1971 Dodge Challenger Indy Pace Car

[Matt Harwood]

 

There are a lot of interesting things about this 1971 Dodge Challenger pace car that are good to know. This one is probably the nicest one in the universe. 1971 was the first time the manufacturer didn't have anything to do with the construction of the official Indy 500 pace car (gas prices and insurance companies were making automakers skittish about motorsports). And it was the very last time they let an amateur drive the official pace car at the Indianapolis 500. Have a look:

 

 

Don't worry, nobody died or was even seriously wounded. That was Eldon Palmer at the wheel, owner of Palmer Dodge and the driving force behind the dealer-constructed 1971 Dodge Challenger pace cars. A bunch of Indianapolis-area dealers kicked in and bought matching Hemi Orange Challengers with white interiors, dressed them up with appropriate pace car decals, and made 50 replicas to sell through their dealerships to enthusiastic fans. 

 

This is probably the nicest of all 50 Challenger pace cars built, with a recent restoration by the Finer Detail, a noted Mopar restoration house, it's simply spectacular. The car has had just two owners, with the original purchasers keeping the car until 2012 or so. The Palmer Dodge decal is still on the bumper. It's exceptionally straight and clean, the sheetmetal is 100% original, and it is surely far better than new at this point. The chrome glitters and the pace car lettering was exactingly duplicated by Phoenix Graffix and is also better than new (I spoke to one of the guys responsible for the original decals and he said it was nothing more than colored tape with some cellophane glued over it). The white interior was fully restored and it's worth noting that this car is spruced up with features like factory A/C (still ice cold and still using R12), a power top, and a modern AM/FM stereo radio that looks quite a bit like the original. Everything inside is new and the car is so tight and quiet that I find it hard to believe that it's a 1970s Mopar convertible. I mean, not a squeak or rattle anywhere. Nice! 

 

All but three of the pace cars carried a 318 cubic inch V8 with a 2-barrel carburetor (the cars used at the track got 383s), and that's what's in this car today. It's the car's original, numbers-matching engine and it was fully rebuilt at the time of restoration. It starts easily, idles smoothly, and pulls the orange convertible around with enthusiasm. No, it's not terrifyingly fast, but you can see what happened when they let an amateur loose with too much horsepower. Trust me, you'll love the way this one drives even if it doesn't go sideways with horsepower. The engine bay is correctly detailed with corporate blue engine paint and proper fittings and hardware used throughout. There are a few signs of use (the restoration was finished in 2010) but it remains in excellent condition and could be brought back up to top condition with a weekend's worth of work. The TorqueFlite shifts nicely and it has easy-cruising 3.23 gears out back. You'll also note the chassis is extremely clean and it actually rides quite nicely on those BFG radials.

 

There are no price guides for these cars and the only one I can find that has changed hands at auction brought more than we're asking here. The restoration is exceptionally good and the car is a lot of fun to drive, although you need to be ready to talk about it every time you stop. Fortunately, there's a very interesting story behind it and the reality is that it's a great car, decals or no decals. Asking price is $69,900, which is surely still less than the cost of restoration. Mopar fans, this is a great footnote in history. Thanks for looking!

 

   

 

   

 

   

 

  

Edited August 8, 2018 by Matt Harwood (see edit history)

[Matt Harwood]

 

[old car fan]

Although not my type of car Matt blew it away,great job

[kevin1221]

I was at the Indy 500 that year. I was 15 years old and had won a sales contest from my morning paper route. Our seats were along pit row. I remember seeing the Pace Car loose control while braking heavily. We could see the aftermath of the accident. I still remember it every May at race time.

 

Beautiful car Matt.

 

Kevin

[Taylormade]

Cool car.  I was at the race in 71, shooting footage for the race film that was produced each year.  My brother-in-law and I had unlimited pit and track passes and I thought a shot from the press stand at the start would look good.  When we arrived at the stand just before the start, we discovered it was completely full.  Rather upset, I set up near the rail along the track  at a lower vantage than I wanted to and shot the start.  I heard my brother-in-law yelling behind me and turned just in time to see the pace car skid by behind us and crash into the stand.  We both looked at each other - we had been standing in front of the stand just a minute before, right where the car impacted.  We moved down to turn four and shot the rest of the race from there.  Some of my footage of the terrifying Bobby Unser crash was used.  His car rode up the wall in flames and I still remember the intense heat from the burning alcohol fuel from all the way across the track.