[Chooch65]

Tijuana Taxi to ride again?
(4-7-2006) - While on a assignment at the Nextel Cup event at Texas Motor Speedway, one of our CircleTrackPlus.com reporters ran into former drag racer turned NASCAR icon Jack Roush along with former Super Modified phenom Don Bowles. Roush's old Pro Stock car "The Tijuana Taxi" quickly took center stage in the conversation.

Roush smiles broadly when reminiscing about the classic 4-door Maverick Pro Stocker that he and Wayne Gapp campaigned in 1974. The duo had won the championship in a Ford Pinto the year before but when the NHRA provided favorable factorings for the longer wheelbase cars. Gapp and Roush abandoned plans for a new Mustang II and ran the 110-inch wheelbase, four-door car.

Roush has located and purchased the car with plans to restore it. He pointed out that he's making a trip to Oklahoma to confirm how much of the original car is still there.

"We're going to check out the DNA on it to see if everything matches up," Roush said. "If everything matches up, we'll have to locate a suitable Don Hardy chassis. We plan to return everything to original."

Roush recently announced his return to drag racing with a series of Mustang drag racing machines. He and Bowles are developing formidable product lines for Roush Industries relating to the 4.6 Modular crate motor program.

Bowles pointed out that one of their stock 4.6 modular crate engines has already stopped the clocks at 10.75 seconds utilizing a two-barrel carburetor.

 

[strokerman]

man i love that old mav, brings back some good memories of the 70s pro stock wars.

 

[Beoweolf]

Not like today. If you remove the graphics (the painted on headlights, scoops, etc..) they are all the same.

I have to admit my shame...I have little or no interest in Funny Cars, Top Fuel or NASCAR anymore. I still watch the occasional race, but I'm not drawn to it. Must be why I watch college football, follow "Farm team" baseball.

I like cars that can be identified to something on the street. Racing is like Slot cars underneath they are all pretty much the same, on the outside they look like vacuum formed approimations of a real car. They don't even pretend to be anything close to what ships out of the factory.

I guess thats what I like about old 60's - 70's super stockers. They at least started from a real car, a real motor...it left with the the dream that you could build something close.



_________________
"They that can give up essential Liberty to obtain a little temporary safety deserve neither Liberty nor safety"-- Benjamin Franklin

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: Beoweolf on 4/13/06 8:00am ]</font>

 

[wildosvt01_OLD]

 

[Chooch65]

I loved NASCAR and NHRA back in the day but today there is really nothing more than loyalty to the make. Cars are designed in the wind tunnel. At least at the local drag strips you can get out and see the street and bracket classes on the weekends. Real knuckle buster racing!
Heck even the Late Model class at the local oval tracks has gone to all looking the same. I vote for the rules to go back to the near original body shape. Post some more old pics Wildo. We all love them.

 

[ckelly]

I need to go to the local graphics store and get a set of 4" letters that say TAXI and stick them on the rear fenders.

 

[19mach69]

I want to build an old flopper funny car someday. The local junk yard has some prime candidates. First I have to build a car that runs for more than a few months before it leaks oil, spits its driveshaft or some other crap.

 

[tbirdchick]

On 2006-04-13 06:27, Chooch65 wrote:

Heck even the Late Model class at the local oval tracks has gone to all looking the same. I vote for the rules to go back to the near original body shape.

How 'bout some Late Models like these:

 

[Chooch65]

Very kool pic! Where is it from?
I remember watching Joe Ruttman at Toledo Speedway. **** Trickle, Joy Fair some really fast guys on the half mile highbanks there.

 

[TorinoStyle2]

I always admired that "Tijuana Taxi" Maverick.
They did such a good job with that car in 1974, that the NHRA actually "revised" the rule book to dis-allow 4 door Maverick's and/or Comets the following year!!

 

[tbirdchick]

On 2006-04-14 05:58, Chooch65 wrote:
Very kool pic! Where is it from?
I remember watching Joe Ruttman at Toledo Speedway. **** Trickle, Joy Fair some really fast guys on the half mile highbanks there.

That was taken at a dirt track in Western Pa. I'm not sure whose Galaxie that is, but the #21 Fairlane was driven by a buddy, Tom Jarrett. That pic was taken in 1969. His car owner, Gene Friend was nuttier than a squirrel. One night they had to shut down a local speedway because Gene ran with a can of gas to burn up someone's car hauler...

But his Fords always flew!

I used to know Joy Fair. When he'd come to our area for a big $$ asphalt race in the late '70s, we'd help set up his pit and such. Back then he had a yellow Maverick 4-door bodied Late Model powered by a "mildly built" 306, or so he said...

Jan

 

[BobsSleeper]

On 2006-04-13 06:27, Chooch65 wrote:
I loved NASCAR and NHRA back in the day but today there is really nothing more than loyalty to the make. Cars are designed in the wind tunnel. At least at the local drag strips you can get out and see the street and bracket classes on the weekends. Real knuckle buster racing!
Heck even the Late Model class at the local oval tracks has gone to all looking the same. I vote for the rules to go back to the near original body shape. Post some more old pics Wildo. We all love them.

Man you hit the nail on the head with that opinion

 

[Chooch65]

I found a pic of the 2 door Maverick and I wondered what year it was. Thanks Torino. I took it at the old Detroit Dragway which is now gone. I agree with Tbirdchick that we could use less malls and a few more race tracks!

 

[strokerman]

i for one hate nascar today along with nhra, just isnt the same anymore, back in those late 60's early 70's were the best of times, i rather watch nostalgia racing anyday, superstock ronnie sox, hemis, Boss 429's, pintos with 351c motors, fun stuff, now i lost all interest, man even back when Bill E was running 212mph in a thunderbird that was fun, remember they used to say, HOW bout those FORDS.

 

[nitrojoe]

I remember Don Bowles running his A/Super Modified Fairmont at Sanair Quebec back in the late 70's . My jaw is still on the floor !

 

[FEandGoingBroke]

Well????

It's been 4 YEARS and this dingbat nitrojoe is dredging up the past for a one liner, WHAT happened to the Roush Taxi job???

 

[gbic1]

THE TIJUANA TAXI: UNDER CONSTRUCTION

 

[FEandGoingBroke]

Thanks Gary, but that story contradicted it's self and it makes me dislike roush even more...


They're restoring a car that they only have the original wheels to as the original car was crashed and put to a yard and rusted into much... Then someone tried restoring it or some other murky story, now his daughter has it again and is doing it all up the right way.... That's too bad.

 

[70XL]

I agree, it is a recreation, not a restoration. There is nothing to restore, so it can't be a restoration.

 

[K2racer]

Jurassic park, anyone?