I know everybody has their faults...we're all human and that's just the way we're designed. But in my 65 years, and 50 plus years on the fringes of drag racing...I've NEVER heard anyone utter one negative word about Tom Ivo. I've seen him at meets, etc. but never met him....and his personality is one that just seems to put folks at ease and in a positive mood. What a blessing. I know Tommy's up there in years now, and I pray that his health and spirit are strong and happy! To me, he's an American treasure.
Hey fans, remember to share this on your media. This should have lots more than 125K views. As of this posting, TV Tommy is 83 and still burning oxygen.
Tommy had a house in Lakewood Ohio behind the Spitzer Dodge dealer and when I walked past on the way home from school I would see him working on these cars and with the glass sided trailer in the drive
Tommy engineered this car for one thing.........showmanship.....that's how Tommy Ivo made his money. Back in those days, the talk of the dragstrip was Don Garlits and TV Tommy. As you can see from watching him, he is a classact within himself as well. Thanks, Tommy, for many wonderful, wonderful years. All the best.
Never got to see the dragster but did get to see the 4 engine buick wagon on farewell tour will always be in my memory at lebonon valley speedway hopefully I have pictures can still remember standing at the gate as they came back from run true showmanship was wish the museum was closer would love see all his cars.
I saw a show dragster, fully functional, at a 1964 car show in L.A. (maybe the Winternationals Show?) that was powered by FOUR 1,710 cubic inch V-12 Allison aircraft engines with 4-wheel drive and 2 slicks per corner (2 wheels welded together on all four sides) and was asperated with some kind of blower on each motor. It was called "Quad Al." He also had a Isetta 600 (circa; late 50's) with a single V-12 1,710 inch Allison and room in the back for one small driver! It was called "Al Setta."
I remember seeing that car on the cover of a Hot Rod magizine back when I was a kid! I have never seen another picture or heard of such a car until now. Thanks for sharing.
To : Bob Bobberson I have seen some of the plastic kit's ' but I have never seen a die cast of this car Im shure it would not be cheep to buy that is is if any one would be even close to selling it !! Very COOL CAR !!!
Tommy used the 322 cubic inch "nailhead" Buick for this project, probably because the configuration of the heads had the valve covers straight up instead of on an angle. I'll bet it allowed him to fit the motors together on the inside heads.
The 322cid was the '53 engine size. The early '60s nail heads were the 401 CID Wildcat 410 ( Buick used torque rating to name engines) or the later Electra/Riviera 425CID "Electra 445". Depending on when it was built it probably used either of those engines.
Just noticed that Tommy says at the end that it took a gallon to make a run. Then he says that is 4 mile to the gallon. Didn't he mean 4 gallons to the mile, if a run is a quarter of a mile? LOL, just caught that. Cool video.
Lockheed's legendary P-38 had no torque effect or P-Factor either when all other single-engine fighters did. 1 of its V-12 Allison powerplants was built for counter reverse rotation canceling out any ill effects of torque, especially on max-power takeoffs...
I was at Orange County International Raceway when Tommy ran this car for the last time. You think the car looks cool sitting there, man, the SOUND was way awesome.
The two engine Top Gas car that Ivo ran in 1960 must have had very sound and solid motor mounting because... if those two engines should have even one small moment of crank shaft misalignment due to chassis torque... those two custom made flywheels would eat each other up in a New York nanosecond...!!! Can you dig it...?
If it's the same car, he had a station wagon body on it when he was on his farewell tour when he ran at New England Dragway. I believe Al Segrini actually drove it because Tommy had hurt his back. It was cool watching them having to push start it cause I'd ridden in the push vehicle as a kid when my dad & his friends were still running a BB/GD w/a 392 Chrysler Hemi.
I have just fallen into a kind of severe Slingshot addiction and consuming videos like Smarties there is always that one question ... how was it possible to align motor(s) with drivetrain and axle of such torque giants within the working (not 'safe') tolerances keeping the whole assembly from disintegrate in a shower of shrapnel when fully engaged .. especially in the light of shoestring shed racing which obviously had to operate on the big tool of improvising . and I'm not even thinking about 'mixing' fuel and messing with blowers and injection 😰
Patrick Garcia… dhy5342 is correct. If it takes the car with 4 motors 1 gallon of fuel to drive a ¼ mile, that’s one quart of fuel for each motor. If one motor had to run a mile it would use 4 quarts or 1 gallon. Or if the car had to run 1 mile {4 runs} on 4 engines you would multiply 4 engines x 4 quarts which totals 16 quarts which equals 4 gallons. So each engine would consume 1 gallon per mile. All four engines would consume 4 gallons per mile. Might the algebra class I took in 5th grade back in 72 finally be of some use? LMMFAO!
Having the same amount of power to the front wheels as the rear makes it a bit of a shit idea because of weight transfer. It would probably be better if the drive shafts of all four engines were connected some how, maybe just with two large gears spanning between the distance between the two crankshafts since they're already turning opposite directions.
The engines that drive the front wheels are installed backwards in the chassis, the front dif. must be flipped upside down in order for both the front and rear tires to be powered in the same direction.
just like in class i didnt pay attention and always joking around.. how do you steer a differential . lol maybe its got half shafts.. one thing i remember from watching this is that its the car of cars ..all engines in perfect sync.. M M < mean mother
slimbicit@gmail.com This car is an icon of engiering - I mean really who would have ever thought of building a dragster with 4 BIG BLOCK OLDSMOBILE MOTOR"S ? Much less gettin in it & drag racing it ! I rember this car from when I was just a kid ' I think there is a model kit of this car ' i would love to buy & build . KICK ASS !!! Who care's if it drove like a tank !!!
James Rodgers There are multiple models. One was a very limited die cast model and the other was a plastic one you put together. My Uncle saw the cars first and last runs. Right before Christmas I found an unopened plastic model of it. Perfect timing!
