’49 Cadillac Built To Run La Carrera Panamericana—the Mexican Road Race

Hayden Groendyke can identify the exact instant he hatched the wonder featured here. He and co-driver Charles Samples were flying back from the ’09 edition of La Carrera Panamericana, known to us gringos as the Mexican Road Race. They’d just run the grueling, seven-day, 1,800-mile event—one of the great automotive adventures—in a mildly modded Hudson Hornet, and after a slew of mechanical problems, they were licking their wounds. Bag this, Hayden decided right then and there on the plane. “We’re doing this next year at the front of the bus,” he informed his co-piloto.

Dusting off a restored ’49 Cadillac Sedanet parked in the garage, Hayden delivered the road hog to Jim and Jason Smith of the Hot Rod Shop in Sand Springs, Oklahoma. The Smiths began the makeover by jacking up the enormous fastback body shell and sliding in a brand-new Art Morrison chassis, one specifically engineered for the heavy-duty road pounding Hayden was planning. Coilovers are used all around, with unequal-length wishbones in the front and Morrison’s three-link setup in the rear. Brakes are Wilwood with six-pot calipers and 14-inch rotors, while the Oz Superleggera wheels (19×10 front and 19×12 rear) carry Kumho 285/35 and 345/30 rubber, respectively.

The engine is an ’09 Corvette LS9 fresh from the crate, with some tweaks on the blower and intake by Lingenfelter and a calibration by Ed Wright. The conservative combo is good for an easy 600 hp and 580 lb-ft of torque at the rear wheels. The gearbox is a trick and sturdy Jerico five-speed road racing piece, while Strange supplied the 9-inch Ford rear axle and Eaton Truetrac helical differential. With a direct top gear and 3.25:1 final drive ratio, top speed is estimated at, oh, lots faster than any ’49 Cadillac ought to be going. Our advice should you see the monster coming is to get of the way.

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