1953 Uihlein MG Special

David Uihlein worked as an apprentice in his family business of Schlitz Brewing and at the age of 16, worked at the race shop of Carl and Tudy Marchese during the summer months. Later in life, he built a racing special using MG parts. The car had a cigar-shaped design constructed from aluminum and built by Joe Silnas. The body rested on an MG TD chassis and was powered by a modified MG TD twin-cam engine. The MG TD 1250cc XPAG powerplant was chosen for its low cost and its reliability. The engine had a hemispherical head with dual overhead camshafts. The head and cam housings were formed from nickel-alloy steel. It had dual S.U. carburetors and helped produce around 90 horsepower, a big increase over the stock 54 horsepower XPAG engine.

Karl Brocken drove the car with some success, though the racing special was not as fast or competitive as planned. David Uihlein had hoped to inspire interest in the vehicle; he would then construct and sell those to customers, along with the twin-cam head in kit form. Nevertheless, the car remains an example of an elegant and efficient design with a rather impressive mechanical setup.

by Daniel Vaughan | Mar 2014