rebirth of a legend

1970 dodge challenger sam posey trans am race car

Category:

Autos & Vehicles

Tags:

• 1970
• dodge
• challenger

[knightwolf4876]

Cont....Thinking of is when the #77 went through Tech Inspecion at Laguna Seca and they found the roof was too thin. Poseys team contacted Chrysler and within a few mins they were told to go down to Monterey and cut the top off the Challenger in the showroom. I have a pic of the cut they made on #77. They only replaced the sheetmetal over to the edges and not the whole framework of the top. I have restored both #77 and #76 and the first of the 3 Cudas #48 but now numbered #42.

[knightwolf4876]

all 4 cars were taken off the line before they ever made it to be stamped with a vin# dodge sent the 2 cudas and the 2 challengers to dan gurney to have the rollcages put in and then ray caldwell's autodynamics finshed the challengers but if u like more info u can email my father at viperdmcg@aol.com and he will tell u everything about the cars i hope this is very helpful

[knightwolf4876]

there is a only 5 cars two challengers and 3 cudas at first there was 2 cudas but the third car was bulit during the second the #77 challenger had to have the roof replaced and i do have pics of the cut marks inside the car none of the car had a vin # on them

[cobra454tim]

happy to see you guys got to great car on the road/track? what are you guys running 340?

[knightwolf4876]

it is a 340 block but it was destroked to a 303.8 ci

[Ecosse57]

@knightwolf4876, if memory serves the 340 six pack/six barrel block and heads were designed with trans am in mind. an ex-employer and also a friend had a couple.

even saw an original aar with a bench seat, but i digress.

[Ecosse57]

thanks for the great info and bringing these beauties back to their former glory!

is that an oem color?

[70scarrestoguy]

@knightwolf4876 Thanks for the information. I'm going to dig up that Challenger source book & see what else might be wrong.

[knightwolf4876]

@70scarrestoguy .....This is Dave. Knightwolfs father.

All of the trans am cars were bodies in white. Never a street car. 3 Cudas and 3 Challengers. No Vin numbers are on the cars. Only Gurneys All American Racer tag with the hand scribed numbers. The Cuda's were 50211, 50221 and 50231. The tags were removed from the 2 Challengers #77 and #76 but the tag remains on the 3rd body that was never completed. I have pics of that body and the tag. The showroom car that you might be thinking---

[70scarrestoguy]

@70scarrestoguy The Challenger T/A's scored a few top three finishes, but lack of a development budget and the short-lived Keith Black 303 c. i. engines led to Dodge leaving the series at season's end. The #77 car was definitely built as a 70 R/T 383, 4-spd car, the cowl panel should have a VIN# starting with JS23N0B. The #77 car had the black R/T stripe when it left the Hamtramck #1 assy line. 3 or 4 years ago, I had read that both cars came from Hamtramck as 4-spd R/T cars.Not sure about #76

[70scarrestoguy]

@wakepop Dodge contracted Ray Caldwell's Autodynamics firm in Marblehead, Mass. to run the factory Trans-Am team. Sam Posey drove the "sub-lime" painted car #77 that Caldwell's team built from a car taken off a local dealer's showroom floor! When #76 was completed mid-season from a chassis provided by Dan Gurney's All American Racers, Posey alternated between the two.Both cars ran the final two races, with Posey in #77; Ronnie Bucknum drove #76 at Seattle, and Tony Adamowicz at Riverside, CA