Hurst Performance

Hurst Performance, Inc.
IndustryAutomobile OEM
Automotive aftermarket parts
Founded1958
FateBuyout
SuccessorPurchased by Sunbeam Products in 1970
HeadquartersWarminster Township, Pennsylvania, United States
Key people
George Hurst / William Campbell
Productsautomobile transmission shifters
Jaws of Life

Hurst Performance, Inc. was an American manufacturer and marketer of automobile performance parts, most notably for muscle cars.

History

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Hurst Performance was originally named Hurst-Campbell. The company was established in 1958 as an auto repair shop when George Hurst and Bill Campbell were both young men. The original shop was located on Glenside Ave. in Glenside, Pennsylvania. They later moved to a large building on the corner of Street Road and Jacksonville Road in Warminster, PA. An older man named Lawrence Greenwald (who is credited, among other things, as one of the inventors of stretch nylon hosiery), took certain cars from his collection to Hurst's shop for repair. Greenwald saw promise in Hurst and Campbell and decided to finance them in a venture to manufacture large aftermarket bumpers for VW buses, which were becoming increasingly popular.

When Volkswagen began manufacturing its own large bumpers for the buses, Hurst-Campbell branched out into the piston-driven gearshift business. They also manufactured, at various times, engine mounts, wheels, and shift knobs in addition to its line of gearshifts.

The company's research department developed and invented the Jaws of Life. The product was spun off and sold separately when it was owned by Dick Chrysler.

1969 AMC SC/Rambler emblem incorporating the Hurst logo

By the early 1960s, Hurst transmission shifters and other products had become legendary in auto racing, particularly in drag racing, and among custom car makers. Many automobile enthusiasts replaced basic factory floor and column-mounted gear shifts with custom Hurst floor shifters to obtain better control of gear selection, particularly for competitive driving.[1] As automotive historian Mike Mueller noted, the aura of a Hurst brand shifter became so great that "If you didn't have a Hurst shifter in your supercar, you were a mild-mannered loser."[1] General Motors' official policy up to that time had prohibited the use of the names of outside vendors on GM products. Although various Pontiac models had already been factory equipped with Hurst shifters, Division manager Elliot "Pete" Estes convinced GM that having the Hurst name on its cars' shifters would be an effective sales tool.[1] Beginning in 1965 it did.

George Hurst expanded into other specialty performance products during the 1960s by acquiring Schiefer Manufacturing, a manufacturer of clutches[2] and Airheart, which manufactured brake systems.[3]

In 1968, Greenwald and Hurst took the company public in an IPO.[3] The company was acquired in 1970 by Sunbeam Products, a manufacturer of small appliances.[3] Hurst was promised an executive position and seat on the board of directors as part of the buyout, but Sunbeam did not follow through.[3] (According to one variation of this account, Sunbeam specifically informed Mr. Greenwald and Mr. Hurst that they would no longer be affiliated with the company.[citation needed]) Greenwald fully retired at age 67.

George Hurst died in 1986.[4] Lawrence Greenwald died of natural causes in 1986.

In 1987, the Hurst operations were sold by Sunbeam and became part of the Mr. Gasket Company.

In 2007, B&M Racing and Performance Products bought the Hurst brand.[5]

A subsidiary, called Hurst Performance Vehicles, was established in 2008 to create new renditions of Hurst vehicles that included the Hurst Challenger, Hurst Viper, and the Hurst Camaro.[6]

Products

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Hurst produced aftermarket replacement manual transmission shifters and other automobile performance enhancing parts.

Hurst was also an Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) supplier for automakers and provided services or components for numerous muscle car models by American Motors (AMC), Ford, Chrysler, and General Motors. Their products were included as standard equipment in specialty models such as AMC's The Machine (also known as the Rebel Machine), and in optional performance versions of AMC AMXs and Javelins, Chevrolet Camaros, Pontiac Firebirds, Pontiac GTOs and Oldsmobile 442s, Boss Mustang 302 and the Boss 429, as well as Dodge Chargers, Plymouth Barracudas, and Plymouth Superbirds, among others.

Specialty automobile models produced in cooperation with automakers that incorporated the Hurst logo or name, included:

Hurst Performance was also the inventor of the "Jaws of Life—a hydraulic rescue tool. It designed a complete Hurst Rescue System in the early 1970s, a specialty Emergency Medical Services (EMS) apparatus.[7] Based on the AMC Gremlin, it served as a quicker and more compact emergency vehicle compared to the traditional heavy rescue vehicles used at motorsport race tracks[8] and as a companion vehicle to highway emergency systems.[9]

  • George Hurst demonstrating his new shifter c. 1953
    George Hurst demonstrating his new shifter c. 1953
  • Hurst shifter from the 1960s
    Hurst shifter from the 1960s
  • The "Hemi Under Glass", a Hurst-shifter equipped 1965 Plymouth Barracuda with a 426 Hemi mounted in the rear seat, a spectacular drag strip attraction in its day
    The "Hemi Under Glass", a Hurst-shifter equipped 1965 Plymouth Barracuda with a 426 Hemi mounted in the rear seat, a spectacular drag strip attraction in its day
  • Hurst decals
    Hurst decals

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Mueller, Mike (1997). Motor City Muscle: High-Powered History of the American Muscle Car. MBI Publishing. p. 136. ISBN 978-0-7603-0196-8. Retrieved 19 June 2011.[permanent dead link‍]
  2. ^ Madigan, Tom; McClelland, Dave (2007). Fuel and Guts: The Birth of Top Fuel Drag Racing. MBI Publishing. p. 197. ISBN 978-0-7603-2697-8. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  3. ^ a b c d Newhardt, David (2008). American Muscle Supercars: Ultimate Street Performance from Shelby, Baldwin-Motion, Mr. Norm and Other Legendary Tuners. MBI Publishing. p. 153. ISBN 978-0-7603-3294-8. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  4. ^ "George Hurst, 59, Inventor of the 'Jaws of Life,' Found Dead". Los Angeles Times. 19 May 1986. Retrieved 29 December 2011.
  5. ^ Filipponio, Frank (25 January 2007). "B&M buys Hurst: Giant shifter conglomerate created". Autoblog. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  6. ^ "Hurst Performance Vehicles (official web page)". Archived from the original on 12 July 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  7. ^ "Hurst/Gremlin Rescue System". Car and Driver. 18: 100. 1973.
  8. ^ "The Little Car That Could". salguod.net. 12 February 2009. Archived from the original on 24 July 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  9. ^ Wilson, Bob. "AMC Gremlin Stuff - page 2". arcticboy com. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
  • Lichty, Robert C.; Boyce, Terry V. (1984). Hurst Heritage High Performance History. Dobbs Publishing Group. ISBN 0-941596-24-9.
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