Muscle Cars - 1969 Ford Talladega

Muscle Car: Ford Mustang Torino Talladega Year: 1969 Engine: 428 Cobra Jet Condition: Restored

I purchased my Talladega in late 2001. The previous owner had been using it for a parts car for a Mustang before he abandoned it in the woods. It had even been hit by a barn - that's right, the barn hit it, not the other way around. Fortunately, it still had the original 428 CJ block and special C-6 transmission that Ford installed in all 743 production Talladegas. That's right, Ford only built 743 production models, plus a hand full of prototypes and pilot models for a total of 754. Of these, only 199 were built in Presidential Blue - my car is one of those 199. From 2001 until June of 2007, my car went through a complete restoration. Unfortunately, parts were few to non-existent for this car. Some of the pieces were common to the 68/69 Torino/Fairlane fastback (Sportsroof) models. However, the front end sheet metal was unique to the Talladega. Likewise, the cloth for the seats was only available from one source - and they knew it!

The story behind the aquisition: In late 2001, I was having some work done at a local Ford dealership on one of my other cars, when I noticed a calendar behind the service manager's desk. I offered to trade the young man at the desk a brand new calendar, if I could have his old one. (The old calendar had a picture of a 69 Torino fastback on it, and I wanted it for my older son, who had a 60 Torino standard roof car.) The young man behind the calendar proudly informed me that a friend of his had a car that looked almost exactly like the one in the calendar. I had heard rumors of Talladegas, and I had even seen artist renditions, but I had never actually seen one. Well, I've been on many wild goose chases over the years for the mythical $500 65 Mustangs, so, I thought, what's one more wild goose chase. However, when I got to the friend's house (way back in the woods), I couldn't believe it. It was a real Talladega. It was in terrible condition, but, it was the real deal. My son convinced me to buy the car (even though every bit of logic told me that it was a lost cause).

I went back with a pickup, a trailer, and an SUV to haul it all home... Yes, I got it all in one trip, but, not on the same load. It has taken the better part of six years to research and restore it, (plus a couple of parts cars to donate sheet metal, brackets, etc.). Many of the parts were difficult to locate. Some had to be re-manufactured by local machinists and "metal magicians" who had to work from original parts that were so rusty that you could actually see through them.

The first time I fired up that 428, it was like having a drowning victim take their first breath following extensive CPR - it was very exciting. By the end of June, it was nearing completion. Several friends and I rushed the final reassembly process in order to have it at the Fairlane Nationals - we bolted on the front bumper at about 9:00pm the night before the show!

I have done my best to have the car restored to its original condition. If you don't know what a Talladega is, you are not alone. Most people have never heard of one, let alone seen one (at least that they were aware of). However, in 1969, anyone who followed NASCAR saw them in the winner's circle nearly every week. They just didn't realize what they were looking at. Ford built this handful of special cars as part of their Total Performance Program in 1969 in order to dominate stock car racing, specifically: NASCAR. Their strategy worked. In 1969 the Talladega brought home the manufacturers championship to Ford in NASCAR and it was also the car that won the driver's championship for David Pearson. In 1969, a Talladega won at Daytona, and a Daytona won at Talladega at that track's inaugural race (when it was boycotted by the Professional Drivers Association). It was even the only Ford that Richard Petty ever drove in competition. In 1969, Richard Petty jumped ship from his factory ride at Plymouth to drive the new slippery Talladega from Ford. It was the car that he won his 100th race in, and he even had one for his personal car as well.

I really enjoy being able to drive my piece of automotive history to local car shows and see people scratch their heads about what it is. The Talladega may be one of the most forgotten, yet most important limited production muscle cars to come out of the 60s. It ushered in the aero wars in NASCAR, and it represented the pinnacle of Ford's stock car racing program during the muscle car years.