Would you trade a front-engine 12-cylinder Ferrari for a Devin SS in boxes? That’s what Harold Pace did—are you with him on that? When the name Devin comes up in conversation, too many in the hobby instantly think of kit bodies. Although important, that in no way describes the Devin SS project or the scope of Bill Devin’s accomplishments.
There’s little question that Bill Devin was a mechanical genius. In 1954 he built a small run of Devin Panhards based on the French company’s 750-cc two-cylinder air-cooled pushrod engine and various other mechanicals. The competition quickly stopped laughing when Devin’s petite racers started piling up wins. The car was so remarkable that Jimmy Orr won an SCCA H Modified National Championship in 1956. Not bad for Devin’s first racing machine, particularly since it was based on an anemic postwar people-mover.
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