From Garage to Catalog

Ford's Model T was cheap, plentiful, and simple — which made it an ideal platform for experimentation. An industry of add-on parts grew up around it, from improved ignition and carburetion to overhead-valve cylinder head conversions. Among the best known were the "Fronty" heads produced by the Chevrolet brothers' Frontenac company.

In 1932, Ford introduced its flathead V8, bringing eight-cylinder power to an affordable car. Hot rodders quickly adopted it, and a new wave of manufacturers began producing aftermarket intake manifolds, cylinder heads, and other components to extract more power.

Racers become manufacturers

Many of these businesses started with a racer who built a part for his own car. Vic Edelbrock Sr. is a classic example: he founded his company in 1938 and became known for intake manifolds for the Ford flathead. Other names that became familiar to hot rodders in this era include Offenhauser, Navarro, and Weiand.

Speed shops became local hubs where racers bought parts, traded advice, and learned about the latest developments — often from the magazines that began appearing after World War II.