1952 SoCal Special

Belly Tank Special

This is one of the original Belly Tank Specials made from the wing tank of a P-38 Lightning. These could be bought after World War II from the United States government for $35. It was built by Alex Xydias, the owner of the So-Cal Speed Shop, and ran at Bonneville in 1951. It started with a 156-cubic-inch flathead V8, but the engine was swapped twice and it ended up with a 296 cubic-inch Mercury unit, with which it set a two-way time of 195.77 mph and a one-way speed of 198.340 mph. The So-Cal Special's 198.340 mph run is still the fastest one-way speed that a non-blow flathead has ever run.

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