Figured I would share with the group.
:bradsthumb: :wowzers:
Grill should be red. :alan2cents:
It's in a box. Needs to be recored.
Cleaning and sprucing
So is there a story here ? Did you just buy the car ? Restore the car yourself ? What's the original drive train ?
Great looking Cuda !! :twothumbsup:
Quote from: anlauto on June 30, 2018, 04:34:11 PM
So is there a story here ? Did you just buy the car ? Restore the car yourself ? What's the original drive train ?
This car has a rich and rather unusual history to it. CudaFan posted some of it over on the E-bodies org facebook page.
Hopefully he can fill us in too.....I know there are a couple of us here that don't do the "Facebook" thing :looney:
Interesting car: That isn't the old "Mannix" Cuda is it?
Quote from: RUNCHARGER on June 30, 2018, 11:55:06 PM
Interesting car: That isn't the old "Mannix" Cuda is it?
Per CudaFan you would be correct! :bigthumb:
Quote from: RzeroB on July 01, 2018, 01:43:21 PM
Quote from: RUNCHARGER on June 30, 2018, 11:55:06 PM
Interesting car: That isn't the old "Mannix" Cuda is it?
Per CudaFan you would be correct! :bigthumb:
Randy Gerstenberg...... No personal dealings with him & I loved the way the car looked 30 years ago.... Back when they got driven... He ripped a hole in the oil pane entering Kirkwood.... I believe he picked up a pan in the swap meet....
I saw a post on Instagram on the car and it was Randy reminiscing about it as someone trailered for him to check out.
I heard Randy was back in so cal. Been about 20 years since anyone heard about him.
Okay, please bear with me. There has been quite a bit going on with work and this adventure. I purchased the car last week. It is the very same car that Randy Gerstenberg restored back in the 1980s. It was saved by him during a time it would have been crushed otherwise. It was one of the three 71 cars used in Mannix per Randy. I am gathering parts, and info as much as I can. I drove it by his house so he could see it, verify it, and tell me more. He recognized it immediately when he open the door from 75 feet away!
Back half of the car was a 383 auto. Most of the parts used on the car came with the original car (it was highly optioned). The shaker was added (no crumple zones). Parts from a 1970 340 4 speed coupe was used to save the car.
I was the guy who drove it by Randy and asked him to tell me all he knew after I purchased the car early last week.
It has a 66 Hemi, 4 speed and Dana 60 from a B body.
It looks nearly as good as that old picture shared above!
Interesting: I would be tempted to put it all back together Hemi and all.
I'm a little confused....I thought the Mannix cars were 1970 Cudas ? and Darts before that ?
https://m.imdb.com/title/tt0061277/trivia
I just watched an Episode on Mannix "Babe In The Woods". Def a 71 'cuda convertible. It was shot a darker green than F8 to be more camera friendly though.
Cleaning up the engine bay and gathering parts.
Anybody else have pictures of this out in the wild? Went to Detroit a couple times and was driven!
Should be some floating around, it was out and about quite a bit, I'm from central California & saw it at a few different events.... I'll look around, I should have more photos... One funny memory, is the exhaust still with the car? Randy wanted it to look fresh before the Power in the Pines meet so he painted it with silver Imron.... When he drove it up probably seven plus hours the heat caused the imron to change colors.... It was a gold colored exhaust...
There's tons of pics of that thing. Randy and his then wife/girlfriend Sabrina took it around and used it to publicize their resto business called Cuda Connection.
Cuda Connection was written in Coca Cola style lettering.... They were big fans of Coke.... And they liked the soda too.
How is Randy doing? I heard him in that Instagram video and he sounded real rough.
RTS show at Anaheim Stadium 1989
Spring Fling 1989
Quote from: autoxcuda on July 02, 2018, 09:02:11 PM
Spring Fling 1989
Man the Blue 71 sure came apart.....
Quote from: 1 Wild R/T on July 02, 2018, 09:17:49 PM
Quote from: autoxcuda on July 02, 2018, 09:02:11 PM
Spring Fling 1989
Man the Blue 71 sure came apart.....
It was painted by Randy at Cuda Connection.
I heard it had this really thick high build primer on the hood. Started cracking like a dry lake bed
They scraped it off into 5 gal buckets (plural).
Steve thanks for the pics! Great to see the car and how it's held up over the years.
Randy was obviously very emotional to see the car again. He also smoked for 45 years and painted without a mask. He has COPD as a result. When he has a flare up it makes him a little breathless.
I spoke with him a couple days later and he was much better on the phone. He was obviously quite taken aback to see a car from his past he has so much history with.
In the photos it looks like the cosmetics are still pretty good on it?
So what's the VIN ? Is there documentation to back up the Mannix claim ?
Quote from: autoxcuda on July 02, 2018, 09:00:20 PM
There's tons of pics of that thing. Randy and his then wife/girlfriend Sabrina took it around and used it to publicize their resto business called Cuda Connection.
Cuda Connection was written in Coca Cola style lettering.... They were big fans of Coke.... And they liked the soda too.
Funny but that is one of the things that I distinctly remember about that car - the Coca Cola front license plate. When he rolled into the meet at Carrol Shelby's facility in Santa Fe Springs I turned around and saw this red '71 Cuda rumbling into the parking lot with that license plate leading the way. Stupid I know, of all the things distinctive about that car ... '71 Cuda, convertible, Shaker hood, Hemi ... I remember that inconsequential license plate! :looney:
magnifique ! a beautiful car !
Quote from: RzeroB on July 03, 2018, 10:50:29 AM
Quote from: autoxcuda on July 02, 2018, 09:00:20 PM
There's tons of pics of that thing. Randy and his then wife/girlfriend Sabrina took it around and used it to publicize their resto business called Cuda Connection.
Cuda Connection was written in Coca Cola style lettering.... They were big fans of Coke.... And they liked the soda too.
Funny but that is one of the things that I distinctly remember about that car - the Coca Cola front license plate. When he rolled into the meet at Carrol Shelby's facility in Santa Fe Springs I turned around and saw this red '71 Cuda rumbling into the parking lot with that license plate leading the way. Stupid I know, of all the things distinctive about that car ... '71 Cuda, convertible, Shaker hood, Hemi ... I remember that inconsequential license plate! :looney:
Yes I remember it also the same show.
But wasn't it Porsche Red then?
Quote from: Topcat on July 03, 2018, 12:44:33 PM
Quote from: RzeroB on July 03, 2018, 10:50:29 AM
Quote from: autoxcuda on July 02, 2018, 09:00:20 PM
There's tons of pics of that thing. Randy and his then wife/girlfriend Sabrina took it around and used it to publicize their resto business called Cuda Connection.
Cuda Connection was written in Coca Cola style lettering.... They were big fans of Coke.... And they liked the soda too.
Funny but that is one of the things that I distinctly remember about that car - the Coca Cola front license plate. When he rolled into the meet at Carrol Shelby's facility in Santa Fe Springs I turned around and saw this red '71 Cuda rumbling into the parking lot with that license plate leading the way. Stupid I know, of all the things distinctive about that car ... '71 Cuda, convertible, Shaker hood, Hemi ... I remember that inconsequential license plate! :looney:
Yes I remember it also the same show.
But wasn't it Porsche Red then?
Might of been Mike ... It was so long ago I don't really recall?? :thinking:
I thought it was one of the real deal Hemi 'verts. I ran over there to check it out and talk to Randy. I remember being a bit indignent when he told me it was a "clone". :thumbdown: What an a$$ I was!! :yes: Randy was a creative pioneer with that car and the Hemi 'vert population has been growing ever since thanks to his pioneering efforts. :clapping:
Randy had paperwork and info from his timeframe, including a planned stunt involving the car showing where the explosive was to be located and where on Mullholland they were going to touch it off. All of that, and photos from his time were subject to a bitter divorce and vindictive ex.
The cosmetics look the same as when it was in Car Craft in November of 1985. The color on the car is Deltron 1986 Porsche red single stage. Underside is painted and looks nearly as good as the rest of the car.
There is another episode of Mannix where there is dynamite under the hood and you can clearly see the 383 pie tin.
@anlauto (https://forum.e-bodies.org/mlist/anlauto_19) PM me about the VIN.
I don't really care that much about the VIN I was just wondering if it was a BS or BH ? what size engine....sounds to me the the Mannix "claim to fame " is long gone :'( Now is just another clone ?
BS27
The Mannix claim to fame may be long gone in your eyes, but the back half of the car is green (under the rear seat) the second owner who built this clone is still alive. I am having a ball documenting what I can. It looks nearly as good as 1985, which is cool. Clean SoCal car and is still a 71 vert.
It is an N code BS, heavily optioned & originally green.... It definitely is one of the real Mannix cars, plenty of people who have been in the hobby on the west coast can verify that...
Should be restored back to "as shown on the TV'' then.... otherwise it's just another Hemi clone :alan2cents:
Alan, let me know when you are ready to donate your talents. Otherwise, I am inclined to keep it how Randy built it. I love that it has survived 30+ years of being driven.
I hate Magnums and it is not F8 on TV. Good luck with a match. They also filled in the gills with tin foil and muddled over the quarters. Nuts.
I went to a show at the Shelby Grounds in Santa Fe Springs. It was in the spring of 1985. I took a couple of pictures of the car and briefly met Randy. It was before I saw the magazine article. I have more pictures of other cars and behind the scenes photos inside Shelby's garage. The General Lee Wheel Stander was pretty cool too!
I guess giving up that '69 M-code was worth it, huh? Not to mention the convertible Barracuda. That's a cool 'cuda.
Blue challenger is owned by fellow club member. Identical today.
Haven't seen the Red survivor Hemi Cuda in years. Nice owner. Met him in a pick a part once.
I've got photos of all those cars back in that time frame....
:takealook: Funny but that 2nd pic of the guy looking under the hood of Randy G's car almost looks like ... ME!!
I really liked that HemiCuda with the side trim. It seems to me it was in a few magazines way back when, turndown exhaust and all.
Any more pics, info or stories from those in the SoCal scene?
Can't wait for this to be up and running!
Well, the car is running again, and does it sound sweet! TTI headers and full exhaust!
Broke in the cam, and am now putting shakedown miles on it. There are little things here and there, but it is running and driving under it's own power for the first time in a long time. It has been a long time coming!
I was glad I was able to share pics and video with Randy Gerstenberg of the car running and driving, and was happy to get in-person info from back when I purchased it. Keep and eye out for me in San Diego, and plan to see it at the Spring Fling in Apr 2020!
Quote from: autoxcuda on July 07, 2018, 06:01:27 PM
Blue challenger is owned by fellow club member. Identical today.
I wonder if his brother still has his '69 Corolla (license frame) :rofl:
Ignore the lack of trim rings and argent grille with rubber bumpers.
Nice!
Can't argue with a HEMI...Looks great :drooling:
I never could figure the billboard stripe on the car.
Did he paint it on,... short right in front of the door handle
and angled wrong at the rear on the quarter.
Man, thats cool to see. I was just 16 years old when I joined the RTS club in Orange County (1989). Randy was the president. I was just a snot nosed kid with a 273 Dart. He was real nice and very helpful. Jim Radke was the Vice President. Another cool dude. Those pictures bring back a lot of memories. Those were some good times. I love the fact that you are leaving the car as Randy built it. In SoCal its a well known car because it was everywhere.
The door stripe is painted on. The dimensions are a bit funky because he had a reverse stencil made from a Monogram model of a 71 Cuda during a time where we did not have the vendor support we have now for sure!
I was a close friend of Randy and Sabrina for many years.
As far as i know, that car started out as an original hemi cuda.
But what happened was he had tires slipping on the rims whenever he used the NO2. I know this for a fact.
So he screwed the tires to the rims. Then the first time he hit the nitrous the sidewalls exploded and took out both rear quarter panels, and everything connected to them. It was a real mess, a heartbreaker.
So he transplanted the back half of the mannix donor car onto his hemi cuda. The restoration was near perfect, but he lost interest in the car after it's "cherry got popped". It was no longer the real deal.
So he sold it and built his '59 Ranchero with the 580cu.in Keith Black alky blown HEMI using the funds he got from selling the Cuda.
Shortly after that, he temporarily closed Cuda-Connection and started a business hauling freight for professional drag racers. After that proved profitable, he closed Cuda-Connection for good. There's more to that story, but it's not pertainent to this topic.
Anyway, It was during that time that his wife left him and took everything he had. Extremely vindictive, pure hell.
He lived with me for a few months while all that was happening. He moved out in Sept '95 and i never heard from him again. (But then i left calif in January '99, so i dunno if he tried to contact me since.)
Good guy. Tough trials.
And yes, the paint color was indeed '85 Porsche Red, but is was Dupont's Imron, not Deltron. I know because i bought all the materials and he painted my Shelby at the same time he re-did the Cuda. I was there. Been there. Done that.
And it's true that he didn't use a resparator. Those fumes b'out kilt me, and i was just a bystander. He called me a puss.
Jussed sayin'
Qwextions?