BangShift reader Jerry Clarke sent us an email with a Craigslist link to the 1964 Sport Fury “Camino” shown below. According to the guy selling the car/truck, Chrysler had four of these things made for professional racing teams in 1964 presumably as support/tow vehicles. We have never seen one before and we have never heard of any production of these cars so we’re going to rely on the power of the Mopar internet intelligencia to set us straight or tell us that the seller may have inhaled too many paint fumes over the course of his life.
For starters the thing does look professionally built, even though it currently sits in tatters. We have searched high and low for old photos of one of these on the internet with no avail and the photos provided with the ad don’t really get into a lot of detail. The rear window looks pretty wild and it does appear to be a factory 1964 Sport Fury window when compared to a normal car. With a 383 and a four speed the little trucklet must have moved out pretty good when new. Now, the whole thing will need to be gone through.
Here’s what the seller says in his CL ad. What do you think? Real or wives tale?
This car was purchased by a Plymouth company and converted into an El Camino / Ranchero type car. There were 4 made and were then given as tow cars to the professional racers sponsored by Plymouth. This is the only one known to still be existing. The engine is a big block and is still in the car, although it is not in any condition to be ran. The brakes in the rear are locked as well. This car will need a complete restoration but it is one piece of history that needs to be saved. I do not have the funds to do it or I would.
SCROLL DOWN FOR PHOTOS AND HIT THE LINK FOR MORE PICTURES AT THE CRAIGSLIST AD –
Mother Mopar did build “utes” in Australia A & C-body wagons.
http://www.underseventiesrodandcustomclub.com/photos/Members-Cars/SDC10262.JPG
So, conceivably, they might have build B-body ones.
If so, they may have brought a couple to the northern hemisphere.
As an Aussie I’m not at all sure of what you are saying …yes, we had Chrysler utes but I have NEVER seen one of these..we had in the early 60’s, Wayfarers built off Chrysler Royals (local weird looking car loosely based off mid 50’s Dodge/Desoto/Plymouths) then when Valiants came out here from early 60’s all our utes were based off them….
I’m not an expert by any stretch, but the short roof line and pyramid shaped side glass look like it would be a pain to climb in and out of. I don’t think the Mopar design team penned this one.
Read the article. It says it was provided to race teams as a tow/support vehicle.
Is that a cut up oil pan for a battery box?
Sure looks like it.
I would like to say never . . . but when it comes to cars of the 1960’s . . . never say never.
But I do highly doubt it. It just looks too :home made” to me.
with you on that one
Way to LEGO to be any thing a factory would make
? what does the tail gate look like ? & how would you mount it ?
Why wold the factory put a rap around rear window in a ” UTE , car truck ”
And you would think they would try to make the bed flat ( with out a BIG axle bump in the middle )
🙂 I say not factory 🙂
Chrysler just wasn’t into “Car Pickups” like Ford and GM were in 1964.
I don’t think so ? I do know they built interesting things over in Austrailia but I don’t think they built this machine ? Although like someone above would say, never say never, Gaylen Golvier would probably know and be able to answer the question.
Beverly Hills Mustang made the 1965/66 Mustang Mustero Pickup. There were Caddy Pickups (the name of the company escapes me) but I have never heard or seen a Chryler car from the 1960s converted to a pickup.
I don’t recall any. And if they did this isn’t one. It’s a home butcher job.
I doubt they would run the Tailgate chains over the taillights.
No way thats factory. Home built hack job.
Looks home built to me with that roof line.
Never heard of such a thing and it doesn’t look factory, but if there’s one thing I’ve learned of early ’60s Ma Mopar it’s that anything is possible.
maybe a funeral home flower car based on an Imperial, but not this one
Not familiar enough with Mopar wagons…. But when a guy named Duane built a X-camino ( a buck gsx version of the elcamino), he did a very factory looking job using some of the station wagon body parts and taillights to make it look factory.
With that said, i wonder if that is what was done here. wagon tailgate, and tail lights and maybe the c pillar from the same wagon to make that weird b pillar in the pictures above.
Meant to say Buick in the post above. Damn auto correct.
Mopar made pretty cars during this time and this is not pretty, not by a long stretch. Home made…….
The back window is a front windshield and the rest is a cut up wagon. The Dodge and Plymouth race teams, cars and support vehicles are well documented and this is for sure a homemade project.
Andy, being an owner of a 1964 Fury wagon, that car is NOT a cut up wagon. It also is not factory built. Could Plymouth have commissioned some custom cars for race teams? Sure, why not. But did Plymouth build this (these)? No way.
it has to be a personal custom..the door opening is nearly unusable..would be non-stop bashing of the noggin..a manufacture would sort that out even if only in limited numbers..i call shenanigans..
that does not look factory if you look were the tailgate should be its not right looks like they cut up the bumper and put a piece of sheet metal there and the bed would be flat nice try but sorry not factory
I agree with every one who says that car looks way too imperfect to have been built by the factory. Chrysler took great pride in their cars, and whomever hacked this one up obviously didn’t.
Fake and Fugly!
Not factory built. Even Mopar wouldn’t sell anything that hideous.
Looking at the pictures, it appears to me that, the C pillar was cut to move the roof forward, front part of roof is used for the filler panel below back window. looking at rear shot, the visible hump in back would be the rear seat riser from coupe floorpan stamping. quarter panels are modified station wagon quarters, possibly back doors welded and smoothed over for a seamless look in its’ construction. Stone, Woods, Cook ran factory sponsored Plymouths in early to mid 60s’. Maybe something in the archives of National Dragster, but seem to remember seeing something in either Hot Rod or Car Craft in early to mid 60s. I do agree to some extent as to the door/roofline comment as it would be awkward to enter or exit quickly from the vehicle. The biggest thing would be getting a VIN and fender tag for decoding the vehicle. If they are missing, I would be highly skeptical.
probably doesn’t have any door glass. would be to hard to cut to fit. but it never rains in southern california
sent e-mail to seller last Tuesday, still waiting for a reply. I figure data tag on fender and VIN code would verify it as a Sport Fury, data tag would confirm options and possibly engine, trans, and rear end ratio. However it could also be something put together at a local dealership, who may have sponsored a local racer. As it is posted on the Wichita Craigslist, may have been Frank Scott Dodge-Plymouth-Chrysler in Joplin Mo. or maybe Gillpin Motors across the state line in Kansas, or maybe a dealer up around Kansas City, Salina, or Dodge City Ks. I went thru about 6 hours of National Dragster, and also era videos, looking and the closest I could come across were a couple of 1959 Chevy El Caminos’ and a couple of 1957 Ford Rancheros’. Most of the other tow vehicles were Chevy or Ford pick up trucks.
seller sent me a partial picture of a Kansas title today. not much info other than 1964 Sport Fury. I am strongly starting to believe the vehicle is bogus.
you can see the cut marks in the bed area ,,they didnt make any of these..,,bogeee..
It’s not even a sport fury – it’s a 1965 belvedere…… Look at the profile of the front fenders above the bumper. Sport fury’s fenders come to a point up front. Google image it – it’s obviously a belvedere!!