Is this Snuffy Smith / Ralph Burch Jr. 1988 Prototype Hyperdrive?

[GeneralZod]

Some time ago I came across an Ebay listing for an old Hyperdrive car. The seller mentioned it was an old National record holder in its day. I was interested but let it pass and moved on. The listing was removed so I figured it sold long ago. Then a year or so later, it shows back up on Ebay so this time I bought it. I thought I saw this same car somewhere before but could not place it. I started looking through old magazines that covered the big races around 87 and 88 and finally found the picture in the Feb 1989 RCCA covering the Whippoorwill Nationals.

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The body had the "SS" hand painted logo on the hood. Does it indicate "Snuffy Smith" the founder of Hyperdrive or "SS industries"? I thought I have seen the same logo on some of Ralph Burch Jr's early cars.

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Does the "XX" on the body signify the painter or owner?

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Doing some comparisons with the magazine photo and the car provide clues that this may be the actual prototype raced that year.

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Any help out there with any additional info and photo's to help document this car? Unfortunately, Snuffy passed not too long ago and Ralph doesn't answer any messages through Facebook it seems.

[GeneralZod]

Also, here is a rough overlay to see the similarities. Click on the photo to see animation.

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[Dadio]

If it's not then somebody has gone to a lot of trouble to copy it back in the day.

[TravelinTravis]

Wow! Sure looks like the real deal to me...awesome! Seriously nice find there! Steering blocks are white vs. black...but bending kingpins and swapping blocks was common bitd...and they're the same style.

[GeneralZod]

Wow! Sure looks like the real deal to me...awesome! Seriously nice find there! Steering blocks are white vs. black...but bending kingpins and swapping blocks was common bitd...and they're the same style.

Yep - that is the only difference I see as well. You may be right about the front end being rebuilt during the race. It was mentioned later in the article that the front end was repaired several times during the race. Also, looks like it was using the Team Ugly quick change battery setup.

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[hugger19]

Crazy cars like this are still out their!! If for any reason would sell one day keep me in mind love this car

[coxbros1]

General Zod!

[BattleTrak]

This looks like the car to me and a great find! The RCCA article mentions it getting stepped on by a corner marshall.. do you see any signs of that?

[GeneralZod]

Crazy cars like this are still out their!! If for any reason would sell one day keep me in mind love this car

They do show up from time to time but it seems harder to find a gem nowadays. Mostly luck of the draw it seems.

[GeneralZod]

General Zod!

I've been away for some time. 2023 has been a rough year for me so far. But been getting back into things now to get my mind off daily living and hopefully it takes a positive turn from this point on.

[GeneralZod]

This looks like the car to me and a great find! The RCCA article mentions it getting stepped on by a corner marshall.. do you see any signs of that?

Funny you mentioned that. I did notice some body creases and a large one on top of the roof kinda shaped like someone's foot. It's hard to capture with the camera but you may see it in some photos. The car has heavy nicotine staining on it from previous owners.

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[TRX-1-3]

Super cool! Good to see you back around!

[1911Colt]

Such a cool period correct Ford decal, too!

[GeneralZod]

Such a cool period correct Ford decal, too!

Yep, that logo is so 80s!

[MtnbikerTN]

Ok, I realize that this thread is about 1.5 years old, but I just found it the other day and can answer a question about the body. The XX is not two X's, it is a W over an M. Bill (William) Morton ran some of the Hyperdrive team out of Lexington, KY in the early 90's and this is how he signed his bodies. He most likely did this body, built this car, or both.

On another Hyperdrive-related note, I recovered the original pit box for Ralph Burch out of NC this week. Not sure how to upload pictures here, but I'll try to figure it out.