The late ‘60s brought about stiff competition among manufacturers on stock car race tracks. Due to NASCAR mandates, manufacturers were restricted to using only certain engines in their race cars. While these engines were always being tweaked, it became very expensive to get only a bit more horsepower out of them. Because of this, manufacturers looked for new ways to increase the speed of their cars on the track. Aerodynamics became the most explored avenue, resulting in what we now lovingly refer to as the Aero cars.
[3] Ford was one of the top track competitors that explored aerodynamic styling for its cars in 1969 and 1970. Cars like the Torino Talladega/Torino Cobra, Mercury Spoiler and Spoiler II were the result of the innovative aerodynamic designs. Recently, our friends at Legendary Collector Cars [2] found a number of aero cars that are ready for restoration.
The “barn-find” aero cars are pictured on the Legendary Collector Car website. While all of them look pretty rough, they don’t seem too far gone that they couldn’t be saved. It would take a lot of work, but these cars could be brought back to their race-inspired glory. We are unsure where the aero cars were found or if they are for sale but we hope that someone takes the time to save these historic cars rather than letting them continue to waste away.