The Crosley Super-Sports is the only mass produced sports car made in the United States today. In case the designation "sports car" conveys any impression that it is only a fair weather toy for well-to-do playboys, let me correct that notion right now. In addition to it's sporting character, the Crosley is a perfectly practical machine for everyday knock-around use, requires no pampering and priced at $999, factory delivered, Cincinnati, Ohio, it warrants very serious consideration from the budget-conscious car buyer.

The car tested was a 1951 edition, and was provided by Ross Cumming, Inc. of Santa Monica, Calif., Crosley distributors for the Los Angeles area. I warned Jack Early, sales manager, that I would give the car the same thorough tests that all the big cars undergo. He just laughed, invited me to "pull no punches," and said that "the car has some pleasant surprises for me". He was right.

The moment you slide in behind the wheel you sense that this car is cleverly designed, soundly constructed, and that driving it is going to be fun. Seating position is comfortable , visibility forward exceptionally good and controls are simple and well placed, except that I had to reach a bit for the gearshift lever.

Steering this car through traffic is a joy. The wheel is smaller in diameter than average ; the action is extremely light even when the car is stationary, and the total wheel movement from full right to full left lock is only 2 and half turns. Through heavy city traffic, I found it necessary several times to pull over and wait for our camera car to catch up. Without conscious effort on my part, the Crosley drew ahead simply because it could go places the larger car couldn't. The cars modest overall dimensions give the driver a feeling of confidence in close traffic. Once I deliberately "barreled" a corner on wet pavement to see what would happen. The car simply went where it was steered.

The riding qualities of the Super Sport are good. The car takes rough surfaces in stride and even washboard dirt roads don't cause any passenger discomfort. Springing is by semi-elliptics in front and coils in the rear with single leaves on either side to position the axle. The layout, although simple, seems generally satisfactory. In the writers opinion, it could be improved by the addition of a sway bar in the rear, since the leaf springs do not seem entirely capable of handling side loads. One feature that contributes much to the Super Sports' good road manners is the positioning of the engine well back in the frame. Weighing the front and rear of the car separately revealed that with average load, the car is almost perfectly balanced at the center of its wheelbase. Here the Crosley has definitely taken a page from a book of sports car design, and to excellent advantage.

The transmission is a simple three-speed box with a direct acting floor shift lever. There is no synchro mesh unit, and silent shifting requires a technique which, although different, is readily learned. During the test I thought several times that a four-speed close ratio box would have been an improvement, but after reflection I realized it would have added substantially to the cost of the car, and undoubtable would have absorbed more horsepower than the simple type employed. The three ratios seem adequate for all around use.

The Crosley's performance must be measured relative to engine size. In this light it is very good. Several times during the tests I though to my self with admiration, "Can you believe that this thing only has 44 cubic inches? Why, that1s about the size of one cylinder in a big car! " For instance, I reminded myself of this while buzzing through a flying start quarter mile at a clocked speed of 66 mph (speedometer reading 71). I was steering with one hand, incidentally, I felt absolutely at ease. This one hand business by the way was no stunt and I assure you I'm no daredevil. I hadn1t been instructed how to strap the folded top properly, and I was holding it with one hand to prevent the fabric from flapping around in the wind at that speed.

Again the mere 44 inches came to mind as I topped a half mile climb up a steep rough, partly muddy dirt road with three men on board plus camera, and test equipment. (We hadn't dared try this road with the camera car.) The Crosley climbed it steadily, without fuss of overheating.

Fuel economy is of course the Crosley's long advantage, for it consistently recorded 30 mpg and up, except in the heaviest traffic. Incidentally, all fuel consumption tests other that the standing start quarter mile were made with two passengers, i.e. full load for the Crosley. With driver only, the figures would have been better.

Concerning detail finish, the Crosley is as plain as one would expect in a car of this price. It was even rough in a few spots. For instance the hood hatch panel fitted poorly. An innovation on this year's model is the addition of doors replacing the earlier canvas splash guards. The car tested was very gay with a chartreuse paint job and read leatherette upholstery.

For quality in the engine room the Crosley bows to no other car on the road. The little for cly. engine features five main bearings, overhead camshaft, valve rotators, die cast aluminum pistons, with chrome plated top ring and a bore-stroke ration that permits high engine rpm without excessive piston speed.

To sum up, the Crosley Super Sports is a fine little car, game for anything, and in Jack Early's words, "full of pleasant surprises."

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