Well it seems, according to several reports that date back to the mid to late 1960s there was at least one ingenious soul who took advantage of a car rental company to make the field at Seebring. The thing is we don’t know who the individual is or whether this is just another urban myth that sounds better with each retelling.
The tale is as follows: In the mid 1960s there were a series of Ford Mustangs which were specially modified by Carroll Shelby’s company and sold under the name Shelby GT.
The wiley Shelby struck a deal with the Hertz Corporation to produce a special line of GT350s for rent, which is perhaps where the term “rent-a-racer” was first coined. Early “Hertz” cars were initially available with four-speed manual transmissions at least until so many cars were returned from rental with burned and broken clutch assemblies. Later models of the cars shipped to Hertz were equipped with an automatic transmission.
It is reported that many of the GT350s were rented to use as production class cars at SCCA events, some were returned with different engines, holes where roll bars had been welded in, and other modifications to legally run on the track.
Accordingly the brakes of these rental rockets were enlarged because of the extra power. New components such as under-hood suspension bracing were also used. Staggered rear shock absorbers prevented wheel hop and axle wind-up. Functional air intake scoops were added to force air to the rear brake pads, helping keep them cool.
But really, the cars were not really made for racing — other than for the a rich weekend warrior who wanted to get the best his buddy at the local SCCA event. It is said that these models had hydraulic valves — which might do for the local SCCA event, but which probably would not last the 12 hours of Sebring.
The story is that this intrepid soul flew into Orlando and rented one of the GT 350s from the fine folks at Hertz — but rather than racing the car, he simply drove the car to Sebring, pulled the car into the garage and pulled the engine. He transferred the engine to his race car — that had the appropriate suspension, roll bars, and other safety accoutrements to pass inspection and raced.
Sunday after the race was complete, he pulled the engine, put it back into the GT 350, and returned the car to the unsuspecting folks at Hertz, thank you very much.
We don’t know the veracity of this story — but why let the facts get in the way of a good story.
Mark Petry March 23, 2009
It is a true story – Honest – and the guilty individual was Jack T. Bear