63 Chevy drag racer

[jim_ss409]

Check this post out. It looks like there might be a 63 Chevy 409 drag car for sale in Missouri. If it really is available it would be nice to see someone from here get it. If I had it I'd leave it pretty much alone and use it as a drag car, just like the orriginal owner. Scroll down this post to the green 63. http://groups.msn.com/twolaneblacktophomepage/general.msnw?action=get_message&mview=0&ID_Message=13378&LastModified=4675504777598091856

[chevy_belair63]

thats a 63 biscayne. i can tell by the trim along the top of the side. and the name is too long on the side and no bowtie emblem infont of the name like the trunk or hood emblem style.

[Garbageman]

WOW, what a find. Smokin' Thunder would be a great addition to our next convention. Do you think it's possible it could be a Z11? They said its been raced since new and as aluminum "skins". Wouldn't that be cool.

[chevy_belair63]

doubt it would be a orignal Z11 as to those were only impala`s 57 total Z11 impalas made. no record of them being biscaynes or belairs.

[jester]

That's a 64 , I actually own one and I don't think they make Z-11's in 64. I could be wrong about z-11's in 64, but not about the year of the car..

[chevy_belair63]

http://groups.msn.com/isapi/fetch.dll?action=MyPhotos_GetMBPhoto&ImageID=nGwAAAL4Jm3j0qkX2PFqQKIH9Qf4KVIZ6SjC64ecdI pKeX



http://groups.msn.com/isapi/fetch.dll?action=MyPhotos_GetMBPhoto&ImageID=nGwAAAL0JgHj1mB6VBQimuyCnF72442PkhPZz0YDbU T5AmEzOFmRROAUBzdgTb5g9



I doubt thats a 64. but i know you didnt go down far enough to see the car in question.

[SS425HP]

Jester, scroll on down and there is a 63 race car shown. That's the one they are talking about. It's a 63 for sure. Called "Smokin Thunder". Some one has reworked the rear wheel wells. Not a bad looking car. Not sure about the price, though. Depends on what has been done under it.

Fred

[jester]

I guess I didn't, Smoken Thunder is a 63. As for the wheel wells, That is how we cut them back then to put on the bigger tires. No need to jack the car from the bumper to remove those monster slicks.

[SS425HP]

That's the first time I've seen that done. We just used to use a bumper jack. That and let some air out if need be. Haven't tried to put slicks on for almost 40 years. Going to this year, though. Gotta try on that Dairy Queen guy in September, if we can get another convention going. :clap

Fred

[Tom Kochtanek]

Did someone say "Missouri"? That perked my ears a bit. Anyone know how to get a hold of this fellow?

I heard a rumor about some fellow not too far away from me that has (or had) a pair of 409 cars, one a drag car, not sure of the other. I would be interested in follwoing up on these, if anyone has any contact information.

Thanks in advance!

TomK

[Impalaguru]

Actually,
There is a documented 63 Bel-Air Z-11 that was assembled with over the counter parts; not a factory job. The one I know of was from Rhode Island. It had the Z-11 top end and the aluminum nose. It supposedly still exists.
From the add description, the guy wants $12,000 for "Smokin' Thunder".
Ross

[dq409]

Actually,
There is a documented 63 Bel-Air Z-11 that was assembled with over the counter parts; not a factory job. Ross

Ross,,, Not meaning to dis the car ,,,but how does "Documented" fit with "over the counter parts" ???

I would say that "documented" would be reserved for a "factory" optioned build.
Am I wrong? ,,,dq :help :deal

[chevy_belair63]

dq well thats what i assiociate documented with is factory built with factory or sales paperwork proving it. over the counter parts could be repo or taken off a Z11 impala for all you know and put on the car.

[Impalaguru]

I knew I'd hear back about that comment, I couldn't think of a better way of describing it. What I SHOULD HAVE typed was that it is a car with history, and one that had the Z-11 parts on it from its first days, not a car that was put together years later. I have the name of the driver and the dealership from where it originated. The "documentation" my just be the paper I have things written down on, but the car actually existed. I think thats what I was trying to say :doh
Ross

[MK IISS]

Ross: I knew what you ment. There was a similar one in my home town. A '63 red Biscayne converted the first week it arrived at the dealer from the factory.

[dq409]

Gottcha !!! make sense to me,,,,,

[Tom Kochtanek]

I did make contact via phone with the fella who posted the pics of the 1963 Biscayne on Two Lane Blacktop (thanks to JimSS409). I bet I was one the phone for over an hour. This guy is a treasure trove of historical information! I bet Oil4Kids would love to talk to him, as he new Dickey Harrell, Fred Gibbs and those sorts of folks. Great stories of the 60s and a bit into the 70s and 80s. Here's an abridged version of a 1980s story:

About 3 miles South of this guy lies a dormant 1969 Yenko Camaro with the aluminum big block. Yes, it's in a barn in Missouri, and it's 1986. They talk the guy out of the aluminum engine, shave down some brake drums for metal particles, mix the iron in with some Chevy orange paint and smear it all over the aluminum block. Then they slip the powerplant into a Plain Jane 1965 Chevelle with rubber floor mats, then take the car to St. Louis to the drags. They turn 9.90s all day long (much to everyone's amazement) and get challenged by another competitor. Just as if it looks as if things are going to go well, an official takes a knife blade and scrapes off some paint on the heads to reveal the shiny aluminum, earning them a life time ban from the race track. :) :) :)

But you want to know what I found out about the '63 drag car, right? Well, the news is not all that good. Apparently this is not a "one owner car" but the current owner has had it for 22 years or so. This guy "represents" the owner. A month or so ago a potential buyer from the east (let's say "Pennsylvania") offered to buy the car for the asking price but required that the lettering be removed. So the owner starts to take off the scripts from the original paint and finds that he has hit bare metal :(. The potential buyer, who has no $$$ down, backs off. So the owner, being a former body specialist, strips the care bare and puts it in primer. And there she sits, no longer on it's factory original coat of Turqouise lacquer rather a new coat of primer :(.

Said to be ordered with a 409 and a powerglide, the car now sports a 350 iron box transmission. Wish he had put a four speed behind it (sorry DQ) :).

I am heading to Fayetteville, AR for a wedding this weekend and guess what's enroute? Now if I can only get my wife and kids off the main highway for a brief detour (it's 4-5 hours from my house) I would like to stop in and have a look see.
Might not be able to make it (the spouse thinks I am obsessed and need to take a break) but plan to follow up on the vehicle and its current owner/sales agent.

Will keep you all posted if anything gets interesting. I always travel with my checkbook :).

Cheers!
TomK