Micro Sports Car: 1943 (?) Crosley Hot Shot

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Crosley Motors was a small, independent American manufacturer of subcompact cars (aka microcars). The company was active from 1939 to 1952, with a timeout during World War II. A runabout convertible called the Hot Shot was one of their creations built after the war, so we’re not sure how the seller came up with listing this one as a 1943 model. The vehicle, which is a rare find in any condition, is mostly complete and needs to be reassembled. Located in North Richland Hills, Texas, this tiny auto is available here on craigslist for $5,000.

The Hot Shot was a tiny sports car, even smaller than, say, the MG Midget. Built between 1949 and 1952, they had no doors, a wheelbase of just 80 inches, disc brakes on all four wheels, and a curb weight of less than 1,100 lbs. Just as the car itself was small, so was the engine at 44 cubic inches producing 26 hp. All this made the Hot Shot ideal in certain racing circles, winning events like the Sam Collier Memorial Endurance Grand Prix. It’s estimated that fewer than 2,500 of the little rocket ships were produced.

We get the impression this Crosley has been sitting around for a while and some of it may have been taken apart for restoration. The seller says the Hot Shot is all there, but just needs to be reassembled. It lacks an alternator and a carburetor cover, and the interior will need to be redone. We believe the odometer reading is 20,000 miles (not 200,000 as the seller indicates) and these cars did not have automatic transmissions. When was the last time you saw one of these not in a museum?

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Comments

  1. bobhess bobhessMember

    Enjoyed the Crosley I had and have seen a couple of the Hot Shots at weekend shows. Simple to work on and if more power is what you want it’s not hard to get as the engine is sturdy enough to take modifications. Met an owner who had a 9,000 rpm 90 hp engine in his ’52 sedan that really impressed me. He took all the racing modifications that were published and put them in his engine. Drove the car for years without any problems. If I had been in his position I would have put the Hot Shot’s caliper brakes on it as the mechanical ones were pretty lame for high speed running.

    Like 2
  2. Sparky Witham

    These Crosley Hot Shots were only made from 1946-1952 so its got to be one of those years , Sorry!!!

    Like 1
  3. Jimbosidecar

    My boss, back in 1976 was always running around the country picking up interesting cars for next to nothing. One time he came back with a Model T popcorn truck, a (fake) wood sided Chrysler convertible, and a white Hotshot. He let me drive all 3.

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  4. Frank of Eden

    Yeah… the commenters who say the car can’t be older than 1949 are correct. I owned and operated a 1950 for years, mine was a “Hot Shot” (Super sports version) which is what the particular body style was called.

    That body style started being built in 1949, and in 1950 they added some “accessories” and the cars with those items were named Hot Shot SUPER SPORTS (mine was one of those). The items that were added to make a “Super Sports” version was fancier trim and a folding top (a folding top was the big thing and it is easy to tell if you have one of those Super Sports versions because of the top “connections” built into the inside of the rear fenders), also removable “half doors”. In 1951 and 1952 full doors were added to the Super Sports that actually opened with out being “removed” while the Hotshot continued with the cut down sides with either no doors or removable half doors.

    Something of interest is how the Crosley used only TWO types of fenders, the left front and the right front… those two fenders were ALSO used on the rear of the car… using a left front “pressing” on the right rear and the right front “pressing” on the left rear… saved a lot of time and extra pressings to build the car. If you look inside, behind the seats, on the wall of the rear fenders you can even see the “vent” location (that is sealed) on those rear fenders.

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  5. Glenn reynoldsMember

    Will need a Crosley specific generator (not alternator), as the water [pump runs off the back of the generator, 6 volt.

    Like 0

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