Henry Ford Driving the 999 Race Car Against Harkness at Grosse Pointe Racetrack, 1903

When did Fords use Chevrolet parts? In the 1920s, when brothers Louis and Arthur Chevrolet made special overhead valve cylinder heads for Model Ts. Sold under the brand name Frontenac, they helped racers triple the horsepower of the stock Model T engine. Such "Fronty-Fords" became terrors on the small dirt tracks and in 1923 and 1924 Indianapolis auto dealer Barber-Warnock Ford decided to enter Fronty-Ford powered cars in the Indianapolis 500. Here we see one of the 1924 cars being serviced in the pits. A mechanic with a funnel adds oil, while another mechanic on the opposite side of the car makes an adjustment. Arthur Chevrolet, wearing a tie and a flat cap, wipes his hands in the middle of the picture. Three men in suits, possibly race officials, observe the scene. The Barber-Warnock cars finished fifth in the 1923 race and 14th, 16th, and 17th in 1924.

When machinist George Montgomery started racing in 1953, all drag racers were amateurs with "real jobs" supporting their hobby. This car helped change all that. Montgomery bought an old Willys in 1958 and built a dragster so successful that promoters started paying him to run at drag strips nationwide. In 1966, Montgomery became one of drag racing's first full-time professional drivers.

Mason Colbert placed third with this car in the 1939 All-American Soap Box Derby national championship in Akron, Ohio. The first official derby was held in 1934. Young contestants built their cars from soap boxes, orange crates, and baby carriage wheels. Over the years, designs became more elaborate and materials more sophisticated. But the "fuel" remained the same -- gravity.

Hale Barber and Clarence Warnock established the Barber-Warnock Ford dealership in Indianapolis in 1917 and were active supporters of the Indianapolis 500 race on a 2.5-mile oval track originally paved with brick and one of the most popular and well-known races in the country. In the mid-1920s, Barber-Warnock moved from fans and supporters to participants by sponsoring specially built Model Ts. In 1924, Barber-Warnock entered three "specials" built by the Chevrolet brothers -- Louis, Gaston, and Arthur -- under the Frontenac name. Although fairly powerful and fast, the "Fronty Fords" were no match for the rest of the field, finishing a disappointing 14th, 16th, and 17th.