Chevrolet's Black Widow: The First Factory Hot Rod?

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In late 1956 when the new 1957 Chevy's were starting to show up at local dealers, a small branch of Chevrolet located in Atlanta called Southern Engineering Development Corporation or SEDCO began to build a series of sedans for America racetracks.

These special sedans were built to challenge Chrysler and Ford racing teams.

Known in early 1957 as Duntov Chevy's or simply Black and White's they dominated A/Stock drag racing. When the NHRA created the Super Stock class for the Duntov Chevy's and a few other factory built hot rods built by Ford and Chrysler, Chevy's Black and Whites were then called Super Stock Chevy's.

The term Black Widow was first applied to a few 1957 Chevy 150 black and whites that SEDCO built for NASCAR competition. The Super Stock Chevy term for NHRA SEDCO built cars soon gave way to the NASCAR term Black Widow for all the black and whites.

Black Widow Race Team Driver Rex White and crew.

Black Widow Race Team Driver Rex White (third from right).
With the Clements Brothers Crew.

This 1957 Chevy 150 Black Widow team has a special history in NASCAR racing. Chevrolet's Rochester Fuel Injected 283 produced more horsepower than any engine of its size and the 1957 2 door sedan dominated American stock car racing. However fuel injection was outlawed by NASCAR. The Chevy team was disbanded and the corporate backed race cars were released to their drivers and crew. Even with out fuel injection, Buck Baker, along with the Clements Brothers pit crew won the 1957 NASCAR Championship. Black widow Driver Buck Baker remains one of the most successful racers in NASCAR history. The black and white fuel injected 150 two door sedans appeared at Nascar's National Speed Weeks in Daytona in February 1957.

Buck Baker

What does Bootlegging in the Carolinas and the Chevrolet 150 Black Widow have in common? Buck Baker!

Baker joined joined NASCAR in 1946, however his first victory would not come until 1952 and by 1955, he was Grand National Championship runner up.

In 1957 driving a Black Widow built by Chevrolet and SEDCO he won the Grand National Championship title.

So just what went into a 1957 Chevy 150 Black Widow? For starters the engine was a 283 cubic inch V-8, 3.88X3.00 bore/stroke, 10.5:1 comp ratio, fuel injection that developed 283 horsepower at 6200 RPM's coupled to a 3 speed transmission. That's 1 horsepower per 1 cubic inch. 4.11:1 positraction rear end. 6 lug wheels front and rear and a roll bar for safety. Chevy printed a "1957 Chevrolet Stock Car Competition Guide" that listed 170 individual factory available parts and numbers to make a 150 two door sedan competition worthy.