As we near the centennial of the first cars turned into hot rods, let’s take a look back at this century of speed seeking and share a few images of recent projects, parts, and finished builds that we’ve listed for auction.
When Did the First Hot Rods Appear?
The early days of souping up engines and removing weight from vehicles for greater speed and acceleration started almost in the earliest days of automobiles. In the 1920s and 30s, moonshiners created some of the first hot rods when they lightened their vehicles to outrun federal agents
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As you can see from this 1927 Model A Ford, even upholstered seats were removed to reduce weight as comfort was sacrificed for performance.
Around the same time, mechanically inclined young men with a need for speed decided 20 to 50 horsepower just wasn’t enough. So, they started building hot rods by removing as many parts as possible and pioneering new ways to get more power from stock motors.
These hot rods sacrificed roofs, seats, truck lids, fenders and engine cowlings to reduce weight while gaining bigger rear tires, overhead blowers and other performance enhancements that combine to create the authentic hot rod aesthetic.
Where Did the Word Hot Rod Come From?
The origin of the term “hot rod” is a bit foggy. But there are some good speculations.
The process of modifying vehicles for greater performance was once called “hotting up,” which is probably the origin of the first word. “Rod” could come from “roadsters” from which many hot rods were built. Another theory states that “rod” refers to the camshaft in the engine that gearheads loved to upgrade for more power.
What Kind of Cars Turned into Hot Rods?
Early builders of hot rods loved Ford Model As, Model Ts, along with Chevy Coupes. Ford’s flathead V8 was a popular engine upgrade. Seats, engine cowlings, and even roofs were removed to reduce weight and increase performance.
Hot rod builders would take a truck like this 1942 Ford, remove the bed, the fenders, and the sides of the engine cowlings.
Many builders took a liking to cutting down pickup trucks because of their powerful original engines and large engine compartments that offered plenty of room for performance-enhancing add-ons like overhead blowers, turbos, intercoolers, and even nitrous oxide injectors.
When Did Hot Rods Start to Become Popular?
After World War II, hot rods really got going as young men returned from foreign service with mechanical skills and money to spend. That combined with empty decommissioned airfields with long straight runways soon lead to the age of drag racing.
When Did Hot Rods, Muscle Cars, and Other Customized Vehicles Become Popular?
High performance factory-built cars like this 1958 Chevy Corvette let anyone buy a fast car without added labor.
In the 1950s and 1960s, the need for speed continued, but hot rods and high-performance custom cars began to pull away from each other.
When the hot rod concept reached an almost ridiculous degree with ultralight bodies and multiple engines, dragsters were born. Lightened and performance-optimized factory sedans evolved into modern NASCAR racing.
When Did Hot Rods Become A Niche in the Gearhead Community?
In the 1970s and 1980s, hot rod fever began to wane somewhat. In the muscle car era, anyone could buy a high-performance car right off the lot. Engines also reached power-to-weight ratios that provided satisfactory performance without cutting off parts.
Even so, many people still souped-up engines for more power and performance.
When Did Fuel Economy Become More Important Than Performance?
Gas bills were always a pain point for performance automobiles, but fuel economy spiked in popularity in the 1970s due to oil supply issues caused by geopolitics. Gas prices shot up and supplies became so strained people waited in lines for hours to get what fuel they could.
This was when imported Japanese vehicles from companies like Toyota, Honda and Nissan that were smaller and more fuel efficient began to dominate car sales, and American manufacturers followed suit to be able to compete.
Once mighty machines like the Mustang and Camaro even came out with 4-cylinder engines.
Are Hot Rods Still Popular Today?
In an era where most people care more about fuel economy and emissions than raw power and speed, the hot rod has found a niche among hobbyists and enthusiasts who enjoy their minimalist, retro charm and the experience of wrenching your own ride.
But these days, hot rods and street rods take a less spartan approach when it comes to comfort and style.
The supportive bucket seats in this 1939 Chevy hot rod stand in stark contrast to the minimalist interiors of earlier generations.
Gearheads and wrench turners love hot rods enough to support an industry of aftermarket parts makers so large that you can build a car from scratch that was originally manufactured about a century ago.
Today, hot rods serve as hobbies and toys for big boys, but fans of all ages still gather in clubs, attend shows, and spend hundreds of hours and thousands of dollars to build the street rods, hot rods and even rat rods of their dreams.
