Pete Condos & Frank Ferro ( Con-Ferr ) (1 Viewer)

[CruiserStuff]

Here's a scan of a February 1967 article about Pete Condos and his FJ40 from Four Wheeler Magazine:

Check out the wheels!

 

[CruiserStuff]

Here's a Con-ferr ad from the October 1969 issue of Four Wheeler Magazine:

 

[CruiserStuff]

The Aames brothers paid me another visit today....look what they brought me:

 

[fj404life]

Dang wish we could still get a set of tires and wheels mounted for $244!!!!!!!

 

[Conferrkid]

Pete Condos

I stumbled upon this website today and just felt I should reply. I am Pete Condos' Granddaughter. He passed in July of 2009 but seeing this website and the appreciation people have for his life's work and passion is really moving. He lives on through fans like all of you. He would be so happy to see this! Thanks for supporting Con-ferr and off-roading in general. We miss him very much but its so great to see this kind of stuff. Thank you.

 

[wesintl]

I stumbled upon this website today and just felt I should reply. I am Pete Condos' Granddaughter. He passed in July of 2009 but seeing this website and the appreciation people have for his life's work and passion is really moving. He lives on through fans like all of you. He would be so happy to see this! Thanks for supporting Con-ferr and off-roading in general. We miss him very much but its so great to see this kind of stuff. Thank you.

 

[Trollhole]

Very cool. I always like hearing about old cruiser companies.

 

[crimsonaudio]

*bump*

Thanks for the history - very interesting! Would love to see some of the images that were lost in the recent move.

 

[JohnnyC]

i am hoping woody has a fix for it

 

[Professor]

Pete Condos was an inovator in accessories for Land Cruisers.

If you have any literature or information about Pete Condos, Frank Ferro or Con-Ferr please post them up. There is alot of good information about Mr.Condos but not so much for Mr.Ferro.

I have been collecting some literature files and will post some up soon


Pete Condos is the man who coined the term Off-Road.

He was one of the major organizers behind National Off-Road Racing Association (NORRA), International Desert Racing Association, the Off-Road Drivers and Owners Association and the Off-Road Equipment Association (OREA).
Born on May 8th, 1925, Condos grew up in the suburbs to the north of Chicago.

He spent many hours of his young years at a local speed shop learning the skills needed to customize cars making them into hot rods. At the garage he helped to hop up Model A’s and B’s. During this time he took additional classes and earned his certification as a welder which would further allow him to modify cars. His time spent at the garage came to a quick end with the beginning of World War II.

In 1942 he joined the United States Navy. He served in the Pacific on the U.S.S. Nevada as a seaman. After the war Condos returned to the Chicago area. He completed his high school education and resumed his interest in hot rods. On the GI bill he started attending classes for a degree in Commercial Arts; however his interests kept drawing him back to the vehicles. He began building and racing roadsters and coupes. His first Roadster being a 1934 Ford that he completed in 1948. He became a charter member of Andy Granitellis Hurricane Hot Rod Racing Association.” In 1948 Pete moved to Southern California.

He fell easily into the California car culture and joined “The Throttler Hot Rod Club” a dry lakes racing group. While Condos raced he has stated that he always found fabricating the race cars the more enjoyable of the two related activities. His building skills led him to an early career as a fabricator. In 1950 Earl “Madman” Muntz hired him to assist with the fabrication of the Muntz Road Jet car. Condos worked for Muntz building the high-end custom cars which were purchased by some of Hollywood’s elite.

(More about Muntz Muntz Car Company - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia )

With the Muntz company Condos made the move back to the suburbs of Chicago. There he met Carol Jean Wood and they married in 1952. The couple has one child, Victoria. With Muntz closing the doors on the car building business in 1954 the Condos family returned to Southern California.

Once back in California, Condos continued fabricating cars and working in a metal fabricating shop. In 1961 Condos purchased his first I.H. Scout a move which would eventually change the path of his career. He purchased the Scout so that his hunting trips to Nevada, Montana and Idaho would be easier. On the trips he realized the need for different accessories for the Scout. With his welding skills he began making accessories for the Scout. He worked with Frank Ferro and the two would discuss accessories that would be useful for both Jeeps and Scouts. The two men started their own company, Con-Ferr in 1961.

Con-Ferr made specialty off-road items for Scouts and with the 1962 arrival of the Toyota Land Cruiser and Land Rover; they began making accessories for those vehicles as well. The business grew quickly and by 1963 Con-Ferr had dived into the business of selling Land Cruisers in addition to accessories. Around this time Ferro bowed out of the business. With Con-Ferr already being an established and incorporated name, Condos kept the business name the same. Con-Ferr became one of the largest Toyota dealers in California. Condos operated the Burbank dealership with an accessory store for four wheel drive vehicles as well as a factory down the street where the accessories where made and custom fabrications took place. Both national and foreign manufactures of four wheel drive vehicles adopted many of the Condos’ original ideas as standard features.

Condos continued his interest in racing cars and making the necessary modifications to speed them up. In 1964 he joined a group of racers at the Riverside race organized by Southern Californian, Jeep dealer, Brian Chuchua (ORMHOF 1976 Inductee). Condos raced his “Convert Cougar” along the semi- dry riverbed. His driver, Bill Haddad took Condos’ vehicles to 18 victories in the 21 races he participated in.

In the early 1960’s Ed Pearlman came into Condos’ dealership and introduced himself. The two men formed a friendship based around their love of four-wheeling. Pearlman owned a Land Cruiser that needed some attention. They would take weekend runs in rural California. There was enough interest in the runs by other four wheelers that Pearlman and Condos formed a club called the “Stump Jumpers.”

In 1966, Pearlman, intrigued by the timed runs of motorcyclists through Baja talked a group of friends into a small race of their own in their four wheel vehicles. Condos sponsored one and prepared both of the Land Cruisers in the race. Claude Dozier and Ed Orr. Pearlman and Dick Cepek drove theToyota Land Cruisers with Chevy engines. Bruce Myers donated a Myers Maxx buggy for the press vehicle, driven by Drino Miller and John Lawlor a journalist. Pearlman and Condos came to the conclusion that there needed to be a more organized way of putting on four wheel races and standardized timing of the events.

Once back in Southern California Condos, Pearlman and friends got together and discussed the idea. For the first time “Off-Road” was used to describe what had
been previously been termed “four wheeling.” Condos felt that the term off-road captured the sport and found the term more all encompassing than four wheeling. The term would allow for the inclusion of dirt bikes and buggies. At the meeting Condos came up with the name, National Off-Road Racing Association (NORRA) and truly coined the term “Off-Road”. “Off-Road” is now apart of the American vocabulary.

Only Condos came up with the initial $500 to match Pearlman’s to start the organization and therefore became a fifty percent owner of NORRA. As a fifty-fifty owner Condos actively participated in the planning of the early Baja 1000.

In the beginning Condos and Pearlman worked together running NORRA. In 1969 they amicably went their separate ways and Condos sold his share of NORRA. Condos took on the organization of the Mint 500, sponsored by the Mint Casino in Las Vegas. The race remained popular for two decades with one of the biggest cash purses of any race.

While Condos actively ran his business Con-Ferr and worked as a race promoter, he still continued to fabricate race vehicles. He helped build cars for famous drivers such as Steve McQueen and James Gardner as well as his own Class One unlimited vehicles. He ran the “Brick Privy” named so for its solid construction in less genteel terms by McQueen.

Condos actively participated in the off-road racing scene until 1973. SEMA named him the “Off Road Man of the Year” for the 1979-1980, a career highlight for Condos. In 1998 Condos sold Con-Ferr and retired. He still maintains a small fabricating shop in which he continues to design and fabricate accessories and cars on a hobby basis..

Condos is partially responsible for the formation of the Off-Road Hall of Fame’s existence, in that he passed on the idea on to its creator Ed Pearlman. Condos stated that one of his favorite things is that he had the fortune to see the formation of off-roading from its inception to the sport which it has grown to today.

Sources:

Telephone Interview with Pete Condos, May 2006.

Notes from Pete Condos, July 2006

Fiolka, Marty. 2005. 1000 Miles to Glory, The History of the Baja 1000. Pheonix, AZ.: David Bull Publishing.

Reference: Welcome to the Off-Road Motorsports Hall of Fame - ORMHOF
View attachment 387623View attachment 387624View attachment 387625

 

[Professor]

In Pete Condos, I've never dealt with a more honest man ever.

In 1966 I had packed up my 1958 Volkswagen bug with my 18 month old daughter, her crib, her mom, and camping tent heading out to Anza-Borrago desert for a long weekend family get-together.

About 2 blocks from Con-Ferr the motor in the bug just went south. I limped the bug into the driveway at Mr. Condos' business only knowing the shop looked like a garage. Being young, overwhelmed with that feeling of being between a rock and a hard place, I asked the person that walked up us if he would look at the engine. “Well, I can tell by the oil line on the ground that followed you in here, the motor is shot.” I only had to look back at the trail to confirm his observation. Of course, I was soon to discover I was speaking with the owner of Con-Ferr, Pete Condos.

He mentioned he had a couple of Land Cruisers for sale if we were interested. Now here is where I received my lesson in dealing with an honest person and in doing so, also learning being honest is a two way street. I didn't have the pink slip for the bug, it was at home.

Being very unaware of the size and growth of the 'dune buggy' market and the need for VW bug chassis, I blurted out “I think the V-dub is worth x amount of dollars!” He just said 'It's worth more to me than that.” With that, we all walked into his shop where I purchased our new to us canvas top LC.

After the papers were signed and I said I'd drop off the pink slip after we got back from camping – which was okay with him - he helped us unpack the bug and load up the Land Cruiser and told me about a club of “off road” enthusiasts we might like to look into. The club was The San Fernando Stump Jumpers which we joined and through the club outings really got to know just what a great rig the Land Cruiser is. I've a picture of the rig with the club circle decal, 12” wide rims with the Armstrong highway rated tires and the yellow painted roll bar I had Con-Ferr make up and install somewhere in a box. If I find it I'll post it.

I've never forgotten the fun surrounding that time in my life owning the LC and the off road and off-off road adventures with the Stump Jumpers nor that day...that day the motor broke and pulling into Con-Ferr.

 

[Professor]

Sorry to say i have nothing in what you are re-questing. Only a color photo of the rig

 

[Cruiser_Nerd]

That is a great story and thanks for sharing it. A picture of the bug or cruiser would just be an added bonus.

 

[JohnnyC]

@Professor

Thank you for sharing your story !!

Yes pics would be GREAT ... When you get a chance

 

[teleskier]

The Aames brothers paid me another visit today....look what they brought me:

Got any of these left? Need to get a pic of one.

 

[65swb45]

First I've seen of this thread. What a time warp.

I wheeled for many years with Jeff and Dave Aames back in the '80s, and they showed me a lot of one-off prototypes that Pete built for their dad. Pete had a Scout and an LC to work with, but every time he had a new idea for a Jeep, he'd call Robert up. At the time I wheeled with them, they said that dad had left them 26 4x4s of various makes. I don't think any of them went over 50mph!

I remember one Pismo trip we did, they did a night run in an old flat fender, and were very late getting back. Finally wandered in with the motor barely running. Alternator had gone out, as well as the electric fuel pump. They drove back in on the battery, two Mag lites for headlights, and a champagne bottle strapped to the roll cage to gravity feed the carb.

Anyhow, back to Pete. On one of our early business deals, I went in to ask him if he would reproduce his FJ40 steel half doors for me. I was sure that, being the businessman that the was, he kept the templates. He smiled and said he had the templates. I asked him what the minimum order was, and he said ten sets. We agreed on a price. Then I told him that if he made them for me, he could ONLY make 10 sets, not 11 or 12, putting some on the shelf. In other words, I didn't want to pay his tooling costs just to go into competition with him on sales. He gave me a big smile and said "You are a sharp businessman." We always stayed on good terms. He delivered my last batch to me 3 days before he closed the shop. He frantically scoured the shop looking for the latches, only to give up on them and offered to send them to me later.

Just before I drove off, he came running up to say he had found them. They were in the drawer of his desk, kept safe from being accidentally boxed up as everything else he was taking was was being frantically packed.

A few other notes. yes, Terry was his son.

I have one of his modified sandbars in Ruftoys.

There is a thread in the classifieds of a bed extender he gave me back in 1990 that is going to scrap on Tuesday.

In my cache, I have a couple of medallions. They pre-date the stickers.

@Downey has shared stories with me about he and Pete and a couple of others started SEMA, back when no accessory manufacturer in Cali could get product liability insurance.

 

[overton]

Have owned this 69 FJ40 Factory Soft Top I thought it was fitting to post the Con-Ferr Invoice here.

 

[oregon fj]

My ‘64 FST came with a Con-Ferr Sand Bar in it. I have it out now, makes a pretty handy spare work table in the garage. It’s a really stout built piece.

I doubt I will put it back in, I think I want the jump seats in it instead, and I can’t fit both. Would probably sell it, but shipping would be stupid expensive, I’m guessing.

 

[Bear]

Wow, only 5% California sales tax on that red '69 and no "dealer prep"--times have changed !

 

[JohnnyC]

thought i'd add a few more things here:

and the mcqueen dune buggy: