1964 S/SA National Record Setter with a Hemi

[X-TECH MAN]

P.S. The RamChargers car that Bob Harrop ended up with also had been wrecked also but not as bad. It was slid on its side and some pictures are around someplace in my old magazines with some of the striped paint and an all white door and quarter pannel without lettering showing on it, These cars were really a hand full when running nitro instead of gas on 10 inch tires.

[Paul Ceasrine]

Car prices back then,

Bud Faubel sold his car at the end of the 1964 drag race season for
$3500.

With a guarantee that it could run right on the S/SA record of 11.47

[lstanford]

Originally Posted by Paul Ceasrine

Car prices back then,

Bud Faubel sold his car at the end of the 1964 drag race season for
$3500.

With a guarantee that it could run right on the S/SA record of 11.47

It could have been $350,000, it didn't matter I didn't have the money. lol. I think you should be born with money and go out broke.

[X-TECH MAN]

Originally Posted by fecarman

it could have been $350,000, it didn't matter i didn't have the money. Lol. I think you should be born with money and go out broke.

X's 2......lol.

[Mike Bassin]

The first hemi car to hit the track at 75-80 in Maryland was owned and driven by Fred Leigh of Rockville, Md. I was the announcer at that time on Wed. nite test & tune sessions and we knew Fred had a new brown 64 Ply hemi automatic car on order. The date was about mid May 1964. Here comes Fred towing the new hemi car in, there were probably 50 cars and maybe 150 people total at the track, everything stopped to watch the new hemi make some runs. Fred drove it easy down the track and came back up to make the first run. I can remember this like it was yesterday. The car left fairly soft but by the time he went by the tower [ its about 150 ft. down track] I knew it was faster than all the stuff from '63. First run, 12.00 @ 120mph! Think of that, 48 years ago, just like it left the factory, no tuning, 120 mph. The sound of that car and all the hemi cars since will always take me back to that night. By the end of the evening, Fred ran in the 11.70s at 122 mph. Several weeks later, better headers and tuning the car would run mid elevens at 124.
Those were the days. Just got done announcing at Cecil County last Sat, John Pressley's nostalgia event, hemi cars were there, what a show!

[Barnstorm]

yeah...the sound of a race Hemi thru the factory headders is truly unique

[jackarnew]

MIKE
I drove FRED's pro/ stock a few times for him, I think the 64 car was lettered MISTER BUTTONS> Is that correct?

Jack Arnew

[borninamopar]

And there are some racers running in the low nines now with a few of the original cars: Still doing the same thing, with the same car; Only faster. Love them big old ugly Dodges. World needs more of them running down the track.

[davidhuff]

Originally Posted by Mike Bassin

The first hemi car to hit the track at 75-80 in Maryland was owned and driven by Fred Leigh of Rockville, Md. I was the announcer at that time on Wed. nite test & tune sessions and we knew Fred had a new brown 64 Ply hemi automatic car on order. The date was about mid May 1964. Here comes Fred towing the new hemi car in, there were probably 50 cars and maybe 150 people total at the track, everything stopped to watch the new hemi make some runs. Fred drove it easy down the track and came back up to make the first run. I can remember this like it was yesterday. The car left fairly soft but by the time he went by the tower [ its about 150 ft. down track] I knew it was faster than all the stuff from '63. First run, 12.00 @ 120mph! Think of that, 48 years ago, just like it left the factory, no tuning, 120 mph. The sound of that car and all the hemi cars since will always take me back to that night. By the end of the evening, Fred ran in the 11.70s at 122 mph. Several weeks later, better headers and tuning the car would run mid elevens at 124.
Those were the days. Just got done announcing at Cecil County last Sat, John Pressley's nostalgia event, hemi cars were there, what a show!

Great story!

[04GTOMan]

I had a 63 max wedge station wagon that I sold for $2,000 I should kick myself