My mother's older brother was a "car guy". Uncle Shorty liked his cars to be big as well as fast. I first became aware that the cars he drove were flashier than Dad's when I saw his new red 1955 Packard Caribbean. I was eight years old at the time.
In 1957 he went to the Indianapolis 500. When he came home he was driving a new Chrysler 300C. He was an impulsive person. I never heard the circumstances surrounding the purchase of the Chrysler. It could have been as simple as having been driving past a dealership, seeing it sitting on the showroom floor, and deciding that it should be his.
What wasn't to love about that car? The long sweeping lines of the body ended with those fabulous fins. It's light and airy hardtop had C pillars as minuscule as the A pillars at the windshield. In a rollover accident that top would have been down on the top of the seats in a heartbeat. It had a gorgeous tan leather interior.
If the cosmetics of the car didn't seal the deal opening the hood would have been the clincher for him. The Firepower Hemi was called the "Whale" by the racers of the time. It's 392 cubic inches (6.4 liters) was fueled by two 4 barrel carburetors that produced 375 hp and 420 ft.lbs of torque.
I wouldn't be surprised if the drive home to Northeastern Ohio wasn't some kind of record at the time. Everyone agreed that Shorty drove too fast, but he wasn't reckless. Mom made no secret of her worry whenever I had the opportunity to ride with him. I just naturally assumed that she gave him instructions on how he was to drive when I was in the car. It was always fun to ride with him and that car was particularly thrilling.
The 300C in the photo caught my eye because it was exactly like Uncle Shorty's. This car is in the Detroit Institute of Arts- part of "Car Design in the Motor City 1950-2020". You can read more about the cars on the display and other pieces in the museum's collection at curbsideclassic.com.
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