Rides from the Readers: 1956 Chevrolet sedan delivery
Hagerty readers and Hagerty Drivers Club members share their cherished collector and enthusiast vehicles with us via our contact email, tips@hagerty.com. We’re showcasing some of our favorite stories among these submissions. To have your car featured, send complete photography and your story of ownership to us at the above email.
Today’s featured car is 1956 Chevrolet sedan delivery. Most body styles in Chevy’s 150 lineup served time in various fleets—state governments, police, and small businesses. Little about the 150 was dressy and its short options list catered to those who sought (affordable) function over form. However, the bare-bones 150 caught the eye of hot rodders well. Though our featured car today is the cargo-hauling, two-door wagon body style, which came without seats and was known as a “sedan delivery,” it’s a painstakingly recreated homage to a nationally ranked drag racer.
This particular sedan delivery belongs to Wayne Jesel, who built both this homage example and the original racer. In the late ’60s, 16-year-old Jesel started on a quest to build “the ultimate Junior Stock drag race car.” Of course, to lay rubber on major strips Jesel’s car needed a sponsor. Jesel ended up securing a sponsorship from Yoo-hoo Beverage Co. (whose board of directors at the time included Yogi Berra) and in the process earned the first non-automotive sponsorship in drag racing. Though he later sold it, the Yoo-hoo-sponsored sedan delivery didn’t retire until it set several national records and won numerous class championships.
When Jesel spotted a perfectly stock 1956 sedan delivery, nearly 50 years later, he couldn’t resist the urge. He bought the car. The body went to the paint shop and afterwards was hand-lettered to exactly match the original. Jesel tracked down the same four-speed Hydra-matic transmission he and his team ran back in the ’60s and had the 265-cubic-inch, 225-horse engine built to the same 1966 rule book specification as the first car. Only a year or so later, the “Yoo-Hoo-Too” was complete, garnering much praise at car shows and even visiting the strip a few times itself. It’s now proudly resting at the NHRA Museum in Pomona, California.
