Cars with Names
 

When I was a little kid I received a plastic Revell funny car model for my birthday. I was thrilled. I put it together, painted it, and stickered it up. It sat on my bedroom shelf for years. It was McEwen's 57 Chevy, "Mongoose".

Being a young girl, I knew nothing about cars at the time. But I could relate to the names. Their names gave them not only a recognition factor, but a memorable personality. I never forgot them. I think it actually helped spur my interest in cars. First, learn the name, then learn about the car, the motor, the driver..... and so on.

I started collecting all of the racing models.
Warhorse, Snowman, The Snake, Crazy Horse, Warlord, Desperado, etc etc.

The first time I went to a drag race and saw the cars in person, I felt like part of the scene because I knew a little bit about them. I knew their names!

Today, when I'm at the track, I still look for the car's with names. There are so few now. Why is this tradition fading away?

Believe it. I've been in marketing my entire life.
The fans relate to car's with names much better than those without. Especially the youngsters or people without much auto knowledge. How do you root for a super comp dragster if it looks just like all the other dragsters?
A car with a name pasted on it suddenly has a personality and is not a big piece of noisy smelly metal any longer. (this is a quote from my niece)

So, Name your car! It might help draw more spectators, keep them interested, promote some fun brainstorming for names and perhaps help protect drag racing from extinction.

*Shelley Wiley* the former driver of the:
"Little Miss Dangerous" Vega, "NeverNever Land" dragster & "ShellShock" Camaro
And the wife of the guy that drives The Flying Monkey....

What's your car's name?

Re: Cars with Names
 

"Scratcher"

The original and always will be an original name of a car
http://www.nitrojoes.com/Scrat1.jpg
http://www.nitrojoes.com/NOVACARSHOW1.jpg

Re: Cars with Names
 

They need the space for sponsors these days.

If you want to see cars with names, check out the nostalgia funny cars. A NF/C show is like stepping back in time.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T6cTrr5ODq8

Re: Cars with Names
 

i usually don't read anything other than stock/superstock forum, for sale, or the lounge unless something catches my eye on the opening page (shame on me) but i had to read this one. back in the 80's we had a super gas opel named BAD MEDICINE, spelling might not be correct here, but was correct on car. opel was black with the lettering in silver, teal and hot pink. won every world of wheels car show was entered in. i am building a stocker and since my proposed sponsor doesn't want to get involved, i have been thinking about a paint job and design on the truck........BAD MEDICINE II. and underneath in smaller lettering THE DOCTORS BACK. dam i'm good. lol. in all seriousness i miss the names too. we even had a guy back then that had a chevelle were every body panel was a different color. we use to kid him about his "one piece at a time" chevelle. shows up one day with fresh paint, but all panels are still a different color, and lettered up ONE PIECE AT A TIME. even had his wife sew his race shirt from 1/2 a dozen shirts. won best appearing car. we gave him a standing ovation at the banquet, he was such a good sport. rick.

Re: Cars with Names
 

some of my cars were BAD NEWS, THE TANKER, THE BOOTLEGGER, AMERICAN FLYER, THE OUTLAW, RAT NOW, and my pulling tractors ALL AMERICAN and BEAUTIFUL NOISE

Re: Cars with Names
 

Shelley, It's ironic you brought this topic up as me and the family were discussing this same thing today. I too want to name my new car in memory of the days when I was a kid. I decided to let the kids have a go at it and my youngest daughter wants it to be Crazy Cajun. My oldest daughter wants Bayou Boogie and my wife had to put her 2 cents in and says it should be named Cause for Divorce. Hmmmmm, maybe she is trying to give me a hint that I should not be working on the car on Mothers Day Weekend.

Re: Cars with Names
 

My cars always have had an entry name,altho not lettered on the cars,as I liked the plain apperance of an unlettered car,[my cars rarely had MY name on them]. ........Maby now is the time for the Corvette to get "Bullets To Spare IV " on it somewhere! .....Tom

Re: Cars with Names
 

Our JR. dragsters were "Too Gorilla" and "Wee Beastie" The too gorilla liked to drive through it's early type clutch and that's how John Force decribed that problem. Wee Beastie just seemed right.

Re: Cars with Names
 

i have been using rugrat and last year commissioned a logo which ill use after my ride is painted

Re: Cars with Names
 

Ed its the " blue goose ". Dont think "mikey" has given his car a name as yet .

Re: Cars with Names
 

Lynn's Kitchen since bracket racing in '83. Took it off for awhile. Put back on in '04 - must have been a good luck charm!!!
And I miss seeing the cars with names, too!!

Re: Cars with Names
 

my car is named sh!t box.lol

Re: Cars with Names
 

Yours should be called "Ka-Ching"

Re: Cars with Names
 

I bought my 1966 SS Chevelle drag car from Steve Montalto in the Fall of 1981. Steve was a big name bracket racer from Illonois and had the Vega named the "Weekender". The Chevelle was has second car and he sold it rolling for $1000. Car naming was big in the seventies and early eighties and I wanted to come up with a good one. I studied about it for a couple of weeks, making a list of names as I thought of them. Then I started narrowing my list until I chose this one. I had been racing in street bracket class since 1976 and had won two track championships in that class. In 1981 I won Sportsman (Street) class at the NHRA Bracket Finals at Gainsville, Florida. This win convinced my Mother that I had some tallent in racing and she helped me finacially to put together my first drag car. I started racing the Chevelle in 1982 and won several races the first three seasons. Then in 1985 our track added the IHRA Hot Rod, 7.00 class to the Super Rod and Quick Rod classes that they had been running for several seasons. I had been wanting to run heads-up classes but my car wasn't fast enough, so when they started running Hot Rod class I knew this was going to be my way to race. From 1985 through 1988 I won two track championships in Hot Rod class and was second place the other two years. My best season was 1986. I was in fourteen finals with nine wins and five runner-ups. I went on to drive several other cars for other owners over the years but I still have my trusty Chevelle, and always will.

Wayne.

http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/k...EVELLE1986.jpg

Re: Cars with Names
 

Wow, what a great response! I'm loving these posts and the old photos!

Rick, I remember Bad Medicine!

Pro70z28: There is always room for a name, even with sponsors taking up prime space, if you're lucky enough to have a sponsor, ofcourse.
I enjoy the Nostalgia drags, especially since all the cars are named and they are the retro cars that got me into racing.

NitroJoe, the Scratcher photos are fantastic, what a ride!

Jim, your cars have great names.

Floyd, your daughters are right on. The fun part of naming the car is brain storming. Tell your wife I've seen Cause for Divorce... it's taken. I hope she had a lovely Mother's day.
One of our old pals was going through a divorce when he built his car, so he named it Psycho Therapy, and it lived up to the name.

Tom, put it on the car, it's a great name, Bullets To Spare IV!

Don, great names for the jrs. I love the fact that most of the juniors keep the tradition and have names on them. Some very creative names at that.

The RugRat logo is awesome. I painted a similar one on Steve Cohen's car years ago, but it was the Gator on wheels.

Hehe Ernie, it may be the Blue Goose to you, but it's Papa Smurf to every one else. (I love your car)
Yep, Mike needs to name his Nova!

Lynn's Kitchen has been one of the oddest and most talked about names in the pits, and one I love & would never forget. Even if I didn't know you sweetie. Names with stories behind them are the best.

Frank you can't call your car Sh!tbox, that's Dan's car!

Wayne, your Chevelle is awesome, we can all only dream of a season like your '86 record!

*Shelley Wiley*

Re: Cars with Names
 

I remember the "name days" of racing very well. Unfortunately I'm sure many of the names have escaped from memory. Super Gas alone had characters such as Gecker's King Kong, Nick Iarussi's Godzilla, Krohn'sPocket Rocket. The Szilagyi's had the Outlaw arrow and I think Jeff's Super Street car was Midnight Magic. Chip Baney had the beautiful Dancing Bear Corvette C/Gas in comp. Iggie was always Obsession. George Hindy was The Law in Motion. Jim Smulligan had the Time Bandit Camaro. Johhny D. was the Puertorican Dream Vega. Although never lettered (to the best of my memory) Steve Eckerd was known as the Pataskala Flash with he and brother Terrys S/Gas Anglias. James Antonette had a camaro bracket car called Yellow fever at E-Town in the early 80's. My father's first super gas car was called Double Ugly before it was repainted for a sponsors scheme. There's obviously many more but that's about all I have for now. Fun topic...

Re: Cars with Names
 

In the early 70's I first began trophy racing (B/Stock) and the beginning of bracket racing with a no name metallic green 4-speed 66 Chevelle SS 396 , then came the "BLACK RAT-LER" pro and super pro 68 Camaro, early 80's my first super gas car, (Johnny Jones') low rider 68 Camaro named "IGGIE'S EASY" followed by the first "OBSESSION" named 85 Corvette, replacing the Corvette in the early 90's came a Brogie Series V 27T Ford Roadster named "TENSION" (thanks Warren!), early 00's replaced 27T Ford roadster body with an 02 Vette body (thanks Tom Goldman!) on the Brogie chasis and the name "OBSESSION" appropriately returned.

Re: Cars with Names
 

When I first started driving my own stuff, all my cars had "Simply Insane" on them....... when I got the S/G roadster, and I was still a cop, I put "Swift Justice" on it...... I thought it kinda fit.......

Re: Cars with Names
 

In 1980 when my uncle Jim came out with the Buick V6 Opel GT, he named it the "Wind Of Change" after running a 1969 Z/28 Camaro since it was new. Other possible names for the 3.8 liter engine Opel was "A Gallon Of Go" and another name which someone is using now for their 6 cylinder is "Buzzin Half Dozen".

Names were good and made it easy to remember.

Safe Travels Everyone!

Re: Cars with Names
 

Sorry Iggie. I can't believe I forgot about "Tension"...I know better. Hey Charlie, what's up!

Re: Cars with Names
 

I was thinkin bout naming my probe "Red on the Noodle" :P

Re: Cars with Names
 

I had "come along way" on my car for a couple of years because of all the various stages it went through. Funny thing is, everyone kept telling me I spelled come wrong?? Still cant figure that one out:D

Re: Cars with Names
 

Bwahahahahahaha..... oh my!

Re: Cars with Names
 

Gosh, this goes back to the 60's & 70's...."ShakinAllOver" M/P camaro, Tom Burnell's "Motivation", Dick Traylor's "Mother's Worry." Great topic...

Re: Cars with Names
 

Well, back in 1978 I had a 69 camaro named" Babymaker", Can't remember why I named it that.

Re: Cars with Names
 

And how many are there Gary???

Shelly - my car was named after my house kitchen - not a restaurant. Think you know that, but others may not. Sorry to the wives, but I chose the car over the kitchen remodel!!!

Re: Cars with Names
 

I miss those days too. I've been talking about it with my 6-year-old daughter, what to name my about-to-be resurrected Super-Gas Vega. When I bought the rolling chassis in early 1988, it was called "Strip Teaser". I took that lettering off and changed the name to "Student Driver" since I was a college student.
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...oodburn-02.jpg

After I took out 5 sections of top end guardrail after a top-end engine explosion, I was tempted to rename it "Sudden Impact". I think I'll name it "Old School" now, since it's totally an old school car and I plan to race it "old school" style (low mph). Other options included "Down Zero", a phrase from a perfect run in pistol competitions.

Amongst the local cars back in the 80's, there was a guy whose race car was called the "Panty Raider". Then he built a car for his wife and they called it, appropriately enough, the "Pants Raider". The late Marv Buchanan, who owned a local pizza parlor, called his car the "Pizza Vendor". Ken Heard always called his cars "Rip City", which was a catch phrase for our local NBA team (Portland Trail Blazers). He bought a Pinto from a guy whose last name was "Cross", and it was called "Crossfire". Ken left that name on it for quite a while. Jim Donaldson has a Pinto which has been called "Vindicator" for at least 25 years that I remember. One local car which never had its name on the outside but was nevertheless well known is "Old Gold", the 1939 Chevy 4-door owned by Bob Comeau and driven by his son Paul.

Nowadays I occasionally drive a fast diesel pickup at diesel events. It is powered by a Chevy/Isuzu Duramax engine, and called the DirtyMax.
http://i238.photobucket.com/albums/f...8-P9060226.jpg

Regards

Re: Cars with Names
 

One more name, suggested by my girlfriend:
"The Other Woman"...

Re: Cars with Names
 

Michael.... you could call it The Tonya Harding Special. LOL

Re: Cars with Names
 

I grew up with so many named cars up north..... some of my favorites are The Hook
Outlaw
Just another Camaro
Hot To Trot
The car I own now " Studster"
my dads old Duster "Adrenaline"
and love my dads present car Bill Flynns last ride "Yankee Peddler"

Re: Cars with Names
 

I remember back in the Cajun National days there was a 28 ford coupe named the Hee-Haw. That thing was wicked when it left. It usually twisted the frame every race or so.

Re: Cars with Names
 

The "California Dreaming II" 55 Chevy ran at my home track in the early eighties. It was an absolute show car and would never have been raced if it were mine. The car was stolen and never recovered that I know of.

Wayne.


http://i276.photobucket.com/albums/k...LOSCHUND55.jpg

Re: Cars with Names
 

I started racing in the early seventies and car names were very popular at that time.It was a track requirement to " Have your car professionally lettered".

Mine was a white Camaro named "Shake & Bake" but I do remember some others:

Stevie's stripper
Moon Raker Nova
Coal Dust
Spellbound
Big Brother
Joe Shane's Joke
the Slugger
The starwarship
No big thing
Novacain
Odds & Ends
Marshal Law
The Loose Caboose
Uncle Louie
Hard Times
Short Time
The Undertaker
Bad Co
Snow Blind
Hang em high
Godzilla
Brown's Eye
I also got my but wipped in a super comp final by a dragster named "Incognito"
I also had some friends who named thier dragster "Situational Ethics"

I really miss that colorfull side of the sport!

BB

Re: Cars with Names
 

How about my '67 Buick GS400 "Animal Eater" with a real Stage II Buick 455 that ran 10.90's prepared by none other then James Antonette (before he was JA Performance). The car ran at national Speedway in the 70's. I would love to know who has the car now!

Re: Cars with Names
 

what about Wooly Bully?? or how ever the hell you spell it?

Re: Cars with Names
 

Pete, that was my brothers brand new 1965 GTO (that he still owns) named after the song with the same name applied to the car with shoe polish.

Re: Cars with Names
 

Ok, we still have the bracket racing "Pouncing Pony" 67 Mustang. Maybe one of these days we'll dust it off and get it out of the garage and back to the track.

Kenny and Sharon Edgar
103 S/ST
1000 S/ST

Re: Cars with Names
 

see!!! and you think I don't pay attention to you!