The Sports Car Club of America was the governing body for some of the most memorable racing venues in North America. From F5000 to the Canadian-American Cup (Can-Am) the S.C.C.A, was a key place to race or be a happy spectator. One the favorite venues was the Trans America Championship or Trans-Am. The cars were sedans and coupes that everyone would recognize driving down their own street, at least from the outside. Underneath the bodies was pure racing machines. Cashing in on the pony-car craze, the Trans-Am series was the place to watch the classic Mustangs, Camaros, Firebirds, Cougars and Challengers battle it out on road courses across the country. Auto World has captured the series in the latest Thunderjet Release #30 (SC357). Continuing the momentum from the first T/A release and the follow up race set, this release has some of the big names and historic liveries that led the pace when that series jumped to life in the 1960’s and on through the next several years.
SC357-1 1970 Dodge Challenger – Sam Posey – Lime Green/Black #77
1970 was the only year that Dodge prepared and raced the Challenger in the SCCA Trans America racing series. With Sam Posey at the wheel the car finished fourth overall in the series that year. Dodge destroked the mighty 340 cubic inch motor down to 303 to comply with the SCCA rulebook and still managed a whopping 460 horseposwer out of their powerplant! * and **
SC357-2 1970 Ford Mustang – Parnelli Jones – Dodge School Bus Yellow/Black #15
1970 was the championship year for Ford and the Bud Moore Mustangs. After chasing the Penske Camaros for the past couple of years, the ‘70 Stang was able to outclass the field for 1970. A particular interesting story covers the color of the cars entered by Bud Moore Racing that year. Apparently the FoMoCo PR guys did not like the previous year’s Mustangs in black, white and red. They wanted something more eye-catching that would stand out on the track, it was 1970 after all. This miffed Mr. Moore and he went in search of the “loudest, most obnoxious color” he could find. He finally settled on 1969 Dodge School Bus Yellow. So the championship cars were not Grabber Orange as I had believed all these years. ***
SC357-3 1967 Mercury Cougar – Burien Mercury – Black/Red #14
In efforts to help Mercury win a Trans Am championship, Dave Tatum, an operations manager at Burien Lincoln Mercury, convinced the owners of the dealership to field a Cougar for the T/A competitions in 1967. With a little factory help, Dave and Bill Pendleton shared driving responsibilities and raced in several of the west coast SCCA events. After Ford decided to focus on the Mustang for the SCCA events, the funding sources dried up for the Cougars. The Burien Cougar continued to compete on a shoestring budget in 1968 and 1969 in the west coast events, while the Bud Moore Cougars, the once official factory cars, moved on to the NASCAR GT Series (later renamed Grand American) and found success.
Packaging for the new Auto World Thunderjet Release #30 (SC357) Trans America Racing
What I thought made the original Trans Am such a success was the combination of great cars, and cars that you saw on the street or could go purchase yourself. And all of the major manufacturers participated in the competition. So if you were a Ford or Dodge or Chevy, or even a Mercury fan, you had a car and driver to cheer for. And the pony-cars of the era looked as fast on your neighborhood street as they did on the race track. The Auto World cars are a great addition to historic racing in HO scale.
References
* From SpeedHunters June 13, 2011
** From Audrain Automobile Museum “1970 Dodge Challenger Trans Am”
*** Information documented on Boss302.com – 1969-70 Mustang Cougar Registry.
**** Information from Bring-a-Trailer Website and links to sale of original car. March 17, 2007