McCoy Hot Rod

1947-48 "As Run" McCoy Hot Rod with Red Head motor (serial number 5609). Proper Duromatic tires front and rear. Motor has excellent compression. Wired nicely.

This example has the screen grill (possibly available with slotted grill as seen in the ads). Approx 2000 (estimated) sold.

Based on the Ford Model A (with a '32 grill). From the DuroMatic advertisment: "Muroc Dry Lake V-8 Roadster".

Belly Tanks web site Dry Lakes Racing at Muroc 1933

Nice 1:1 example

(Copy from Bichnstuff-ebay 8/2012)
McCOY HOT ROD ROADSTER TETHER CAR AS RACED 1946 Dick McCoy patterned is new Doro-matic Hot Rod after the popular west coast Model-A ford roadsters running at the dry-lakes, circle tracks and drag strips. First introducing his hot rod to the national public in the 1946 October issue of Model Craftsman and the 1947 Jan/Feb issue of Rail and Cable News. The car was already being sold and track tested on the west coast well before that time. Earliest ads showed the car with a slotted grill shell, this most likely was an artist's concept drawing, according to McCoy; the car was never produced with a slotted grill shell. Priced at $42.50, (less engine), it would take another $35.00 for a new McCoy red head .60 engine. Adding the cost of a new coil, condenser, ignition switch, bridle, battery pack, a couple of spark plugs and some fuel, a car ( ready to run) could cost its owner close to $100.00, a lot of money for the average working man in 1946,( equivalent to $1,185.00 today) but this was never a "poor mans hobby". The McCoy car and engine combination was good for almost 90mph right out of the box. A month later in Nov. Ed's Specialty's advertised there "Roadrunner" hot-rod, first at $32.50 and then at $18.50, half the price of the McCoy car. The cars soon became very popular with west coast racers and McCoy estimated approx 2,000 cars were sold. Both cars were reproduced in the 80's and 90's by at least 5 different people that we know of, with some casting kits still available today. It wasn't until June of 1947 that McCoy's hot rod ads showed the car with a more traditional 32 Ford style grill shell. The grill shell and wind shield frames were mad in two versions, brass or anodized metal, with a mesh grill insert and plastic wind shield, both fastened to the body with either small brass pins or screws. The new hot rod owners soon found out that they would have to run in the AMRCA's "spur-gear" class, competing against the new world record setting McCoy Teardrop and the Mathews V-Cars, also the pre-war stream liners like the Dooling "Frog" and Rexner "Zipper" now powered with improved post war engines. The only car they could beat was the "Hiller Comet" (considered just a toy by most). Finding it hard to compete in spur gear; they voiced their objection with the East coast AMRCA, only to be ignored by the race committee officials. Taking their complaints to the West Coast oriented IMRCA was a different story. With the help of Baab's Rail & Cable News (a personal friend of Dick McCoy) it didn't take very long before a "Hot Rod Class" was approved, and implemented at the very next IMRCA event on Oct 19th in Ontario, Calif. Not to be left behind the AMRCA soon followed suit with a similar class. The hot rod was now "in a class of its own"! Like true hot rodders, it didn't take long before the factory stock cars were being modified, and more and more "roadster" style "home builts" were being entered in events through out the country, with many larger clubs having there own roadster groups, like the "Hot Rod Team" of Hunting Park, Calif. and the "Reading Hot Rods "of Pa., even special hot rod style trophies were being awarded. Modifications included reducing the large frontal area and height of the stock cars, giving them a lower and more streamlined profile, also using wood body tops to reduce the weight. The modified vs. factory stock cars started new problems within the hot rod classes, as there was a big difference in there speeds. Neither of the two sanctioning organizations would make any official distinctions between stock and modified racing in the same class. Owners of McCoy's hot rod soon found out that it didn't take too many laps around the track before the fragile grill shell would be easily damaged, as it was only fastened to the top body half with two small pins or screws, leaving the lower part of the shell to hang freely with no support. Easily damaged every time the body halves were taken apart or when the car was put on a work bench or held against an electric or gas starter motor. Equally, the windshield frame and plastic windshield was prone to damaged, especially if a broom was being used to hit the ignition kill switch rod, (it didn't do much to help the cars speed either). The stock air scoops and exhaust pipes were considered decorative, nothing more. Cars were more functional and efficient with out all the dress-up items, and in the pursuit of speed, either broke off, were removed, misplaced or just discarded. Like in any car competition, there were still the "beauty queens" competing for the best looking award. The hot rod in most cases was considered a "fun class", it was affordable to race in, it still looked like a traditional race car and not like the proto's and spur-gears cars, it could actually be seen circling the track to the delight of the spectators. As the years went on, national speed records increased slowly i.e.: 95mph in 1946, 109.9 in 1947 and 114.2 in 1948 and by late 1950, L. Toppano of Washington State won the IMRCA championship with his homebuilt cut down roadster, powered by a highly modified Ilg-Dooling 61 reaching an unprecedented speed of 122.44mph. Celebrating the popularity and time less design of his successful 1946 venture, Dick McCoy re-issued, (in limited quantities) his popular Hot-Rod in the early 1990's, the name "McCoy" prominently embossed across the bottom pan