11 replies to this topic

[Big Jim]

Does anyone know anything about a neat looking sports car from the 60's called the "Cheetah"? What kind engine, what class did it race in, are there any still around?

[Don Capps]

The Bill Thomas Cheetah was the focus of at least several articles in SCG and a few other publications of the day. I am away from my materials right now, but until I can get back to where my files are, perhaps Michael or one of the others can fill in some of the blanks.

[Rainer Nyberg]

This link has something to offer on the subject :

http://www.cheetahracecars.org/

[Buford]

My recollection of the Cheetas is they were blisteringly fast in a straight line but did not handle predictibly, due to chassis flex. When the driver got it set for a corner, sometimes it would do what it was supposed to and he would rocket out of the turn. Other times it would jump around and unexpectedly do something evil. You never knew which it woiuld be.

Ralph Salyer was a rich plumbing contractor from Hammond, Indiana and was a friend of my dad who was also in the construction industry. I got to sit in that car in the picture, in the garage one day when I was a young teenager, and turn the wheel and say "Vrooooom, Vroooom."

[Jonathan]

These were I think powered by Chevy V8's.

I always assumed it was having a fairly short wheelbase that made them so darty & unpredictable.

Too much chassis flex ? Yeah I suppose that could be it.

Also they were rather un-reliable initially, weren't they ?

Whatever problems the car had, they didnt last that long (2-3 years ?)

I especially liked the look (outward apperance) of these cars back when I was young.

[David M. Kane]

I saw one of these cars race several times at the old Upper Marlboro track
in Southern Maryland. It was a handful! Even the fairly unmodified Corvettes of the day outperform them. The chassis characteristics were very
primitive to say the least, They looked damn neat though!

[bobbo]

David:

IIRC, practically nothing handles too well at Upper Marlboto unless the suspension was rock solid. Even that was a bit "iffy" if I remember, too. But I certainly enjoyed racing my Gordini there!! Yes, it was a handful, too.

Bobbo

[David M. Kane]

Bobbo:

What was Marlboro like to drive? I always wanted to race there. What was it
like coming out of the bowl? Was the straight as crazy it looked with all of those trees near the track?

[Don Capps]

Note to everyone: please notice that Buford spelled it "Cheeta" -- which is the spellling Bill Thomas and partner Don Edmunds used. Off the top of my head, there were something like 12-15 of the Thomas Cheeta's built. They used lots of Corvette Sting Ray parts such as the rear suspension and so forth, plus there was no driveshaft, the transmission connecting directly to the differential. I remember Jerry Titus being the first to drive one and his skills masked a number of problems it seems. The Cheeta was relatively inexpensive for the day -- probably under $10,000 easily -- and many ended up on the dragstrip in later years.

[Yelnats]

I watched the Cheeta race at Mosport in the Early sixties and even then they were known as a throwback to the obsolete front/mid engined technology of the fifties. They featured good acceleration once the driver got them straigtend out but by that time the rear engined cars were disappearing into the distance. They never were anything but an also ran when I watched them though they were considerably faster than a stock Corvette!

After that attempt to resurect the front/mid engined layout I thought that technology was DOA for high powered sports/racing but never say never! To my surprise and joy the Panoz has proved more effective in this layout than I everthought possible and I laud Mr. Panoz for the forsight and courage to bring this racer to the track. Can't wait for next year at Mosport when I hope to see the winning engine cross the line before the winning driver in a top class sports catagory again!

[rdrcr]

These cars were a great idea for Chevrolet to do battle with the Cobra on equal terms. Unfortunately the execution never quite came off as intended. I think that the early Cheeta's were built with 327 fuel-injected engines.

Perhaps the combination of 1962 Chevy Station Wagon heavy-duty spindles, Triumph Herald steering box & rack coupled with the trans. into diff. setup and a solid rear axle stuffed into a ultra-short wheelbase was at the root of the handling problems.

I remember my fastest slot car had a Cheeta body on it. I thought it was the coolest thing on 4 wheels at the time. (1966)

[ray b]

Originally posted by rdrcr
These cars were a great idea for Chevrolet to do battle with the Cobra on equal terms. Unfortunately the execution never quite off as intended.

I remember my fastest slot car had a Cheeta body on it. I thought it was the coolest thing on 4 wheels at the time. (1966)

I think the SLOT cars were way better then the real ones
did the cheeta ever have a good result in a major race??
or even finish a major race?????