"Fireball" is a street-legal tribute to the legendary NASCAR driver Fireball Roberts. The car is a replica of one of his last super-speedway cars driven before his untimely death.
"Project Fireball" was intended from the get-go to replicate an actual former NASCAR racer (as opposed to an imaginary one) as visually accurate as possible, yet still be street legal. I chose to pay tribute to Fireball Roberts, starting with (ironically, or twistedly... your call) a '64 Galaxie that had previously been stolen and that the thieves had tried to torch to hide their stupidity. For the time being (and as a matter of saving some money), I stuck with the small block 289, yet completed a race-bred interior that further adds to the car's accurate 60s-racer appearance. Removing all of the chrome also required filling 161 holes in the body!
The graphics are correct for the car, save for the fact that I didn't have them hand-painted. I instead had them cut in vinyl by Odie at Predator Graphix.
It's admittedly more of a show car, and it has seen its share of shows now. It's not really meant to run low 11s at the local strip. At least, not just yet. I have a 390 block and 406 heads waiting to be built, but I'm leaning more towards a significantly upgraded small block so I don't have to change everything over (springs, mounts, tranny, etc.) to accommodate the larger motor. Now if I can just find some time... and MONEY!
To complete my project... well, I had no shop, no previous welding or bondo experience, and pretty much no budget. Other than exterior paint and exhaust, it just was me, a crowded garage, and a few borrowed tools. Still, the car was purchased October 1, 2006, and the project was completed on July 11, 2007; or a little over 9 months, for a total of about $4,000, and I am damned proud of it!
I also drove "Fireball" as a pace car for a charity race at the 2007 San Jose Grand Prix, and it has been seen at the 2007 Reno Hot August Nights, and at the 2007 NSRA Golden State Nationals. The car was also seen on the splash page of the December 2007 issue of Street Scene magazine and its write-up of the Golden State Nationals.
Now, for the same amount of money that I have invested in "Fireball", I can install a 427 Windsor engine from Performance Auto Warehouse so it will better match its historic counterpart.
Uh, 427 Windsor?
Yes... a stroked 351W that now displaces 427 cubes of power. For just a little over $4,000. Now, if I can just find some generous soul on here to help me in my quest... yeah, right.
First show of 2008 was participation only, no awards were given. Another community show a week later and I got about $40 worth of car stuff because I'm damn good at trivia!
*NEWSFLASH* Fireball was in the FordLovers.com West Coast Nationals on May 4th, 2008 and took 2nd place in the Race Car/Competition division, beat out by a 600 HP Thunderbolt.
We're also gaining more interest in the NASCAR Golden Age Society! Check it out at http://www.nascar-gas.com.
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