Today I met a long-time Superbird owner....

CornDogsCharger · February 09, 2009, 10:31:49 PM

This afternoon I was tieing up some loose ends to get the Superbird ready for paint. While I was working a man came walking through the door clostest to my stall. I had seen this man around town at a local grocery store many many times. I never thought anything of it. When he walked up, he said "Hey, I came up here to look at that car", pointing at the Superbird. He went on to say "Yeah, I have one". On any given week, at least 1-2 people come up there to look at the car..... but when he told me that he had a 'bird, it really caught my attention. He told me that his car is B5 blue 440/4bbl with an auto on the floor. I know of five Superbirds and one Daytona here in the Jackson, MS area. I have seen all cars except for his. I have known about his car for 5+ years, but I could never find it. He doesn't show it... he will only take it out on nice Sundays and drive it around on back roads close to his house.

As we talked about Superbirds and mopars in general, I found out that this is one of those guys that have been in the mopar hobby for quite some time. He told me that he has owned his Superbird for over 32 years now!!! He said wasn't a super nice car, just s decent driver that could use a repaint. He told me that he has been a member of the DSAC since around 1981. He was very anxious to get the VIN of the car I am doing to send in to Doug so he can put it in the newsletter. When I told him that Doug was aware of the car I am doing being restored, he decided not to gather the information.

It was very nice to finally meet the owner of the missing link 'Bird here in the area that I have been searching for. I swear I have been looking for this car for over 5 years now. Now I'm anxious to see his car. Since he does not have the internet.... it just makes me wonder how many other long time wing car owners are still out there doing thier own thing.... just because they loved these cars back when everyone else thought they were ugly.

Justin
"CornDog"

Aero426 · February 09, 2009, 10:34:43 PM

Sounds like you met Paul.

CornDogsCharger · February 09, 2009, 10:50:06 PM

That's him.... really nice guy. I can't recall his last name though but I ALWAYS run into him at the grocery store during lunch..... (Great lunch plate) haha. He talked about you and your father like he had known the two of you forever. Next time I go there I'll be sure to talk with him more about his car. Any chance that you might have a photo of it??

Justin
"CornDog"

hemi68charger · February 10, 2009, 08:25:11 AM

Cool story..........

tan top · February 10, 2009, 08:36:39 AM

good story

yeah does make you wonder ..what else is out there

Aero426 · February 10, 2009, 12:08:03 PM

Quote from: CornDogsCharger on February 09, 2009, 10:50:06 PM
That's him.... really nice guy. I can't recall his last name though but I ALWAYS run into him at the grocery store during lunch..... (Great lunch plate) haha. He talked about you and your father like he had known the two of you forever. Next time I go there I'll be sure to talk with him more about his car. Any chance that you might have a photo of it??

Justin
"CornDog"

I don't have a pic of his car handy. He sent one in a while back with a NASCAR show car parked alongside, but I can't seem to find it at the moment. Paul's a nice guy. He sends us a couple car calendars from the parts store every year.

Charger_Fan · February 10, 2009, 04:13:15 PM

Maybe with any luck, he'll decide to have you do a paint job on it after a while.

nascarxx29 · February 10, 2009, 04:25:48 PM

When you find a original owner and their car they usually have stories pictures etc

billssuperbird · February 10, 2009, 07:52:22 PM

CornDogsCharger · February 10, 2009, 08:32:35 PM

Quote from: Charger_Fan on February 10, 2009, 04:13:15 PM
Maybe with any luck, he'll decide to have you do a paint job on it after a while.

Well, he was asking me about what a paint job usually runs..... He told me that his car is in need of paint and interior work. Maybe we'll be able to work something out

I will definately let you know when I get pictures of his car. With his approval, I'll post them over here for everyone to see.

I wish that I could get all 6 local wing cars together for a photo shoot. That would be cool

Justin
"CornDog"

WingCharger · February 10, 2009, 08:34:08 PM

Sounds like a really cool car.

Want to see some pics of it!

Aero426 · February 12, 2009, 10:51:48 AM

Here is a photo of Paul's B5 Superbird. Looks sharp without the vinyl top.

CornDogsCharger · February 12, 2009, 10:19:35 PM

Great picture of Paul's car! I spoke with him during lunch today and he shared a few stories of his car with me. He told me he removed the vinyl top shortly after he bought the car because he was finatical about no rust. The bodyshop that painted the car removed the pot metal rear window plug trim pieces and smoothed out that area. He still has the original pieces to go back in place.

He also told me that around '94 or '95 Richard Petty came through Jackson on Kyle's celebrity motorcycle tour. Paul found out what hotel they were staying at and showed up in the parking lot a 5am. Paul has always been a Petty fan. He had a few old rare Petty posters and took them with him to the hotel. Around 6am when Richard was leaving the hotel Paul caught him and asked for an autograph. Afterwards, he asked if Richard would take a picture with his Superbird. He said that Richard kinda acted like "Sure... you've got a Superbird here". When they turned the corner and Richard saw the car he was happy to talk and carry on about the car. He took many photos with the car. He told me that Richard was actually wanting to buy the posters off Paul, but he didn't want to let them go. Paul said that he didn't intend on taking up too much of Richard's time.... but he just would stop talking about the car. He was telling Paul how they modified the cars to be raced and all. He said that Richard talked to him about the cars for about 30 minutes!!! Thanks to Paul and his car... Richard Petty was late for his first appearance of the day.... but it was Richard's fault. haha!

Oh yeah... Paul hinted around a bit that his car was needing paint..... so we'll see where that goes. He told me that he will drive it up to the shop one day for me to see.... I can promise you I will have my camera ready to go.

Justin
"CornDog"

PocketThunder · February 12, 2009, 10:29:18 PM

Cool story!

CornDogsCharger · March 05, 2009, 09:59:27 PM

I continue to see Paul at least once a week during lunch. Today I talked with him a little more about his car. I told him that I would like to look at his car sometime. He told me that besides being repainted, it is still all original and has never been apart! He said the only that has really been replaced were a few pieces of weatherstripping. How often do you find that?! This weekend I plan to visit him and take photos of his car. Does anyone need any particular reference photos?? I'll be sure to post the photos here.

Oh yeah, Doug.... I'm gonna work on him some more and try to get him talked into going to Talladega in Nov.

Justin
"CornDog"

CornDogsCharger · March 07, 2009, 09:26:35 PM

I just got back from visiting Paul. Man! Was that a cool experience! Get this. Paul bought the car in Dec 1972. He said it was almost exactly 3 years to the day from when the car was built. This car has been on the same street, at the same house and even in the same parking spot of the carport since 1972! This guy is very peculiar... which is probably a VERY good thing, otherwise this car would not have lasted 40 years in original condition. You would never know it, but EVERYTHING on the interior is 40 year old stuff straight from the factory.... even the carpet. The only thing wrong with the interior, there is a little split in the driver seat, the radio bezel has a crack from one of the screws, and the original carpet has a very little split from the pedal.... that's it! The dash is beautiful, the woodgrain on the console looks just like it would have 40 years ago, the door panels are nice with no worn spots.... it just amazing how origial it is.

After a few years of owning it, he removed the vinyl top because he was affraid it would rust. He told me when the top was removed, "NASCAR" was written on the roof panel. He said around 1973 or 74 one morning he was going through a few things in the trunk of his car and lifted the trunk mat only to find the underside of the trunkmat was covered with condinsation. He pulled the mat out and threw it away. The trunk floor is MINT! He said that when he discovered the moisture, the trunk floor was just starting to surface rust. He sanded the rust away and sprayed a thin coat of rattlecan undercoating. Other than that, the trunk it 100% original The spare tire is original and has never even been on the ground. It still hass all of the little "titties" on the treads and also has "983" written in on the sidewall.

In 1979 he had the car painted here local. Since the vinyl top was removed, he had the vinyl top trim removed, but he still has them. The body shop did a nice job. I think it looks great. This is where it is interesting. Ever since he has owned this car, it has had black "Plymouth" letters one the quarters and black "Road Runner Superbird" decals on the wing. Weren't B5 Blue cars supposed to have white letters? This car also came with the rare passenger side chrome mirror. It had the telescoping antenna... I don't know if that was common or not. His car was a factory undercoated car. It originally had the hood insulator on it but he removed it because it was falling apart.

If you look carefully, you will see "Paint OK 31" and a black "X" just below.

WingCharger · March 07, 2009, 09:31:07 PM

That is one sharp, clean SuperBird man!!

Aero426 · March 07, 2009, 09:46:26 PM

That's a very honest looking car. Justin, the trunk details on the underside of the lid are exactly what you need on the Vit C car. Note the tire size written underneath the right side jack decal.

CornDogsCharger · March 07, 2009, 09:52:10 PM

Here are a couple more pictures. He took me for a ride in it. The 440 has never been out of the car and has never been taken apart.... only regular service over the last 40 years. The front end was rebuilt about 2 years ago. This thing drove like a dream. Very nice and smooth ride. This was the first time I ever rode in a wing car. It was pretty cool. I just had to turn around and see how the wing looked from inside. I dont know... dumb I guess. He punched it a few times and for an all original 440, it was still pretty peppy. When the car was a few years old (I don't know why) he replaced the original 3.55 gears with a set of 4.10s that were ordered from Direct Connection. Below is a picture of a rare Petty poster that was released by WIX. When he met Richard Petty (story mentioned in an earlier post) in 1997, he had it autographed and took a picture of Petty with his car.

Justin
"CornDog"

WingCharger · March 07, 2009, 09:54:47 PM

Sounds just about right for the life of a SuperBird. A bit of custom (roof), a bit of go fast (gears), a bit of resto (front end), and a lot of originality.

FJ5WING · March 07, 2009, 09:59:05 PM

man is that car awsome!!!!

Im glad to finally see another car with the black "X". I dont have the paint OK but I do have the X and always wondered what it was.

I have some markings under my jack decal but I cant decipher it.

I believe it says
B
F60
XT6 OR X15 ?

CornDogsCharger · March 07, 2009, 10:01:55 PM

Quote from: DougSchellinger on March 07, 2009, 09:46:26 PM
That's a very honest looking car. Justin, the trunk details on the underside of the lid are exactly what you need on the Vit C car. Note the tire size written underneath the right side jack decal.

I noticed that! Thought it was pretty cool. I knew it was the tire info but I couldn't make out what it said. My '69 Bee still has the tire info written on it but it's plain as day. Do you know what it is supposed to says? The Vit C car will look the same except it will get full paint coverage.

Justin
"CornDog"

brianz426 · March 07, 2009, 10:05:54 PM

Wow. Great story about a great looking car. It's amazing how these undiscovered cars keep popping up. Just out of curiosity how many miles are on the car? Also is that the carport the car is normally stored in, it looks like that building does not have a door. If that's the case I'm surprised the car is in such great condition.
Thanks for sharing the story.

Aero426 · March 07, 2009, 10:12:41 PM

That Wix poster is very uncommon. You had to send away for it. I am sure there are more out there, but I've only seen just a few of them in thirty odd years.

CornDogsCharger · March 07, 2009, 10:19:47 PM

The car only shows 68,000 and I didn't ask him, but I would guess that it's the original miles and has not rolled over yet. He has been a member of the DSAC since '81 or '82... so... he's been around.... kinda. He just hasn't ever been to a wing car event. But don't worry, I'm working on him to bring it to Talladega this November. Believe it or not.... That is the same carport that has stored the car since 1972. It remains covered up and he is very finatic about keeping the car out of the weather... hense the trunk mat, vinyl top, and hood insulator being removed.

Justin
"CornDog"

resq302 · March 07, 2009, 10:24:11 PM

Hot damn! Great find, great conversation, even better (mostly) original car! Really nice to read stories like this every now and then.

THANKS FOR SHARING!

CornDogsCharger · March 07, 2009, 11:04:40 PM

Here are a few more pictures. As you can see in one of the pictures, the paint is showing it's age. The hood pin lock was actually ordered through Chrysler.

Justin
"CornDog"

moparstuart · March 08, 2009, 08:18:16 AM

very cool

Charger_Fan · March 09, 2009, 04:07:38 PM

That man needs a door for his carport.

That was sure nice of him to let you come & take pics, share cool stories, and take you for a ride...what an awesome weekend for you!

Thanks for posting all that, for the rest of us to drool over.

Magnumcharger · March 09, 2009, 05:50:30 PM

I saw a Superbird without the vinyl top, and smoothed over like that, at the Mopar Nationals in Milan Michigan back in 1983.
It was the same color too, but had those "basket" style wire wheels, without the "basket".
I wonder if that was the same car, or was that a popular trend at some point?

CornDogsCharger · March 09, 2009, 08:17:39 PM

Quote from: Magnumcharger on March 09, 2009, 05:50:30 PM
I saw a Superbird without the vinyl top, and smoothed over like that, at the Mopar Nationals in Milan Michigan back in 1983.
It was the same color too, but had those "basket" style wire wheels, without the "basket".
I wonder if that was the same car, or was that a popular trend at some point?

In teresting. I'll have to ask him. I'm willing to bet that the Rally wheels that are on the car are reproductions. I'll ask him next time I see him.

When we were riding in the car I asked him...... "tell me this.... his does an 18 year old kid have a car this cool and not make a hot rod out of it or customize it?" He said at times he was tempted. If you look carefully just to the left of the spare tire you will see a few black plugs in the floor. He said that was from when he had air shocks on it and the hose came through the floor. You can also see the chrome valve covers that are still in place. It wouldn't surprise me if he had a chrome air cleaner and a set of wheels on it too.

Justin
"CornDog"

nascarxx29 · March 09, 2009, 10:35:10 PM

This guy near me had this bird since 72 .He removed vinyl top and window diamond pieces

TiMopar · March 11, 2009, 09:33:11 AM

Great thread and pictures, many thanks for posting and to the owner for sharing!

Magnumcharger · March 12, 2009, 10:58:14 AM

Quote from: Magnumcharger on March 09, 2009, 05:50:30 PM
I saw a Superbird without the vinyl top, and smoothed over like that, at the Mopar Nationals in Milan Michigan back in 1983.
It was the same color too, but had those "basket" style wire wheels, without the "basket".
I wonder if that was the same car, or was that a popular trend at some point?

I think this MIGHT have been the car I saw....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asU58_A90fc&eurl=http://www.findinternettv.com/Video,item,3807308203.aspx

CornDogsCharger · March 12, 2009, 08:18:29 PM

That car looks more like Petty Blue. Very cool video though! I love seeing the cars being driven like they were supposed to. haha!

Justin
"CornDog"

CornDogsCharger · April 18, 2009, 09:03:16 AM

As of lately, Paul has been dropping by the shop to check out the progress that I am making on the Vit C 440-6 car. The other day I asked if he might have any old pictures of his car. He said "Yeah, I should have some. I think I have an old picture of me doing a burn out in the car". Would you believe the next morning he stopped by with an 8x10 picture from about 1974-75. At this time he had wide Dunlops on it. As you can see, the vinyl top was still on the car. It wasn't long after that when it was removed. I still think it is interesting that this car had black "Plymouth" letters instead of white letters.

Justin
"CornDog"

mauve66 · April 18, 2009, 09:28:57 AM

i don't know anything about original or survivor cars but i would think it would be cool to take it to a big meet like Talledega BEFORE it got repainted or anything, theres always something cool about original "just got it out of the garage" condition

Magnumcharger · April 18, 2009, 04:51:16 PM

I always enjoy seeing vintage photos of original cool (and highly desirable) Mopar musclecars frying the skins!!
Well done!!!!

billssuperbird · April 19, 2009, 11:05:29 AM

News:

Today I met a long-time Superbird owner....