Hi guys,
this one is not strictly about the man but does concern him.
Can anyone tell me EXACTLY when SEDCO was formed. The month would be good and the date even better.
I believe it was in 1956, but.....
One of these days I'm gonna come over there and check out some fine cars and take in a few race meetings AND hopefully meet some like minded people.
Andrew
in a warmer, sunny and very pleasant
Twickenham, England
Come on over, Andrew, we would love to meet you. I've never been to England but my ancestors came from there and I've heard the stories about what a place it it. I have met a number of folks from the UK and I really enjoy our discussions about racing but I must admit the British accent takes me in. Then I'm told by my British "mates" that MY accent is quite unique to them.
Great to have you here. I've sure someone will have the answer to your question. While I don't have that answer, there are so many people in RacersReunion who have so much information it's almost scary!
FYI, Nalley Chevrolet in Atlanta, the "paper" base for SEDCO (Chevy's Southern Engineering and Development Company) was sold in 2004.
Dec 7, 2004, 12:13pm EST
Nalley Chevrolet dealership sold
Fulton Motor Cars Inc. has bought Nalley Chevrolet near the Atlanta airport.
The dealership, on Metropolitan Parkway off of Interstate 85, will be renamed "Airport Chevrolet." Historically, the Nalley Chevrolet dealership was the largest dealership in the Atlanta market, but due to the decline of the former Stewart Avenue in the 1980's, sales had declined significantly in the past decade. There is substantial redevelopment occurring in the area and private and public reinvestment has resulted in stabilization of the community. Airport Chevrolet has begun redeveloping its site.
The dealership remains the only franchised automotive dealership in the city of Atlanta and the dealership serves as the sole General Motors medium-duty truck outlet for the entire Atlanta and central Georgia market.
Fulton Motor Cars plans to reinvest in the area by substantially improving the 20-plus acre site and through the purchase of additional automotive franchises. The company has already contracted to buy an additional automobile dealership that will be relocated to Metropolitan Parkway.
Fulton Motor Cars, Inc. is controlled by Steven Uiterwyk and investment capital was provided by affiliates of ASAP Capital and ABC Capital of Tampa, Fla. Rick Lavender will serve as the general manager of Airport Chevrolet. Uiterwyk also owns Central Florida Eurocars in Lakeland, Florida, an authorized Mercedes-Benz, Volvo and Volkswagen dealership.
Thank you, Dave for that info.
So, for a simple Limey to understand, GM/Chevrolet used Nalley to form a shell company - SEDCO - to set up a supposedly non-GM backed racing team? What date did they do this? I believe 1956 but don't know the month. I am trying to make the Hugh Babb/Billy Myers link to when this new organisation was formed. It seems Babb entered a 55 Chevy driven by Myers (#46) in the first two 1956 Grand National races in November & December 1955. What I want to find out is whether the Babb entry was purely private or part of what was to become the Chevrolet/Nalley/SEDCO operation. Was this 55 Chevy fuel injected? Babb had been working on fuel injected cars for some years and this would most probably interested GM.
Or am I completely wrong here?
Andrew
Andrew, I sure hope some of our folks with knowledge will step up and fill in the blanks. One story I read said that after the formation of SEDCO, only one race was run using fuel injection - that they switched back to carburetors, but kept the "Fuel Injected" logo on the cars. That story said there was a problem with pressure buildup under the front fenders that adversely affected the fuel injection.
Here is a link to one interesting article I found:
http://www.swanson-automotive.com/images/CHEVY%20Classics%20Magazine%20PDF.pdf
Dave, I read that one too.
However I read that Babb had been hot stuff with fuel injection and supercharging after WW2. In various interviews both Billy Carden and Jack Smith commented on it.
See there, Andrew? If you ask it here, you will usually get an answer and Dave Fulton is one of the very best in providing information like that.
Tim
Best thing I ever did joining this site!
