Green Monster 5

Green Monster #5, as with all Arfons race cars, was a continual work in progress. Its mechanical dynamics changed weekly as Art and Walt strove to master the ultimate, ever increasing, speeds and elapsed times of an infant sport.

Green Monster #5 was conceived in early 1955 on Pickle Road in Akron, Ohio with a war surplus Ranger Aircraft engine as its initial power plant. The 770 cubic inch engine was mounted upside down and backwards. The September edition of Car Craft Magazine said the car had not been tested yet. While that edition was just appearing on the newsstands, #5 was in Great Bend, Kansas at the very first National Hot Rod Association event where it was a headliner.

1956-57 were transitional years for Monster #5. The Ranger engine was removed and the Allison 1710-85 V12 was installed. Some additional supports to the roll cage were created and a "fin" was added over the top of the drive train. According to Lee Pendleton, #5 also had dual rear wheels for a while but handling was not optimum with that arrangement. After all, the car had a very short wheelbase. Never the less, Green Monster #5 performed well at Carolina and Oklahoma City national meets. During these years the car made many exhibition runs at drag strips nationwide with either Art or Walt in the cockpit.

Before their relationship turned cold and distant, Art and Walt Arfons created and raced together. Their machines were completely hand built, home engineered, and capable of running with virtually anyone of their day. The Green Monsters from Akron, Ohio evolved from crude, underpowered oddballs to crude, overpowered sledgehammers that lived by the creedo of their being no “replacement for displacement”. The guys slammed war surplus Ranger aircraft engines in their cars and then they started a love affair with the mighty V12, 1,710ci, supercharged Allison that was found in airplanes like the P-38, P-51A, P40, and others. The car you see in the lead photo and all the photos below is Green Monster 5. This is the ORIGINAL Green Monster 5, not a restoration or recreation. There are a couple of elements that are different than the car was in the late 1950s and we will get to those, but let us begin by saying that this is one of the neatest old drag cars in the world. After passing through a few sets of hands since being sold in late 1957, the car is now owned by Jon Rowley who oversaw the process of getting the car back into running and driving condition.

Because Art and Walt were always building or changing things, it is tough to get a really detailed, accurate history on some of the monsters. Some of the fun facts about ol’ number five here include tid bits like the one about this car being raced at every NHRA National event between 1955 and 1958 and it had a 773ci Ranger piston engine in it when first constructed. The Ranger engine was mounted upside down and backwards to drive the rear end. While that combo was neat, the big airplane engine didn’t have the necessary suds to make the car competitive. Enter the Allison. With that Ally making the noise, Green Monster #5 ran over 157 mph during a 1957 meet in Chester, South Carolina. The car was built like an anvil and the huge power produced by the Allison was capable of completely shredding any and all tires of the time, so the Green Monster was a mile per houring machine as opposed to a great elapsed time runner. It would make a tremendous top end charge once the car was rolling and somewhat hooked up.

Both Art and Walt drove Green Monster #5 at one time or another. Outside of the NHRA National event appearances, which did wonders to launch the Arfons name into the collective hot rodding consciousness, the Green Monster could be seen at many small and makeshift drag strips around the country. The guys went wherever they could with this car to collect appearance money and race the wheels off of it. The Allison engine was a great choice for a power plant because they could be had for almost nothing at the time, they were dead nuts reliable, and even on its hardest working pass, that big engine was barely breaking a sweat. The guys with the small displacement, blown, gas burning engines that kept blowing up were doing it wrong in the eyes of Art and Walt. Of course, eventually the NHRA decided that airplane engines weren’t the hot ticket when they were vying for corporate support from auto manufacturers. Seeing a WWII surplus powered race car thumping those powered by motors based on Detroit production mills wasn’t good for business. By the late 1950s, aicraft engines were banned from competition and the Monsters became strictly exhibition machines. By then the brothers were rapidly moving in different directions and the camelot period of their relationship was over. Green Monster #5 is super cool in our eyes because it isn’t a Walt OR Art car, it is a Walt AND Art car.

Source: Green Monster 5 website, Bangshift

Green Monster 5 Tucson Dragway 50th Reunion
Charlie Hall takes a seat in the Green Monster 5 at the 50th Tucson Dragway Reunion on May 5, 2012. Charlie brought the Green Monster to Tucson in the late 1950's after purchaing the car from Lee Pendleton. The car was stored indoors for many years until being purchased and restored by Jon Rowley

Another of the Arfons brothers "Green Monster" drag cars. This one also with a surplus aircraft engine (not an Allison). That's Walt Arfons kneeling next to the car. Walt and Art Arfons had a strange relationship, for brothers. They lived across the street from each other (on Pickel Rd. in Akron, OH), but because of some past argument, they never talked to each other for over 30 years

Here’s the epic noise maker that provides the power to the rear wheels. The Allison V1710 was one of the most important engines in American history, providing power to airplanes in WWII. After the war they could be had for pennies and they were the most reliable and powerful piston engines that guys like the Arfons brothers could get their mitts on. These engines are mechanical art. Believe it or not, this is the same Ally that powered the Green Monster at the NHRA meets in 1956/57/58!

While the paint job is authentic in scheme, we’re willing to bet that it is substantially better in quality than it was in the late 1950s. Most of the Arfons’ stuff was brush painted in those days so it was good from a distance, or at 150mph as it thundered by. Looks weren’t high up on the priority list for the brothers.

One of the coolest pieces on the whole car is the original brass engine plaque. Neat specs on this baby!

With its dramatic sloping nose, huge tail fin, exposed engine, and dual slicks on both sides out back, this was one of the most intimidating drag cars of its era. When the guy in the other lane was looking out of his Scotty Fenn K-88 chassis at this thing, we’re sure some shorts were ruined.

Here’s some Arfons thrift and gumption on display. They took steel truck wheels and welded these big gussets in them for strength. Virtually free and totally bomb proof.

The Allison has split ports for each of its 12-cylinders, hence all of the little stubs on the exhaust manifold. The engine is centrifugally supercharged and the huffer is bolted to the front of the engine.

The round can looking piece at the tail of the car is where the Hall-Scott tug boat clutch lived for many years. That tug boat clutch got the power to the unique axle which was basically two one ton truck “banjo” style units bolted together with a quick change center section. When the car was brought back to life, a Hall-Scott tug boat clutch could not be obtained so car owner Jon Rowley produced a V-drive from a boat and that is what gets the power to the axles now. As the car is mainly used for push starts and cacklefests, this system works great. The poor thing would probably shred in competition.

Dig the linoleum flooring in the cockpit! Why did they put it there? Who the hell knows. It was probably in the shop and they decided to use it or somebody threw the jeans at them!

Here’s the mighty giant at work during the Cacklefest. It was neat seeing those blue cones of flame lick from the pipes. It is an awesome machine and one that I was very happy to see up close and in person. Having visited the legendary shop on Pickle Rd in Akron this summer, seeing this car running was a great way to bring the brothers’ history to life!