Second owner of the car since October of 1972. Purchased from a local used car dealership for $1926.00, it was completely stock right down to the hubcaps and had 63,000 miles showing on the odometer. Options are sparse. The 383 Super Commando, A-833 tranny, Hurst 4 speed shifter, AM radio and Formula S package are just about it.

The only modifications that were made to it while being driven regularly were slotted aluminum wheels with 60 series tires, a Mr. Gasket dual point distributor and a Hurst T-handle to replace the stock round knob. It was a tough competitor at the outlaw drag races that went on nightly during the mid '70's in an industrial area at the edge of town. Turned out to be the fastest street machine in my high school after beating out a '69 Nova SS 396 several times.

The decision was made early on not to get fanatical about restoring the car to original showroom condition. I wanted a street machine to drive on summer weekends and remind me of the good old muscle car days instead of something that would be taken to and from car shows on the back of a trailer.

Restoration of the car began in 1981, although I had started scrounging for parts about three years earlier. It was already getting difficult to find interior parts and body trim. I managed to find a dashboard panel, some chrome trim, head light bezels and a new passenger side taillight in Spokane, WA and Orange County, CA. Still searching for a new driver's side taillight. Also ended up buying a rusted out '67 fastback with no engine or tranny as a parts car.

The under carriage of the car was sandblasted clean and painted with plastic gloss black paint. The front and rear suspensions were completely rebuilt. The front disc brakes from the parts car were used after refurbishing to replace the original drum units and the rear brakes are all new. Thought about having the leaf springs re-arced but decided the lower look would be better. The torsion bars were adjusted accordingly when the time came to align the front-end.

The engine was rebuilt by a local specialty machine shop. Even with 100k miles on it, only the heads actually needed any work. There were slight ridges at the top of the cylinders that could have been taken off but the decision to go all the way had been made. The cylinders are bored to the first oversize, all bearings replaced and the whole thing is balanced. I stopped short of having it blue-printed. A Sig Erson cam was used in place of the original. The original oil pan had a few dents and was replaced with an eight-quart unit along with a high volume oil pump and a windage tray. The stock intake manifold and carb were set aside and an Edelbrock Torker 383 with a Carter 750 CFM carburetor now sit atop the whole thing. The old mechanical distributor will soon be replaced with a Mopar Performance electronic version.

The transmission was torn down and refitted with new bearings, seals and synchro rings. The clutch disc and pressure plate are heavy duty. The Sure-Grip differential was rebuilt although it didn't seem to need it. Rear axle bearings and seals were replaced.

The body work and paint were done locally by a shop specializing in show cars. The factory flaws were fixed and fenders, doors, etc. were aligned. The original electric blue color was matched to the equivalent Endura plastic paint color. The original bumpers were re-chromed to show car finish. The tires on all four corners are 14" 60 series radials and the five spoke wheels are small bolt pattern Cragar S/S.

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