The Old Reliable

The '63 Impala that Dave Strickler ran at the '63 Nationals takes a "soft" pass at the 2006 Muscle Palooza show and race.

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• Z-11
• 63
• impala
• drag
• race
• Dave
• Strickler
• Don
• Fezell

[rpgct1]

Only 57 were made in 1963. A 409 stroked to 427 cubes, special Z11 intake, cowl induction, compression bumped to 13.5:1, lots of internal mods and lightweight body parts. Factory rated at 430 horses, actual horsepower was around 530. Notice on the rear quarters, this car was tuned by Bill "Grumpy" Jenkins. Most went to racers, but some of these cars actually did make it onto the streets!

[skateusa]

to my knowledge I believe four of them were made for the street and Don also has two of those four.

[skateusa]

the Z-11 used the 409 format but was actually displaced to 427 cubic inches.most of them were sold to campaining drag racers and only a handful were sold as street cars.

[carcrazychevyguy63]

Nice car.to bad he dont know how to drive it like the original owner lol great vid tho

[secodrvr]

@68w30ru That is a W engine. THe engine you are referring to was raced at Daytona, and was completely different from the engine that is in this car. The engine here IS a stroked version of the 409. THE Daytona engine was caleld the 427 Mystery Motor. only produced in this year, and was the for-runner for the 396 that came out in 1965.

[68w30ru]

I am 73 y.o. and was at York 30 in 1966 and watched "Grumpy", Sox & Martin, Dave Strickland and I can't remember who was the second Dodge. They ran 4 AT A TIME. The Z-11 is NOT a 348, or a stroked 409, I know a man here in NC that owns one. It was a special block built for NASCAR and drag racing. If anyone needs to know the mans name I can get it for you. You can contact me.

Roger

[camflex66]

Car needs driver

[rider660r]

Does anyone know anything of this "special" 348 engine?

[rider660r]

I am sure it was a 348 because my grandfather,his father,did special work for GM.One I remember the most was getting him to build a kit to install a V-8 (327 if I remember right) in one of the 1st Corvair's,but it wasn't finished cause back then with what the had to work with he couldn't get it to keep cool.After GM shut that down he did finally make one a couple years later and it was still here around town last I knew of and painted white with orange SS stripes and the orangish red interior.

[rider660r]

I'm not sure which Old Reliable it was but my father was at MasonDixson one time in his '58 Black Impala.As the story goes that I heard from a few diff people he won the race with a blown Trans.

From what I have heard it wasn't any stock 348 '58.As far as they have found out it was a experimental Nascar 348 that my father found in the back of a garage starting to collect dust.

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[amsmimo]

well old reliable#2 was an awsome car. when it was sold to bill jenkins it was an a stock car stick .took the national in 64,awsome car.the car was sold to bill when the owner went to nam to serve his country. i know cause i,m married to the man that owned the old reliable #2 car. wish people would have taken pictures back then. but everyone was to busy working on the cars to run them.

[naderchaser]

@Thumper69696 Wow! I've been learning a LOT tonite from surfing around old drag racing vids. I had no idea that the Z-11 shared ZERO engine parts with the same year 409's. I'm 56, and remember this car and Strick as a young kid. But even back then, didn't the NHRA dictate that this engine HAD to have it's counterparts on street-driven regular p vehicles. If so, then NHRA must not have known that Z-11 engine parts didn't interchange with the regular production 409? Thank you. Joel in Tucson

[19mg94]

iv seen this car pick up the front end doin a burn out now thats strong