imported but a few found their way over. There were actually a couple of them in Sayre in the 1970s but they never made it on the road.
A while ago I mentioned in an email to you that I had raced a 3-cylinder SAAB powered sports racer around the northeast many years ago. You asked for a picture and I finally found one. The car was a Bobsy SR3 with an aluminum tube frame and fiberglass body. Power was by the 3 cylinder 2 cycle highly modified SAAB engine through a Porsche 4 speed transmission rear end unit. It ran in the D Sports Racer class in the early 1970s.
Keep up your good articles. Glen Tolbert, Sayre, Pa.
The 1961 to 1963 Pontiac Tempest was the very first compact car released by Pontiac, and featured an innovative front 4-cilinder engine and rear transaxle design. (Pontiac)
A: Glen, thanks so much for not only sending the photos, I have to admit that I never knew about Citroen’s Mehari, which is pretty similar in theory only to VW’s Thing. Granted, I don’t think the Citroen would ever pass a state safety inspection, and if doing a real side-by-side comparison to the VW Thing, the Citroen is not only smaller and less powerful, the “theory only” comparison would be the only real comparison to VW’s fun machine.
I had an uncle that at one time was considering buying either a Citroen or a Peugeot back in the early 1960s and I remember telling him the Peugeot would be my recommendation based solely on looks. I remember telling him if he bought the Citroen he would be the laughing stock of all his employees at the south Jersey based Shop Rite Supermarket he managed.
Thankfully when it came to signing on the bottom line, Uncle Joe pulled in to our driveway with a brand new 1962 Pontiac Tempest and its mechanically unique front engine and rear transaxle setup. Available only from 1961 to 1963 in this 4-cylinder transaxle combination, the Tempest was Pontiac’s initial compact car and my uncle’s was a diamond blue finish. The rear-mounted transaxle was coupled to a torque shaft that arced in a downward bow within a curved, longitudinal tunnel. (Phew!) This design allowed for a flatter floor and better weight distribution. The Tempest featured a 2-speed automatic transaxle although an optional upgrade could be ordered that turned it into a four-speed (two complete 2-speed automatics merged together) and it was called the Tempest Powershift.
The Citroen Mehari was a recreational / utility vehicle built by the French automaker from 1968 through 1988, It weighed only 1,179 lbs. Over 144,000 Meharis were sold during its run and was named after the famous fast running camel, Mehari. The vehicle was never exported to the U.S., as it would not pass state safety inspections. Like the VW Thing, the Mehari offered removal of all doors and folded top. It was popular with beach goers and the military. (Citroen)
As for your Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) racing here on the east coast, the photo you sent of the SAAB powered Bobsy is awesome. Again, thanks for the info on the Citroen Mehari as I never knew it existed and I agree with you it was a “strange one” for sure. Further, as we both currently live in Sayre, I didn’t arrive until 2008 so I missed those Meharis sitting around.
Ocean City American Graffiti reunion
Q: Greg, your Edsel camper story ran in the Bloomsburg, Pa., daily paper on Sunday May 21. Thanks for the mention and photos. Attached are some photos from the American Graffiti 50th Anniversary display in Ocean City, Md. three weeks ago. Candy Clark and Mackenzie Phillips from the movie posed for a photo with me and my ’58 Edsel. Ken Dye, Sunbury, Pa.
A: Thanks so much Ken and I wish I had more space to run all the photos you sent, but I sent three to my syndicate and hope they can sneak them in. It sure looks to have been a great reunion. I’ll keep this reply short as the next request deals with the movie’s ’55 Chevy.
Sayre, Pa. former racer Glen Tolbert raced this 3-cylinder SAAB powered Bobsy SR3 that featured an all-aluminum frame. Tolbert raced in the Northeast Division SCCA races in the 1970s in the D/Sports Racer class. (Tolbert collection)
‘American Graffiti’ 1955 Chevy one and the same as ‘Two Lane Blacktop’
Q: Greg, I remember you wrote a column a long time ago on the “Two Lane Blacktop” ’55 Chevy and it being the same ‘55 Chevy that was in “American Graffiti.” Can you update us again? Paul Landers, Spokane, Washington.
A: Paul, your request falls right into place thanks to Ken Dye’s American Graffiti Reunion experience.
“American Graffiti” was a 1973 hit movie about one wild night of high schoolers and music and their friends set in 1962 in Modesto, Calif. (see the May 21 column for more on the movie).
“Two Lane Blacktop,” meanwhile, was released in 1971 and became a cult classic, starring singing star James Taylor, the Beach Boys Dennis Wilson, Laurie Byrd and Warren Oates. Its’ theme dealt with the goings on of the foursome during their racing quest with Oates and his 1970 GTO from out west to Washington, D.C. for “pink slips.” Of the four top billed performers, only Taylor is still with us.
As for the awesome flat black and then gloss black ’55 Chevy of both movies, noted car builder Richard Ruth built three ’55 Chevys initially for “Two-Lane Blacktop.” Ruth has a part in the movie as a gas station mechanic wearing a “Glendale Speedshop” shirt when Taylor and Wilson arrive for fuel.
The “Graffiti” reunion featured the cars, stars and music that made the movie a low-budget gigantic Hollywood hit. Dye’s Edsel, driven in the movie by Cindy Williams (Laurie) is seen here behind the 1958 Chevy Impala of Ron Howard, who played Steve. (Dye collection)
Of the three Chevys in “Two-Lane,” one was used as a camera car for interior shots while the second and third ’55 Chevys were utilized for racing, street, and highway scenes. The main “Two-Lane Blacktop” Chevy featured a 454 big-block with aluminum heads, tunnel ram intake and dual Holley carburetors. The transmission was a rock crusher Muncie M-22 hooked to 4.88 gears. A straight axle and four-wheel disc brakes were also employed. Lots of fiberglass was used, and Plexiglas was used for sliding windows. One car was built for a rollover scene that never made the final movie cut.
Perhaps the most famous ’55 Chevy ever to appear in Hollywood movies is this Richard Ruth built, 454-powered example that appeared in both “Two Lane Blacktop” and “American Graffiti.” The car is shown in primer flat black with stars Dennis Wilson, Laurie Bird and Dennis Wilson. (Universal Pictures)
Thanks to Gary Kurtz, who was involved with both movies, the same “Two Lane Blacktop” Chevy appeared in “American Graffiti.” He took the primered flat black ’55 from “Two-Lane” and made it into the shiny gloss black ’55 used in “Graffiti” and driven by Harrison Ford. They replaced the big hood scoop with a smaller one, added chrome wheels, put in different windows and then added a hinged trunk instead of the lift off. Other than that, it is the same vehicle.
(Greg Zyla is a syndicated automotive columnist who welcomes reader input on the collector car hobby, auto nostalgia and motorsports. You can catch him at greg@gregzyla.com.)
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