Hurried Hurst Golden Opportunity - Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals

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Hurried
Hurst
Reviving a Chrysler
300-Hurst
page 28
Golden
Opportunity
Hurst products gather
at muscle car show
page 30
Winter
warrior
A 1967 GT0 for
snow and sun
page 38
Golden
Opportuni
Proving that rare versions of great cars don't get thrown
out was this 1968 Hurst/Olds prototype convertible.
Below, Hurst and Pontiac were aiming high when they
named the '72 SSJ Grand Prix after a Duesenberg model.
Chicago muscle car show gathers
hairy Hurst products
Story and photos by John Gunnell
4 4 I islike a... Hurst museum," exclaimed one visitor to
last year's First National Bank of New York (FNBNY) Muscle Car and Corvette Nationals, the indoor
event that's been held at the Donald E. Stephens Convention
Center in Rosemont, Ill., the past two years. He was talking
about "The Cars of Hurst" exhibit that stretched almost half
the length of the giant hall that not only showcased the popular
gold-and-white Hurst/Oldsmobile products and the red, white
and blue AMCs, but also such oddball creations as a whiteand-gold Hurst/Olds station wagon and a four-door.
The H/O Vista Cruiser station wagon on display was built
for the 1972 Indianapolis 500. The race was paced by a Hurst/
Olds convertible, but the Hurst/Olds wagon was made available
to the speedway's medical director. Hurst built the 1974 Colonnade four-door sedan displayed at the show for speedway owner
Tony Hulman to drive in the festivities that year.
Hurst wasn't just about building special performance cars
and parts, it also built rescue tools that could tear a car apart.
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Old Cars Weekly News & Marketplace / April 5, 2012
The original Warminster Township, Pa., company was first
known as Hurst-Campbell and was co-founded by George
Hurst and Bill Campbell in 1958 to make Hurst shifters and
other high-performance parts to be sold in the aftermarket
niche.
George Hurst focused on building products that embodied quality and precision. In 1968, the company expanded and
launched Hurst Performance Vehicles, one of the first aftermarket companies to partner with automakers to produce limitededition, high-performance vehicles with standout quality and
performance. In addition to the now-legendary Hurst/Oldsmobile built between 1968 and 1988, Hurst teamed with AMC,
Pontiac, Chrysler, Chevrolet, Dodge, Mustang, Ford truck and
Dodge truck to build specialty performance vehicles.
By the late '60s, Hurst shifters were legendary in drag racing. The well-built Hurst four-on-the-floor shifter gave better
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Hurst was
creative with its
product names,
and the
SC/Rambler
said a lot with
just a few letters.
CABS of "UBST
12/000 "
196 pAPArttut S
control of gear selection with improved
shifter geometry. The reputation of the
Hurst shifter was so good that factory
muscle cars eventually offered them.
Hurst expanded by acquiring clutch
maker Schiefer and Airheart brakes in
the '60s. In 1968, the company made
a public stock offering, and in 1970, it
was purchased by appliance maker Sunbeam. In 1987, the Hurst operations became part of Mr. Gasket. In 2007, B&M
bought the Hurst brand.
The celebration of the company's
storied history in Chicago was crafted
by Bob Ashton, the managing member
of the FNBNY Muscle Car and Corvette
Nationals, and it was fabulous.
In the center row of Hurst cars
was a booth with a giant Hurst
golden shifter flanked by the
famous "Hemi Under Glass"
Barracuda and the legendary
"Hairy Olds" 4-4-2 drag car.
Longtime Hurst spokesperson Linda Vaughn signed
autographs near the one-ofa-kind 1974 Hurst Delta 88
convertible that was made for
her. Also on hand was "Doc"
Watson, one of the men who made
Oldsmobile a performance car.
Other attractions included a Hurst
child's car, a one-off 1968 Hurst/Olds
convertible, a '69 AMC SC/Rambler,
a 1972 Hurst SSJ Pontiac Grand Prix,
a multitude of coupes and convertibles
that served as Indy Pace Cars and festival cars, and an assortment of the modem Hurst packages available for the
now-generation Camaro, Mustang and
Chrysler 300, as well as a few trucks,
Above, in 1970, Chrysler turned to Hurst
for help in reviving its 300 model's longlost performance image; the 300-Hurst
was the result.
Left, the 1966 Hurst "Hemi Under
Glass" was a Barracuda drag car with
the engine mounted under the "fishbowl" glass hatch.
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•
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HUGE
Automotive Parts a Accessories
SW P MEET
MARCH 25, 2012
Indiana State Fairgrounds - West Pavilion
1202 E. 38th Street - Indianapolis, Indiana
Sunday 8AM-3PM
Info:
(708) 563-4300
www. Supe rSundaylndy_com
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April 5, 2012 / Old Cars Weekly News & Marketplace
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