Vehicle Description
This 1969 Ford Talladega Prototype was built with options that were
not available to any production Talladega. It is powered by a 428ci
4V Cobra Jet engine with Ram Air paired with a C6 Cruise-O-Matic
transmission. It has a rim blow deluxe steering wheel, SelectAire
air conditioning, AM/FM stereo radio, rear seat speakers, tinted
glass complete, warning light, tachometer, dark red vinyl bucket
seats and Candy Apple Red paint. Here is where the prototype comes
into play: Once at Ford Administrative Services, the transformation
began with the rocker panels hand-modified to lower the car and the
front fenders hand-modified for aerodynamics. The hood-latching
mechanism was removed, and hood pins were installed as the only
means to hold the hood shut. The car came with a white C stripe
that was modified in the front for the longer nose and a piece
stripe was added at the rear to cover the holes in the
quarter-panel where the Torino emblem used to be. The Ford T plate
is also unique in terms of the material it is made of and its
placement on the doors. The tail panel was painted black but still
retains the GT lower moldings. The hood, hood scoop and wiper panel
were all painted flat black, not Eggshell. When all that was done,
the car was then fitted with chrome-styled steel wheels and
Goodyear white-letter tires with GT caps. This car was used in some
photo shoots and was seen in Stock Car Racing magazine in April
1969. Ford owned the car for almost four years before selling it to
NASCAR Hall of Fame legend Banjo Matthew in March 1971. This car
has documentation that includes a copy of the original title in
Ford's name, registration card in Ford's name and a loan contract,
invoice and receipt from Ford to Banjo Matthews, along with a
release agreement from Banjo to Ford and a Marti Report.
