This is a project waiting to be done. It is an original Hemi Dodge Coronet street car modified by Sox & Martin back in the 1960s for street-strip duty. It is awaiting a restoration in a Virginia collection.

Truth be told, the guys who have been chasing the more famous race cars have found most of them. The Sox & Martin Hemi’cudas, the Landy Challengers, the 1965 altered wheelbase cars, and other factory-backed machines were always high on the list of targets, and only a couple are still unaccounted for in that base of knowledge as either located or destroyed. Because of my long-time interest in this particular subject and connections between different people in this part of the hobby, I sometimes find myself getting asked questions that I would have to betray another’s confidence to tell exactly what I know. I’ve learned it’s often best to smile and make some token statement in these cases to keep above the fray.

Projects like the Jayhawker are usually just for static display, although this particular car was till putting it up on the back bumper into the late 1990s.

One particularly infamous car was being chased by a couple of persistent collectors, who alternately told me it have gone to the mob, was underneath a collapsed house, had been totaled in a street race, and had been stripped down, rebuilt and was actually another car that was being sought. Another collector told me a certain car had been sold in Australia in the late 1960s, though popular rumor had this car being destroy on purpose by its owners. I still haven’t been able to figure out if I was the one being led down the dead-end street in this instance, just in case I might let slip some little bit of info that somebody knows will put the other pursuers on the trail.

Once finished, race cars like Le Hodges restoration of Arlen Vanke’s 1968 Hemi Barracuda will be the highlight of a collection. It is shown here with the original Vitar Transmissions-raced COPO 427 Camaro

Either way, detective work is part of the game, and the guys who do it spend months and money chasing down leads based on old classifieds in National Dragster and one-line statements from Drag News photo captions. In the end, someone will verify a rumor or point in the next direction until the derelict remains turn up in some garage in Louisiana, or out behind a North Dakota barn, or, like in Fink’s case, safely tucked away for posterity.

I appreciate Burk letting me ramble on about this subject the last couple of months. The heritage of Mopar’s racing era is impressive, and lead directly to the street cars that still hold our fascination now. Thanks to the guys who are finding and fixing them right, we can get a real glimpse at what made it all happen back in the day. 

 

 

© 2006-2010, MoparMax and RacingNetSource
Racing Net Source LLC is licensed to use MOPAR, a trademark of Chrysler LLC, in the website domain name www.moparmax.com. No other connection with Chrysler LLC is expressed or implied. The editorial opinions are those of Racing Net Source LLC and do not necessarily represent the views of Chrysler LLC.

Here's What's New!