GM Blast from the Past Takes Flight at Daytona 500

FOR RELEASE: February 15, 2003

GM Blast from the Past Takes Flight at Daytona 500

DAYTONA, Fla. - The GM Firebird I, the world’s first delta-winged, jet fighter looking automobile, will pace the parade lap of the 45th running of the Daytona 500.

Firebird I, built in 1954, was the first gas turbine automobile ever produced and tested in the United States, as part of an overall General Motors research and engineering program aimed at examining every known form of automotive power.

“Firebird I was built as a rolling laboratory not as a street machine,” said Steve Shannon, Executive Director of Marketing Services for GM. “And although it never ran on the highway as a passenger car, it was an incredible contribution to the world of engineering.”

The idea of Firebird originated with Harley J. Earl, then GM Vice President in charge of styling, who also designed its fiberglass, reinforced plastic body. The car’s Whirlfire Turbo-Power engine and the chassis were developed under Vice President Charles L. McCuen. It was one of 36 “dream” and experimental GM vehicles built to test new styling and engineering concepts.

Nearly half a century later, the sleek, white single-seater is back in the limelight as the ceremonial lead vehicle to start the Daytona 500 on Sunday. When it is not on the track, Firebird I will spend the weekend on display at the Pontiac stand located outside the track in the Fan Walk area behind Turn 4.

The Style
The aircraft motif of Firebird I is evident in the car’s “needle” nose, delta wings, vertical tail fin and plastic bubble cockpit. It measures 222.7 inches long, 80 inches wide and 45 inches high at the top of the driver’s cockpit.

The wings, which are electronically controlled from the steering wheel, not only look sleek, but they have a functional purpose with their brake flaps on the rear edges.

The Power
Firebird’s Turbo-Power engine develops 370 horsepower and fits into a space 63 inches long, 26 inches deep and 32 inches wide. It includes a 35-gallon fiber-plastic fuel tank in the nose ahead of the driver, as well as an integrated power package with an engine consisting of two mechanically independent parts behind the driver.

The First Test Drive
In October of 1953, Firebird I was first tested at the GM Proving Ground near Milford, Mich., and in early December it was moved to the Desert Proving Ground near Phoenix for additional trial runs. At the wheel was Chevrolet engineer and three-time Indy 500 winner Mauri Rose who described the first “flight” as a unique experience and an “outstanding job from both styling and engineering stand points.”

Today NASCAR immortalizes the jet-styled concept car as the vehicle atop the trophy awarded to the Daytona 500 winners.

General Motors , the world's largest vehicle manufacturer, designs, builds and markets cars and trucks worldwide, and has been the global automotive sales leader since 1931. More information on GM can be found at www.gm.com.

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