Producer Roger Corman doubled as one of the race drivers, and got so caught up in the race that he forgot he wasn't supposed to "win" it; he wound up beating star John Ireland across the finish line, resulting in another take being shot in which Ireland won the race.
Shot in nine days.
The first film released by the American Releasing Corporation which would later become American International Pictures.
The race sequence uses stock footage of actual road races that were held in the Southern California area along with racing scenes filmed for the movie.
The title rights, not the story rights, to this film were purchased so that the title could be used on The Fast and the Furious, another film about racing.