CarTech® - Hurst Equipped - Revised and Updated Edition: More than 50 Years of High Performance

George Hurst was a hot rodder at heart, but he was also a visionary, an innovator, a brilliant promoter, and he was particularly skilled at building alliances. Hurst developed and marketed a high-performance line of shifters that led the industry and became the cornerstone of the company. After forming an alliance with Anco Industries, Hurst marketed and sold more than 100 speed parts that included shifters, heads, wheels, and many other parts. Eventually, the Hurst catalog became the source for high-performance parts in the 1960s and 1970s.

Jack Doc Watson joined Hurst and became a pivotal figure within the company, which led to many performance projects with Pontiac. Over the years, Hurst also partnered with Oldsmobile to build special 442s known as the "Hurst" Olds, with AMC to build the wickedly effective SC Rambler, and with Chrysler to create a number of Super Stock cars as well as the 300H. He also helped build one of the most memorable exhibition cars in drag-racing history, the Hemi Under Glass.

No other company or individual had as big of an impact on so many aspects of the automotive industry as George Hurst. His performance parts were some of the best ever, the competition cars won many races, and the muscle cars that bear his name were some of the best of the era. Scores of interviews, in-depth research, and exceptional insight from veteran magazine editor Richard Truesdell and co-author Mark Fletcher have created a great book. In this softcover edition, Hurst Equipped: Revised and Updated Edition captures the complete story from the production cars and race cars to the performance parts.

Table of contents

Acknowledgments

Foreword

Chapter 1: Humble Beginnings: Birth of a Performance Empire

• Don Lane and Bill Campbell Join Hurst
• A Couple Early Conversions
• A Partnership Made Official
• Accidental Innovation
• Barely Hanging On

Chapter 2: Turmoil and Triumph: Hurst's Growing Pains 1959-1963

• The ANCO Alliance
• Hurst Performance Products Floor Shifter
• The Wangers Connection
• Hurst Shifter Hospital
• Racing Promotions

Chapter 3: Shifting into High Gear: Hurst and Campbell Establish an Icon

• Facility Expansion

Chapter 4: In the Heat of Battle: Hurst Competition Cars

• Hurst Floor Shift Special
• Hurst Shifter Special
• Hemi Under Glass
• Hairy Olds
• Baja Boot
• Goldenrod

Chapter 5: AMC Gets Serious: American Motors and Hurst Join Forces

• 1969 Super Stock AMX
• 1970 Super Stock AMX
• SC/Rambler
• 1970 Rebel Machine
• 1971 Hurst Jeepster

Chapter 6: A Legend is Born: Hurst Teams with Oldsmobile

• One Thing Leads to Another
• 1968 Program
• 1969 Program
• 1970 Program
• 1972 Indy 500 Pace Car
• Performance on the Decline
• 1974 Program
• 1975 Program
• 1976, 1977, 1978 Proposals
• 1979 Program
• 1982 Proposal
• 1983 Program
• 1984 Program
• 1988 Aero Program
• Conclusion

Chapter 7: Mopars with a Twist of Hurst: A Match Made in Performance Heaven

• Competition Heats Up
• Tarozzi and the Test Mule
• Mr. Norm's 1968 Dart GSS
• Hemi Darts and Barracudas
• The 300H

Chapter 8: The Hurst Marketing Machine: Making History

• Hurst Ads
• A Passion for Racing
• The First Hurst Girl
• GeeTO Tiger Giveaway
• Miss Golden Shifter Program

Chapter 9: Hurst Performance Company: Missed Shifts and Rebirth

• Hurst Innovations
• Hurst Goes Public
• One-Off Vehicles

Chapter 10: Inside the Doors of HQ: Business Changes

• Management Shift
• Sunbeam Buys Hurst Performance
• Allegheny Acquires Sunbeam

Chapter 11: Changing Hands and Changing Times: An Era of Transitions for Hurst

• Tribute Cars

Mark Fletcher
Mark Fletcher is an automotive author and historian. His automotive background includes restoring multiple muscle cars of all makes. He is an experienced car appraiser and a frequent concourse judge. His preferred brand is the now-defunct American Motors, of which he owns three muscle cars from the era. He lives in the car Mecca of Southern California and is a frequent participant in the local cruise events and judged shows. He was introduced to Bob Riggle while researching his first collaborative book Hurst Equipped. Riggle's gregarious retelling of his life stories has led to this book.

Rich Truesdell
Richard Truesdell is a veteran magazine editor with more than 25 years of experience. He has written scores of magazine articles and has been the editor-in-chief of Chevy Enthusiast and Car Audio and Electronics. Currently, he is the editorial director of Automotive Traveler. Truesdell lives in Sun City, California.