Gasser Wars: Drag Racing's Street Classics: 1955-1968 [Hardcover]

Larry Davis (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 15, 2003

In the late 1950s, thousands of street legal hot rods participated in organized drag races across the country - they ran in three major classes: Gas, Modified Production, and Modified Sports. As the racers got more serious, these cars were street legal in appearance only. Yeah, they had headlights, taillights, and interiors, but they were full-on race cars, with huge blown Hemi engines, wide racing slicks, raised front suspensions. Racers soon discovered that small, lightweight cars were the fastest, and the classic Gasser was born - cars like the Stone Woods & Cook '40 Willys. Because these cars resembled street vehicles, they had a huge fan base, and their short wheelbases and wildly overpowered engines made them exciting to watch. And, as cam manufacturers began sponsoring cars and touting their accomplishments in ads, the "Gasser Wars" were born. Thousands of spectators flocked to events where the top Gassers in the country would face off in grudge matches. Some cars even raced internationally in Europe and Australia. These were among the most popular and exciting racers of the era - many of the top original cars have been restored and are now valuable museum pieces, and the "Gasser" look is popular again among hot rodders.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Larry Davis was a hobby drag racer between 1960 and 1970, competing in various Stock Modified Production and Super Stock classes. His efforts included participation in the 1967 and 1969 NHRA National Championships to Indianapolis, IN. When he wasn't racing, he was an avid fan of the Super Stock class and took many photos of the cars and crews. Davis is the author of the very popular "Super Stock: Drag Racing the Family Sedan."

Product Details

• Hardcover: 192 pages
• Publisher: CarTech (November 15, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1884089771
• ISBN-13: 978-1884089770
• Product Dimensions: 10.3 x 10.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,416,861 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great history of a well-loved class, October 31, 2003

By 

popular culture lover (Travelers Rest, SC United States) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Gasser Wars: Drag Racing's Street Classics: 1955-1968 (Hardcover)

Like Davis' previous book on Super Stockers, this one's a keeper. Unlike that one, this one has a wealth of color photographs. And Davis supplements the pix with interesting, well-researched text. Anyone with an interest in this class or drag racing history in general will love this book. An A+ effort.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ESSENTIAL, February 23, 2006

By 

F. L. Busch (Reno, NV) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Gasser Wars: Drag Racing's Street Classics: 1955-1968 (Hardcover)

if you are at ALL interested in historic drag classes, horsepower, hot rods, etc. this book is a must. There simply isn't any other source of information and photographs on gassers out there. Hundreds of rare photographs of gassers from the golden age make this a perfect coffee table book. The appendix at the back listing all the cars and the classes they raced in is also very helpful if attempting to "recreate" a historic gasser. This book is required reading!

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Time Warp Gasser Wars, June 11, 2007

By 

'57 Chevy Gasser Style (Kansas City) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Gasser Wars: Drag Racing's Street Classics: 1955-1968 (Hardcover)

This book is GREAT! Awesome pictures and history well documented, you can almost feel like you were there to witness these cars and drivers in person on race day. I was very young when this type of racing was being replaced by funny cars and pro stock drag cars but this book brings it all back!