A 1937 Chevrolet on the Yosemite Run
Very little has been written on the seminal years of what became the Mobilgas Economy run, namely the Gilmore Yosemite Economy Run. Few photographs of the event exist, for example. During the years 1936 to 1940 inclusive, stock current automobiles competed in annual gasoline economy tests. These tests were sponsored by the Gilmore Oil Company and sanctioned by the AAA. The name under which these runs were publicized was the Gilmore Yosemite Economy Run or the Gilmore Yosemite Mileage Run. I am including results for the first three years of this Run, and will keep you posted as I work on this topic. I plan to review local news papers, and also look at archives located in Los Angeles. I'll be chugging along, as I also have other topics to work on as well -- and I will post progress on those also.
Results of 1936 Yosemite Run
Price Class | Cars | Weight with Passengers | Ton Miles | Ton miles per gallon | Miles per gallon |
1-A | Willys 4 | 2980 | 524.5 | 49.48 | 33.21 |
| Willys 4 | 2845 | 500.7 | 45.52 | 32.00 |
| Willys 4 | 2610 | 459.4 | 33.77 | 25.88 |
2-A | Graham Crusader 6 | 3760 | 661.8 | 47.61 | 25.33 |
| Plymouth 6 | 3845 | 676.7 | 43.10 | 22.42 |
| Chevrolet 6 | 3255 | 567.6 | 41.43 | 25.70 |
3-A | Pontiac 6 | 4000 | 704.0 | 47.89 | 23.93 |
| Terraplane 6 | 3790 | 667.0 | 45.37 | 23.95 |
4-A | Studebaker Dictator 6 | 4200 | 739.2 | 50.98 | 24.24 |
| Nash 400 6 | 4140 | 728.6 | 46.11 | 22.28 |
| Pontiac 8 | 4100 | 721.6 | 45.10 | 22.00 |
| Oldsmobile 6 | 3740 | 658.2 | 44.47 | 23.78 |
5-A | Graham Supercharged 6 | 4160 | 732.2 | 55.47 | 26.67 |
| DeSoto Airstream 6 | 4155 | 731.2 | 48.11 | 23.16 |
| Chrysler 6 | 4450 | 783.2 | 46.62 | 20.95 |
| Hudson 8 | 4060 | 714.6 | 46.40 | 22.85 |
| Auburn 6 | 3900 | 686.4 | 46.07 | 23.62 |
| Hupmobile 6 | 4100 | 721.6 | 45.96 | 22.42 |
| Nash Ambassador 6 | 4665 | 821.0 | 45.61 | 19.55 |
| Oldsmobile 8 | 4000 | 704.0 | 38.68 | 19.34 |
| REO 6 | 4180 | 735.7 | 31.99 | 15.30 |
6-A | Studebaker President 8 | 4760 | 841.3 | 48.63 | 20.35 |
| DeSotot Airflow 6 | 4470 | 786.7 | 48.26 | 21.60 |
| Hupmobile 8 | 4740 | 834.2 | 45.84 | 19.34 |
| Nash Ambassador 8 | 4800 | 844.8 | 44.46 | 18.53 |
| Packard 120 8 | 4440 | 781.4 | 44.40 | 20.00 |
| Auburn 8 | 4240 | 746.2 | 42.40 | 20.00 |
| Chrysler Airflow 8 | 5820 | 1024.3 | 53.35 | 18.33 |
7-A | Lincoln Zephyr 12 | 4400 | 774.4 | 38.91 | 17.69 |
| | | | | |
1936 Sweepstakes Winners
- Graham Supercharged Six – 55.47 Ton Miles Per Gallon
- Chrysler Airflow 8 – 53.35 Ton Miles Per Gallon
- Studebaker Dictator 6 – 50.98 Ton Miles Per Gallon
1937 Yosemite Run
Price Class | 1937 Cars all sedans | Weight with Pasengers | Ton Miles Per Gallon | Miles Per Hour | Miles Per Gallon |
A | Willys 4 | 3485 | | | |
| Willys 4 | 3404 | | | |
B | Master Chevrolet 6 | 4300 | | | |
| Plymouth 6 | 3982 | | | |
C | Terraplane 6 | 4400 | | | |
| Pontiac 6 | 4400 | | | |
| DeSoto 6 | 4502 | | | |
| Nash Lafayette 6 | 4380 | | | |
D | Graham 6 | 4245 | | | |
| Pontiac 8 | 4500 | | | |
| Oldsmobile 6 | 4340 | | | |
E | Graham 116 Supercharger 6 | 4460 | | | |
| Hudson 8 | 4600 | | | |
| Chrysler Royal 6 | 4480 | | | |
| Nash Ambassador 6 | 4380 | | | |
| Packard 6 | 4480 | | | |
| Oldsmobile 8 | 4780 | | | |
F | Nash Ambassador 8 | 4880 | | | |
| Chrysler Imperial 8 | 4900 | | | |
| Lincoln Zephyr 12 | 4620 | | | |
G | Packard 8 | 4836 | | | |
H | Cord 8 | 5000 | | | |
| Chrysler Airflow 8 | 5580 | | | |
1937 Sweepstakes Winners
- Graham Supercharger 6 – 53.4 Ton Miles Per Gallon
- Graham 6 -- 52.246 Ton miles Per Gallon
- Hudson 8
1938 Yosemite Run
Price Class | 1938 Cars (all 4-door) | Weight with passengers | Ton Miles | Miles Per Gallon | Ton Miles Per Gallon |
A | Willys 4 | 3203 | 503.67 | 30.534 | 48.900 |
| Willys 4 | 3210 | 504.77 | 29.392 | 47.175 |
| Willys 4 | 3200 | 503.20 | 28.080 | 44.929 |
B | Ford 60 8 | 3519 | 553.36 | 28.850 | 50.767 |
| Chevrolet 6 | 3955 | 621.92 | 21.993 | 43.491 |
| Plymouth 6 | 3808 | 598.81 | 21.250 | 40.460 |
C | Terraplane 6 | 3915 | 615.63 | 25.779 | 50.461 |
| Nash Lafayette 6 | 4379 | 688.60 | 22.305 | 48.837 |
| Pontiac 6 | 4312 | 678.06 | 21.840 | 47.087 |
| Dodge 6 | 3990 | 627.43 | 21.107 | 42.109 |
D | Pontiac 8 | 4460 | 701.34 | 20.967 | 46.756 |
| DeSoto 6 | 4144 | 651.64 | 20.691 | 42.871 |
E | Studebaker Commander 6 | 4250 | 668.31 | 24.380 | 51.807 |
| Oldsmobile 6 | 4338 | 682.15 | 19.177 | 41.595 |
F | Nash Ambassador 6 | 4530 | 712.34 | 23.647 | 53.559 |
| Graham 6 | 4279 | 672.87 | 24.764 | 52.982 |
| Hupmobile 6 | 4402 | 692.21 | 21.840 | 48.070 |
| Packard 6 | 4458 | 701.02 | 20.290 | 45.227 |
| Oldsmobile 8 | 4545 | 714.70 | 19.061 | 43.315 |
G | Hudson 8 | 4336 | 681.84 | 22.790 | 49.409 |
| Nash Ambassador 8 | 4840 | 761.09 | 19.650 | 47.568 |
| Studebaker President 8 | 4540 | 713.92 | 20.691 | 46.968 |
H | Graham Supercharger 6 | 4339 | 682.31 | 25.779 | 55.927 |
| Hupmobile 8 | 4794 | 753.86 | 20.556 | 49.272 |
I | Lincoln Zephyr 12 | 4665 | 733.57 | 23.470 | 54.744 |
J | Packard 8 | 5742 | 902.93 | 16.211 | 46.543 |
1938 Sweepstakes Winners
- Graham Supercharger 6 – 55.927 Ton miles Per Gallon
- Lincoln Zephyr 12 – 54.744 Ton Miles Per Gallon
- Nash Ambassador 6 – 53.559 Ton Miles Per Gallon
A Graham Supercharger -- until the 1990s, no American firm made more supercharged cars than Graham! They were reliable, and saved perhaps 7-15% on fuel.
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