Jeg and Mike Coughlin to test interesting trio of classic hot rods

Two-time Pro Stock world champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. and his brother Mike Coughlin, a standout sportsman racer in his own right, will join Formula 1 driving legend Tommy Bryne for a unique road and track test of three very interesting vehicles.



The Coughlin brothers and Byrne, who now serves as the lead driving instructor at the world-renowned Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course, will put a 1940 Willys, a ’55 Chevrolet, and a ’69 Mach 1 Ford through a head-to-head comparison test to see which of the hot rods is the best overall performer.

On May 8th, the day the JEGS High performance-sponsored vehicles are scheduled to be completed, the Coughlin’s will put the three gleaming sleds through numerous tests at National Trail Raceway near their hometown of Columbus, Ohio. The cars will then be transported to Lexington, Ohio, where Byrnes will take over and run them through the 2.4-mile road course.

The comparison idea was brainchild of Chris Sondles, the president of Woody’s Hot Rodz in Bright, Ind., who together with his staff has spent the last several months completely updating the classic cars to today’s performance and comfort standards. With the permission of the car’s owners, Sondles, who chronicled each vehicle’s painstaking modification process in the pages of Super Rod, Street Rod Builder, and Chevy Rumble magazines, decide to let professionals like the Coughlin brothers and Byrne give the street legal cars the prerequisite test rides before handing them over to their rightful titleholders.

Just for fun, Sondles decided to set up a list of criteria similar to new car buyer’s guides that will compare and contrast the American-made classics.

“The cars are very different in some respects but we’re rebuilding them all pretty much the same way,” Sondles said. “They all have Art Morrison chassis and are completely updated in every aspect. The obvious difference is the motors as each one will get a stock crate powerplant from the original manufacturer. We’re big fans of all the auto magazines and we love those deals that come out each year where they compare three or four cars against one another. That’s basically what we’re going to do here.

“The restoration of these cars has been big news in our field. I think to date we’ve had 30-something stories written about the process and several more are planned. When we alerted the national media about this testing idea they loved it. Getting professional drivers the caliber of Jeg and Mike Coughlin, as well as Tommy Brynes, makes it that much more exciting. We can’t wait to see how they match up.”

Sondles will use NTR’s timing system to clock the hot rods down the quarter-mile. He also plans some braking tests, slalom work, and other handling drills for the Coughlin’s. Brynes’ road test will encompass weight shifts, overall handling, acceleration and deceleration, and general drivability of the vehicles in an open-road environment.

“I’m honored to have the chance to drive these cars,” Jeg Coughlin said. “Chris does great work over there at Woody’s and I’m sure these cars will be awesome when they’re completed. My main goal is to not damage them. Seriously, it is an interesting idea to see how they’ll match up. It’s kind of like those computer-generated deals where the original Packers team from the ’40s plays a virtual football game against the ’92 Cowboys. The difference here is we can actually see how different muscle cars from different generations and manufacturers will stack up against one another.”


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