Photos by: Trent Sherrill and Chadly Johnson
Text by: Paul Zielsdorf and Chadly Johnson
From the patina’d chrome to the cracked fiberglass, I knew Paul Zielsdorf’s Fiat Topolino was a battle-scarred drag car with a story to tell. I first spotted the veteran racer at the Symco Shakedown, but didn’t get a chance to hear its full story until now, and who better to tell the tale than Paul himself – so I’ll let him take the reins.
“I have always wanted to drag race, but I never had the means to do it. In high school, my buddies and I would go to the nearest drag strip, Wisconsin International Raceway in Kaukauna, WI, which was 1.5 hours away. We would go to the Land Speed Nationals, where I remember a ’34 Ford coupe running a blown injected hemi on nitro… It was there that I got the got the 1/4 mile bug. In January 2008, I was surfing Ebay and found a survivor drag car that had been lost in time since 1973. Ironically, the owner was a ‘car guy’ who lived 2 miles away from me, but we had never met before. I purchased the car because it was very cool, but more importantly, because it was very small and easily fit into my already full garage. Over the years I have managed to connect most of the dots of the Fiat’s long racing history… Let’s start in the 1960s.
“Mike Gish of Mukwonago, WI was 12 years old in 1966 when he first remembered seeing a yellow Fiat Topolino run down the track at the legendary Great Lakes Dragaway (a.k.a. ‘Da’Grove’) in Union Grove WI. At the time, the Fiat was owned by Jerry Adams of Kenosha, WI. Mike and his dad Slim (who was a modified dirt track racer and the first guy to run a Hemi at Hales Corners in South Eastern Wisconsin) frequented the track to watch the racing action. The cute little Fiat was painted yellow and running an Algon injected 409 Chevy mill nestled in a Lakewood Chassis built by none other than Joe Schubeck.
“It wasn’t until the fall of 1967, when Mike was reading the classifieds in the Milwaukee Journal, that he had the opportunity to purchase the Fiat as a roller from Power Automotive, a speed shop in Kenosha, WI. Unfortunately, Jerry had already sold the Fiat’s latest engine to a buddy: A Hilborn injected, Mondello prepped 427. Since the engine was gone, Mike enlisted his friend Jim Luker of Magnum Racing Engines in Milwaukee, WI to build a balanced, blueprinted, & Hilborn injected 301 small block Chevy. It consisted of a 283 block and crank, Isky aluminum rods, Isky roller cam, Jahns pistons and 461 camel hump heads that were ported and polished. Spark was supplied by a Vertex Magneto. The engine was monitored by Stewart Warner gauges and a Sun Tach. The engine was painted Rustoleum equipment yellow and mated to a 1962 Chevy 3 speed transmission with a Corvette shifter via an Ansen NHRA approved bell housing. The rear was a 1957 Chevy axle with 4.56 gears and Olds axles machined by Henry‘s Axles Service. Stopping was performed by Airheart disc brakes on the rear only, and a Girling clutch slave cylinder operated by a hand lever. The wheels were magnesium American Racing Torque Thrusts in the rear and spindle mounted 12 spokes up front. The slicks were Mickey Thompson M/T Dragsters with Pirellis up front, steering through a Corvair box.
“The Fiat was used for race and show. When raced, it was driven by either Mike Gish or his nephew Dave Straw. Hobo (friend and neighbor to Mike) was a crew member. The car ran in A/altered class from 1968-1973 exclusively at Great Lakes Dragaway in Union Grove, WI. It was fast and a handful to drive. Best time was a 10.17 @ 130 mph. The car toured the ISCA (International Show Car Association) during the same time frame. It was shown in Milwaukee, Sheboygan, Chicago, Detroit, Dubuque, Cleveland and Philadelphia. In 1973 it took 3rd place overall in competition class.
“The car was painted the way it is seen today in the winter of 1971 by Roger Burczyk. The ribbon stripes were smoked in the paint with an acetylene torch and cleared with pearl lacquer. The dog house for the parachute was installed by Roger Jackson, a.k.a. ‘The Mole,’ in his shop nicknamed the Mole Cave, which was behind the donut shop in Kenosha, WI.
“After racing the 1973 season, the engine was pulled for repairs, but it was never completed. The Fiat was moved from one storage garage to another; some parts were stolen and recovered along the way, including the Hilborn injection set up.
“In the Summer of 2007, an automotive supply salesman spotted the Hilborn unit on a shelf at Hobo’s place in Coloma, WI. When asked if the unit was for sale, the unexpected response was ‘Yes, but it comes with a car.’ A deal was struck on the slumbering Fiat, and eventually it made its way onto Ebay and into my hands. Once in my possession, I immediately began tracking down all the parts and pieces for the car.
“I also sat down with Mike Gish and talked about the car’s history before he passed of cancer in 2010. My favorite story is how I found Jerry Adams. I knew the car had ties to R&B Automotive in Kenosha, WI, so I called Dennis Rollain, who still owned and ran the shop and had remained good friends with Jerry. I told Dennis I had already called 600 different Jerry Adams trying to find the right guy. Turns out that one number I called looking for Jerry was answered by his daughter, and she said I had the wrong guy because she was unaware that her dad had ever raced! About 2 months after my conversation with Dennis, I got a call, and the guy said, ‘I hear you’re looking for me?’ It was the Jerry! He gave me pictures and more history on the car. He had a ton of stories too, which were amazing to hear.”
Paul took the Fiat to the Time Machine Nationals at Great Lakes Dragway, where he ended up meeting a group of fellow like-minded racers who would lead to the launch of the Meltdown Drags. Paul has run the Fiat at every Meltdown Drags event since, and relishes every second behind the wheel. Paul has finally gotten his chance to drag race, and at the helm of a car with an awesome racing lineage. Paul’s love of drag racing has now led to the purchase of the “Hairy Hauler” 1941 Willys drag truck, another race car with deep racing heritage. What lies ahead for Paul? Time will tell, but it will be a ¼ mile at a time.
