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This Ford Torino Talladega build has been pieced together with parts from NASCAR legends and acts as an homage to classic American racing.
A Custom Stock Car Built from Legends
1969 Ford Torino – carsforsale.com | Shop 1969 Ford Torino on Carsforsale.com
The late ‘60s and early ‘70s was the peak for the American muscle car. Engines grew bigger every year, performance was at the forefront of automotive design, and there weren’t any government regulations stepping in to limit these fire breathing tire spinners. While drag racing was a big part of this age of muscle cars, NASCAR was also a huge piece of the puzzle. The idea of “Win on Sunday, sell on Monday” was in full effect and encouraged American auto manufacturers to produce competitive designs for stock car racing.
This era of NASCAR gave us iconic cars, created motorsports legends, and made the superspeedways the fastest racetracks in the world. Today, we’re looking at a stock car build that looks the part of a classic race car from this time period and is built to race like one too. We’ve found a custom built 1969 Ford Torino Talladega stock car for sale on Carsforsale.com that features connections to Dale Jarrett, Smokey Yunick, David Pearson, and even The King – Richard Petty. Let’s get a little history lesson on the Ford Torino in NASCAR and check out this one-of-a-kind custom build that’s filled with NASCAR influences.
The Ford Torino in NASCAR
Ford introduced the Torino in 1968 and started stock car racing that same year. The Sportsroof variant of the Torino gave racers an aerodynamic edge thanks to its fastback design. This aerodynamic shape helped the Torino dominate superspeedways and the model led David Pearson to his second NASCAR championship in 1968. The Torino’s immediate dominance led to competitors introducing similarly designed vehicles like the Dodge Charger 500 the following year, but Ford knew how to keep themselves on top.
Ford introduced a specialized variant known as the Ford Torino Talladega for 1969. This version of the Torino Sportsroof extended the front of the vehicle by about five inches and revised its front facia to be more aerodynamic. To help reduce drag, there was an added curve downwards towards the front past the hood, plus the grille was no longer recessed and instead extruded outwards. Ford also rolled the rocker panels in order to allow the Torino Talladega to be lowered an additional five inches to help further the car’s air cutting ability and handling. Only 743 of these Ford Torino Talladegas were made in order to be considered a production vehicle under NASCAR’s rules.
The 1969 NASCAR season was owned by Ford as drivers made the switch to the first “aero warrior”. The Ford Torino Talladega won 29 races between the 1969 and 1970 seasons, won the 1969 NASCAR Manufacturer’s Championship, and David Pearson won his third Driver’s Championship in 1969 behind the wheels of his #17 Ford Torino Talladega. Richard Petty even made the switch to Ford for the 1969 season before being drawn back to Plymouth with their Superbird the following year.
Following Ford’s success with the Torino Talladega, Chrysler fought back with their own Homologation specials in form of the Dodge Charger Daytona and Plymouth Superbird. Bobby Isaac in his Dodge went on to usurp Ford’s crown for the 1970 season with Bobby Allison, Richard Petty, and Neil Castles all also joining the top 5 that year in Mopar cars.
Before Ford could fight back with their newly developed Ford Torino King Cobra that further radicalized the Torino’s design, NASCAR put an end to the Aero Wars by introducing new rules. Homologation models needed a higher minimum of 3,000 production vehicles, increased their weights, and carried smaller motors if they wanted to keep their aerodynamic forms. This in turn led to teams falling back to vehicles that looked closer to their true production shapes and virtually killed any further NASCAR homologation specials from auto manufacturers.
This 1969 Ford Torino Talladega Boss 429 Build
It isn’t everyday you see a piece of NASCAR history for sale like this 1969 Ford Torino Talladega, but we’re lucky today! While it isn’t an actual race car of note, the pieces that create this custom stock car build share some historical significance.
The chassis isn’t period correct to the original Torino Talladega, but it’s still related to a Ford’s NASCAR history. It’s originally sourced from Dale Jarrett’s #88 UPS Ford Taurus stock car from the early 2000s. While it’s more likely from one of his reserve or testing cars, it’s still a functional piece of real NASCAR equipment underneath the skin.
This Torino Talladega also features original hood pins said to be from David Pearson’s very own #17 Torino Talladega that helped cement this model’s place in motorsports history. Not only that, but the fenders, rear panels, and the bumpers are said to be sourced from various versions of Richard Petty’s #43 car during his short stint with the model. The most famous mechanic and most infamous cheater in NASCAR’s history even has some connection to this once in a lifetime build as the rocker panels are straight from Smokey Yunicks “Best Damn Garage in Town”.
Powering this homage to NASCAR’s pivotal years is a Tim Barnett built BOSS 429 CID V8 engine that’s rated at 681 horsepower that rumbles through a SpinTech dual side exit exhaust. That’s ran through a 4-speed transmission to a Heavy Duty Ford 9-inch rear differential. The Torino Talladega features period correct wheels and sits on Goodyear Eagle F1 tires, but the listing states that there are some Mickey Thompson High-Speed Radials too. Since this build resides on an actual NASCAR chassis and frame, it features a full NASCAR spec suspension that’s fully adjustable and utilizes Wilwood power disc brakes with slotted rotors.
1969 Ford Torino – carsforsale.com | Shop 1969 Ford Torino on Carsforsale.com
While this Torino Talladega is built like a true NASCAR stock car and could be taken to a classic racing event should the eventual owner want to show off, this is a street legal take on the race car that features some non-standard adornments. First off, the headlights and taillights work unlike an actual stock car. This Torino Talladega also features working heating and air conditioning, something that NASCAR teams stripped out from the vehicles. You also don’t have to enter through the window like a NASCAR driver as the doors actually open and feature powered windows. Inside looks very much like a true NASCAR stock car with its visible roll cage, detachable steering wheel, visible heat shielding, and the vintage styled gauges and switches on the dash. What’s different here though is the addition of a passenger seat so that you can enjoy this car with another NASCAR fan.
This Raven Black painted 1969 Ford Torino Talladega is listed at $149,990 from Flemings Ultimate Garage out of Rockville, MD. It’s truly a one-of-a-kind show piece that carries actual NASCAR history while being an exciting driver. The only thing that might be a bigger collectable than this car would be an actual stock car from the same period, but those are typically locked away at the NASCAR Hall of Fame or in the possession of other drivers like Dale Earnhardt Jr. or Richard Petty.
I know a guy that has one, I’ve only seen the trunk, but it looked brand new.