We were talking with an old drag racer about a week ago and the guy kind of lamented that he’d never see his favorite car again and there was no real way to track it down. It is interesting in the fact that race cars are tools and they all share the mechanical lifespan of a may fly. They are good, they are fast, and then they are old and discarded. Now for the question.
If you could own one restored race car of any genre what would it be?
There are a million different cars, genres, and reasons to make your choice on this question and in the end it boils down to personal preference. For us it would be a car that had some personal meaning more than something that was known around the globe. There’s certainly nothing wrong with choosing one of The Intimidator’s Chevys, or a Don Prudhomme flopper, it just isn’t the direction we would go.
We think that it is important that old race cars get restored and saved. More so than street cars, race cars provide a direct link to the evolutionary history of motorsports. To reference the Grumpy Jenkins car again, that was the final Vega he had before the full tube frame machine that completely changed the class and set it on the course that led us directly to modern Pro Stock. Having a dead nuts accurate, original, pristine version of the car allows dorks like me to gawk at it, regular guys to admire it, and perhaps kids of tomorrow to be inspired by it. While we’re not nut and bolt restoration muscle car guys, we wouldn’t bat an eyelash at a guy dropping huge coin to save or restore an old racer. Those cars are living history.
Question of the day: What’s the one restored race car you would want to own?
fuel cackle
Any Gas Ronda Ford
Holman Moody 1966 GT40 ” Gold #5 “
The Jungle Jim 1969 NovaS
Early 70’s Funny Car. Durachrome Bug, A&W twin engine Nova, Jim Dunn’s rear engine Cuda
Al Holberts IMSA Dekon Monza
Bobby Allison’s 1972 Coca-Cola Monte Carlo.
Marshall Teague’s “Fabulous Hudson Hornet”.
From Wikipedia:
His first time driving the Hornet in the February 1951 Daytona Beach and Road Course resulted in a first-place finish. Teague nicknamed his Hudson Hornet the “Fabulous Hudson Hornet” and had that name painted on the sides of the car. Teague went on to win five of the fifteen NASCAR Grand National races in 1951.
Teague and his crew chief Smokey Yunick won 27 of 34 events in major stock car events, including seven NASCAR events. Teague left NASCAR during the 1952 season in a dispute with NASCAR’s owner Bill France, Sr.
Teague was awarded the 1951 AAA Stock Car Driver of the Year, and the 1952 and 1954 AAA National Stock Car Champion while driving in the Fabulous Hudson Hornet.
The original Fabulous Hudson Hornet can be found today, fully restored, at the Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Museum in Ypsilanti, Michigan. This Hornet is also occasionally used in classic car racing.
Grumpy Jenkins pro stock Camaro
Paul Blevins’ P/S 1974 Vega and it’s box truck hauler that had some bullshit about “Do not delay, official government business” and the national star, painted on the back door.
Any Sox&martin car
Chi-Town Hustler !!
any of Rodger Lindamood’s Color me Gone Chargers
Ramchargers “High and Mighty” Plymouth.
1969 Lola T163/Chevrolet Can-Am, specifically chassis SL163/21. Last and lightest of the series run by Chuck Parsons in Simoniz colors.
An ex-Bob Glidden Thunderbird
The 54-ish Ford Officer Reed owned in the Adam 12 episode “Who Won?”
The Gapp and Roush Tijuana Taxi Pro stock 4 door Maverick.
In 1919, while in the hospital recovering from a crash, Tommy Milton came up with an idea for a car to take the Land Speed Record. It was built in a collaboration with the Duesenberg Brothers, for whom Milton was a very successful driver. In the spring of 1920, the car was complete, with twin straight 8 Duesenberg engines, and was delivered to Daytona Beach. Fred Duesenberg and Miltons friend and fellow Duesenberg team driver Jimmy Murphy arrived first, while Milton attended an event in Cuba.
As the cars owner, Milton had ordered that the car NOT be driven until he arrived. But the impatient Duesenberg directed Murphy to test the car. Without official timing, he drove the car 154 in the flying mile, (5 mph faster than Ralph DePalmas official record from 1919) and then apparently planned to wait for Milton to arrive and set the record. But the next day the newspapers came out proclaiming the run a new “record”, and hailing Murphy as the first person to go 150 MPH.
Upon arriving at Dayton and learning the news, Milton was furious. Not only did he feel that his friends had betrayed him, but he soon discovered that the engines had ingested so much sand that they no longer had sufficient power. After tearing down and freshening both of the complex overhead cam straight 8’s, he called in the AAA timing officials and set the record at 156 MPH.
Out of all race cars in history, this is the car I would most like to have.
https://www.history.com/crazy-demons-of-land-speed
Sox & Martin 1970 Cuda
“Grumpy’s Toy” 1972 Vega Pro Stock.
Bob Glidden’s undefeated Fairmont Futura – he thought it was ugly but I have always liked the look
1) Greer/Black/ Prudhomme front-engine fuel dragster
2) 554 ’34 Ford fuel coupe
3) Anything built by Lil’ John Buttera
Stone, Woods and Cook 1941 Willys gasser.
The 1964 Duel 4 “289” 4 Speed Shelby Cobra I owned and Raced at Fremont Drag Strip which set the AHRA class Record in 1966. YEA I’D REALLY LIKE TO HAVE THAT ONE BACK !!
ALL of Tasca Ford’s race cars … early 60’s Galaxies, ’63 Fairlane A/FX Thunderbolt “prototype”, Cobra Jet “prototypes”( I saw them (Mustang &Torino)at Connecticut Dragway, the Mystery series of Mustangs – A/FX to funny car etc. I know it says pick one but l can’t,they all are cool.
Dale Earnhardt pass in the grass car ,