Spawned from - Far be it for me too..

[SScopelli]

Well, Don....it does look like Dick Steinkamp is going to do well with the Daytona Wagonaire sale...and we do know how Dick loves a challenge...and he has acknowledged the car's historical significance...

Just sayin' BP

I think John's response would be to quote Charles Heston..

"You'll have to pry "The Whistler" out of my cold dead hands"

Really, at this point, it is not all about money.. Maybe time has more to do with it.

I didn't want to hijack Bob's post on a hypothetical race against the Tempest where the Whistler beat it like a drum..

But here is the real question:

"How would you put The Whistler back together?"

Ted's Tomato looks like a stock Studebaker that came off the deal's floor. Awesome!

The Whistler on the other hand was rode hard and put away wet.

If I were to guess, after one year it started racing it was looking like a car that not even the best refrigerator salesman in Alaska could sell.

* Field modification done with a can opener (Dull one at that).
* Banged up floor board from when the drive shaft twisted like a
candy-cane until it came out of the transmission and beat the underside.

A race car oozing with character just not like the Tomato..

Look at it's picture. A single collector for the drag pipe under the right center of the car. Tubes bent everywhere coming from both sides of the car to that collector.

Square tubing traction bars welded from the rear axle spring plate to the frame, similar to the Tempest in Bob's post.

But not streetable..

I'm looking for honest suggestions along the lines of
"Bone stock from the factory", to
"Patch it up and make it run ugly!"

please, no "sell it to me"..

I'll then, if possible, delete this thread and post a "Poll" with the 4 top suggestion..

[SN-60]

Just don't put it up against a Pontiac Tempest SUPER DUTY!! (I love Studes...but let's be REAL here boys)

[BobPalma]

You would have been welcomed to tag along in the other thread, Seb; they are really quite similar.

That said, my vote would be to "build" The Whistler exactly as we all know it, which is from the extant photos as being raced: Graphics, open dumps, traction bars, slicks, the whole nine yards.

'No need to build it as a Pure Stocker; it wasn't raced that way...and, quite frankly, wouldn't it be easier and cost less money to build it as raced in 1963, since it has so many modifications that would have to be reversed? (I realize few, if any, of those "mods" remain on the car today, but building it as the race car it was back in the day would solve a lot of problems and make it more lovable and recognizable.)

That said, my diabolical mind has also envisioned an article in Muscle Car Review, with photography by Tom Shaw, titled and subtitled:

All-American Smackdown:
There's more than 200 Miles Between South Bend and Detroit!

Since The Tomato is Red, the restored Super Duty Tempest is White, and The Whistler is Blue, there could be some great photographs staged to reinforce a patriotic theme with the Tempest situated between the two Larks for a red-white-blue spray.

Ah, pleasant dreams... BP