WELCOMING A SPECIAL GUEST
Ex- Chrysler engineer on his way
Behind most production vehicles stands a team of engineers. While these professionals develop everything from the powertrain and chassis to the interior, their efforts often go unheralded. But one former Chrysler engineer will be celebrated next weekend at the 26th annual Northern Mopars Club show and shine.
Troy Simonsen will be a special guest at the show, to be held at the Capitol Hill Community Centre in Calgary on Aug. 15. The event welcomes all Chrysler and AMC vehicles, including late model Challengers, Chargers and Rams.
Simonsen was involved in many notable Chrysler projects, including the High and Mighty drag race car, the development of the 426 Hemi and the Li’l Red Express truck.
Based in Romeo, Michigan, Simonsen and his wife, Cecilia, now operate Simonsen Earth Sculptors, a grading and bulldozing company. For their summer vacation, they are towing their fifth- wheel trailer behind the family’s 2001 Ram Dually truck west across the United States, and will tour Glacier National Park before coming through Banff and then Calgary.
From an early age, Simonsen has been interested in all things mechanical. His dad was a model railroader, and together the pair worked on many gear- related projects. By the time Simonsen was 15, he’d transformed the early Hydramatic transmission in the family’s Oldsmobile into a dual- range unit.
“Then, I got into a 1935 Ford for $ 25, and we raced that on 3/ 8mile dirt tracks,” Simonsen said during a phone interview.
While working on his mechanical engineering degree in college, Simonsen tuned a 1950 Dodge Wayfarer that he drove on the street and also drag raced. He went on to earn his master of automotive engineering degree from the Chrysler Institute of Engineering, which is a unique work/ study program at Chrysler.
In 1958 a group of these engineering graduates got together — without any Chrysler backing — and formed the Ram Chargers ( later changed to Ramchargers) team and developed the High and Mighty drag race car. Based on a 1949 Plymouth business coupe, the team engineered a no- compromise car built expressly for the quarter mile, and it definitely looked different.
Simonsen’s responsibility was chassis development, and the odd stance of High and Mighty, with the rear axle moved forward and the car standing tall, was meant to get as much weight on the racing slicks as possible.
“We wanted to beat the traditional hotrods based on Fords, Chevys and Pontiacs that were all chopped and channelled,” Simonsen said. “And we wanted to prove we could engineer a vehicle that would perform better than anything else.”
And they did. According to an article on Allpar. com, “In two years, High and Mighty set NHRA records for top quartermile speed ( 12.8 seconds at 109.75 mph) and elapsed time ( 12.62 seconds at 115 mph).” The top quarter- mile time recorded for the car was 11.8 seconds, and the top quarter- mile speed was 117 mph.
Soon after the Ramchargers’ success, Simonsen joined the U. S. air force, but returned to Chrysler in 1963 as an engine lab development engineer, tasked with helping put together the 426 Hemi engine.
Although it became a very fast and successful power plant, “that engine did not just fall together,” Simonsen recalled.
“From Nov. 1, 1963, that engine had to be ready for Daytona in February, 1964 and we went through four ( cylinder) block changes during that time. Ultimately, we won one, two and three in Daytona of 1964 with the 426 Hemi.”
Simonsen went on to help engineer several other drag race cars, including helping the Golden Commandos with their Goldfish, which was based on a 1965 Barracuda.
He also rose through the ranks at Chrysler. His job titles included product engineering manager at the Mound Road Engine Plant, quality control manager for Chrysler Engine Division, and powertrain and chassis specialist for Truck Product Planning. Simonsen worked on the engine for the Li’l Red Express Truck, and on getting the Cummins diesel in Ram trucks. He officially retired from Chrysler in 1991.
In 1996, as a member of the Ramchargers race team, he was inducted into the Michigan Motorsports Hall of Fame, in 2011 the East Coast Drag Times Hall of Fame and in 2012 the Mopar Hall of Fame.
Simonsen will be at the Northern Mopars Show all day at the Capitol Hill Community Centre, and will also be making an appearance at Renfrew Chrysler on Sunday, Aug. 16 from noon to 3 p. m.