| This
high powered sleek styling performance vehicle was featured
in the movie "The Fireball 500" starring Frankie
Avalon, Annette Funicello and Fabian. The vehicle started
as a 1966 Plymouth Barracuda. One of the outstanding features
is the design carried forth in a dual cockpit roadster
racing version made from a basic stock Plymouth production
car.
The dual cowl cockpits are formed in metal and streamlined
into twin curved butarat plastic windshields plus flared
headrests formed around each cockpit opening with air
foam pads that extend into the back body panel. Four streamer
extensions styled with razor edges are molded into one
section formed in metal to completely comer the rear seats
and original deck lid compartment. Additional taillights
in red reflected plastic are installed behind the headrest
streamline cavities.
Rear panel treatment enhances extended rear fenders with
vertical slimline taillights. These have been extended
four inches and are blended into a canted air relieved
rolled back body panel. Horizontal extrusions in a decorative
ornamental design are installed in the back panel and
make removable for inspection throughout the closed rear
body panel compartment.
All four wheel well have been radiused with a larger opening
to compensate for the 700/ 12.50-13 Firestone tires. These
tires have been installed on the Rader spoked racing wheels
made of an alloy with a chrome steel rim.
Outside rocker A.I. racing exhausts are made with Reynolds
Aluminum extrusions with dual pipes extending on each
side from the racing engine. Eight Ram-thrust inlet air
tubes extend from openings in the hood for direct air
into the carburetion system on the engine.
For power is a 1966 Hemi 426 Plymouth engine that develops
up to 425 h.p. An Isky drag racing cam has been used in
combination with Jahns high domed racing pistons. A four
speed Ansen posi-shift gear box is installed with the
combination of 3.55 rear end gears and 13 inch wheels.
Dual four throat Ram-thrust manifold and Holley carburetors
are used for gas consumption in conjunction with the formula
combined with the cam grind, bore clearance, and gear
ratio. Dual Dupree chrome dome electric fuel pumps are
used to keep steady flowing of gas. This vehicle can do
in the vicinity of 160 m.p.h. in a quarter mile drag strip.
Safety flush pull down door handles were installed to
match the contour of the door panels. The steering wheel
is deep dished measuring 13 inches to fit the smaller
cockpit. Rectangular headlights imported from France are
inserted in the grille cavity with brushed aluminum extrusions
installed in the openings.
To complete the external and high lustrous finish are
forty coats of hand rubbed lacquer called Fireheat which
consists of multi color blends in white pearl of essence,
faded into gold Murano, blended throughout in reflective
gold leaf, carried through into Kandy Tangerine, then
blended into translucent Kandy red and finished off in
burgundy. It took four men and six days of spraying to
blend these multi colors from white fireball heat into
soothing burgundy. |
