The Allison Engine Powered Monsters of Jim Lytle

The hot rodding scene of the 1960s was wild, but there was nothing wilder than Jim Lytle’s astounding machines, all of them powered by giant Allison engines.

Blessed with a wide-open imagination and wrenching skills to match, Jim Lytle (1937-2011) was one of the original free spirits of hot rodding. Initially from Michigan, he migrated to San Antonio, Texas and then to Southern California, continually advancing his car-building skills. While he was still living in Texas, his Chrysler Hemi-powered ’32 Ford Coupe was featured in the May 1961 issue of Hot Rod magazine. The article states that Lytle, then 24, had already owned 26 cars. Then he headed west to join the California hot rod scene… read more >