That Hot Rod Edsel... [PIC]

This 1934 Ford Model 40 Edsel Ford Special Speedster seems like the template for the post war hot rods and Bonneville Flats LSRs to come. Edsel Ford made good use of the many resources under his command when he designed this boat tailed speedster, including collaborating with Chief Designer Bob Gregorie . Modifying a Model 40 frame, the lowered chassis received the V8 and their Depression idled aircraft manufacturing plant to build the aluminum body. It was finished in Edsel's favorite color: Pearl Essence Gunmetal Dark.  Edsel was a bit disappointed in that the car wasn't low or long enough after all the custom bodied sports car he had seen in Europe. The V8 block cracked in the '39-'40 winter and a new 239 cid Mercury V8 replaced it. Numerous mods to the engine included a hotter cam, Edelbrock head and a dual carburetor intake manifold. The have since been removed and the engine is back to stock 100 HP condition. When Edsel died in 1943, the car then valued at $200 was bequeathed to his widow, who never even had a driver's license, and has stayed in the family ever since.