Buy yourself a Mystery

[oil4kids]

yes its true the original mystery motor was just a 90 degree block 409 3.5 inch crank with Dick Keinaths mystery motor heads, so they were smaller then todays BBC heads

when 1963 Daytona rules allowed up to 427 cubes a new 3.65 crank was used

ALthough i have no proof of this except for the conversations with Keinath, the
Z11 group also used Dicks new 3.65 inch crank, so I guess that the original Z11 was 409 cubes.

Rick may be able to chime in here about the 427 inch rules

Smokeys mystery won the Daytona Saturday Qualifer before the 500 race.

Ray Fox played a major role during this time with Smokeys cars. Although he is not that recognized today, he was just as important during that time as Smokey, Goldsmith,Rutherford,etc

Fox is in the Motorsports Hall of fame but deserives to be in many more.

 

[mark johnson]

Man, I've always loved the look of the red '63 in this particular photo. I've read about this particular car before and that it was built with a factory 327-300 HP 4-speed and driven halfway across the country with this stock drivetrain, but while looking like an all-out NASCAR racer of the day! Now.......I'm a drag racer through and through and never really was a fan of roundy-rounders but this car gets my blood flowing! Look at the wide black steel wheels and neat under-the-car exhaust. You know, it would be neat to build a modern-day, street legal version of this car with a modern-day Rat motor like a 427,454 or maybe even a 502 and paint it up to disguise and resemble a Mystery Motor! A person with some decent fabrication skills could even make up their own Cowl Plenum air cleaner. Now that would be cool!

 

[Tom Kochtanek]

Oh oh!

Mark:

I never had a reason to build a 1963 full size Chevy. Now I see your point! That would be one nice "tribute" car .

I better stick to my current projects, see them through before I tackle another one .

Cheers!
TomK

 

[NASCAR FAN]

427 rule:

Bill France Sr. was concerned about the trend towards larger and larger production engines and the resulting escalation of speeds on his race tracks. One of his concerns was the tire technology of the time. It was no secret Ford was developing a "big engine" for 1963 competition.--- info on the car:

page 1: http://www.62ford.com/registry/images/starlift2.jpg

page 2: http://www.62ford.com/registry/images/starlift3.jpg

The car in the photos is the same car, except for the engine, that won the '62 NASCAR Atlanta race. Note the strange top which NASCAR "outlawed" after the race.

In my opinion this car was the main reason Bill France, along with other race sanctioning groups decided to place a limit on race car "stock" engine cubic inches. As everyone knows the cubic inch limit decided upon was 7 litres/427 cubic inches. Prior to the new 7 litre rule the race teams could race their Chevys, Fords, etc. with any size engine they wanted as long as that size (cubic inches) engine was an optional regular production engine available to the public. In 1959 the '59 Ford NASCAR race cars raced with a 430 cubic inch engine which was a factory optional engine in that car.
------
Rick

 

[oil4kids]

FYI there was a Z33 1963 Mystery Motor car that i think was redone by Roger Sortino

 

[CHEV601234]

that car was created out of thin air for publicity

 

[oil4kids]

yes, but weren't most of the early nascar cars and engines made out of thin air?


http://superchevy.automotive.com/51759/sucp-0703-1963-chevy-biscayne-427/index.html

 

[dq409]

The car in the photos is the same car, except for the engine, that won the '62 NASCAR Atlanta race. Note the strange top which NASCAR "outlawed" after the race.

------
Rick

The Starlite had a fiberglass top,,,

 

[Tom Kochtanek]

Dual fours?

That intake in the picture (dual quads) sure looks different than the one on Ebay

Hayden sure looks like he's having a ball of fun in the driver's seat!

Why is it no one is bidding the $499.99 and hanging it on their wall . I'm guessing he the Reserve set pretty lofty...

TomK

 

[wbc409]

Just wait another year, I'm sure we'll see a lot more of this stuff as the economy worsens. There are going to be people that are going to have to unload.

 

[wbc409]

I also read the article on that Sortino car. If I remember correctly it was a prototype intake and never released to the public. The nascar guys got the new motor, and the drag guys got the W-based engine.

 

[NASCAR FAN]

The Starlite had a fiberglass top,,,

dq409:

thanks for posting the photo of the '62 Starlift Ford. Did you notice the '62 Pontiac in the photo has # 22 on the top and #02 on the door? 22 was Fireball Roberts #. Banjo Matthews was driving the 22/02 car which finished in 2nd place behind Lorenzen. Matthews owned both the #22 and #02/22 cars.
----
Rick

 

[Speed]

There were 5 1963 Chevrolets with Mk II 427 "Mystery Motors" entered in the 1963 Daytona 500.

# 3 Ray Fox car driven byJunior Johnson
# 03 Ray Fox car driven by G. C. Spencer
# 4 Louis Clements car driven by Rex White
# 13 Smokey Yunick car driven by Johnny Rutherford
# 71 W. M. Harrison car driven by Bubba Farr

Rutherford finished 9th four laps down...Rex white finished 14th 6 laps down. The other 3--- Johnson, Spencer and Farr dropped out with engine problems.

Rick

J.R. was on the pole

 

[NASCAR FAN]

The starting line-up, 1st & 2nd rows according to NASCAR records was:

1. Fireball Roberts 2. Fred Lorenzen
3. Junior Johnson 4. Johnny Rutherford

A short, chopped up version, including the start of the of the race, is available on youtube
----
Rick

 

[mark johnson]

Hey, would you call that a "bubbletop" Galaxie? I've always liked '62 Galaxies anyway and the addition of that Fastback roofline is really doin' it for me! I'll take that Galaxie Fastback with a 427 SOHC motor please!

 

[oil4kids]

Rick

do you have the link to the youtube race?


Smokey where ever he is, is still pissed off at Johnny Rutherford, claimed his vision was the cause.

 

[dq409]

Here is a link for the race results for the 62 Daytona,,

http://www.racing-reference.info/race?id=1962-05&series=W

Video,,,,

http://www.flickr.com/photos/floridamemory/3525628556/

I know I say a video out there advertised as the complete race. I'm looking for it now,,,dq

PS,, looking from the inside of the cars during that video makes me think these guys had bigger balls then the guys racing today!!!
Look at the lack of any safty gear!!!:eek:

 

[dq409]

I did find this one from 1960! Check out all the old cars,,,and the wreak !!!



And one for 63,,,

 

[oil4kids]

Daytona Decision

not the 500 but interesting

 

[walkerheaders]

going by memory, and i'm almost always sorry i post my thoughts, i believe the movie RPM 10,000 has footage of the 63 Daytona race.