Crosley Hotshot History

Introduced in July 1949, the Crosley Hotshot was a stripped, doorless two-seat roadster weighing under 1,200 lb and powered by the same 44-cubic-inch (724 cc) four as the sedans. Widely regarded as America's first post-war sports car, it was startlingly quick for its size and price thanks to its featherweight construction, and like the rest of the 1949 line it debuted with the pioneering four-wheel Hydradisc disc brakes.

The Hotshot's signature moment came at the inaugural Sam Collier Memorial Endurance Grand Prix — the 1950 Six Hours of Sebring — where a Hotshot won the Index of Performance, the award weighing finishing position against engine displacement. It was a giant-killing result that cemented the little Crosley's competition reputation among amateur road racers.

A better-equipped variant arrived for 1950, the Super, which added conventional hinged doors and a proper fold-down top; for 1951–1952 it was renamed the Super Sports. Production of both ended with the company's closure in 1952; the Hotshot remains the best-remembered Crosley and a sought-after vintage racer.