Just think of stories this old, wingless warrior could tell.

A wise old racer once said, “There is nothing more useless than yesterday’s race car. These cars were raced, repaired, rebodied, raced some more, rebodied again, kicked down the food chain to Goober and Gomer, raced some more, and THEN, if they were still around, pushed out to the field.  That is why there are so few remaining speedway cars from the golden era.”

RIP Talmadge “Tab” Prince

That sounds about right and why this very rough 1969 #48/#78 426 Hemi Dodge Charger Daytona that surfaced on eBay is interesting. Originally owned and driven by James Hylton in the 1969/1970 NASCAR Racing seasons, he sold it shortly afterwards to Talmadge “Tab” Prince who met his demise in the car at the age of 32.

Originally equipped with a dry sump, race 426 Hemi built by Nichels Engineering, the seller says car includes “a 426 Hemi race engine, carburetor to oil pan, including headers, a race transmission, a Prestolite ignition system and dual point tach drive distributor (the heads are unported and not original). A new floor pan, new fuel cell, and numerous miscellaneous parts.” Whether these were original to car is unclear.

Of the approximately 40 race Daytona’s built, this is only 1 of 6 known to have survived. 3 are in museums, and the other 3 are in private collections. Seller says James Hylton has viewed the car and authenticated it.

Sharp eyed reader comments have noted that the rear sugar scoop window is incorrect and other details a NASCAR Daytona would have are missing. Seller says “I have had to answer a LOT of e-mails, because I forgot to answer some glaring questions. Yes, the quarter panels and roof were replaced at some point with ’68 parts, and the car is missing the rear window plug. The Daytona trunk lid is included, along with a new floor pan. The engine does in fact have the dry sump oil system, with the dual oil pumps, 1 internal/1 external, and the magnesium oil pan.”

No uncertainty surrounds the fatal crash this car was involved in though, the only one involving a Daytona. While racing the car on February 19^th 1970, in the second of the two 125 mile qualifying races for the Daytona 500, Prince blew the engine and went into a slide. Another car following behind Talmadge, got into oil, lost control, and crashed head on into the driver’s door of Prince’s car. Talmadge was killed instantly.

Currently located in Durham, CA, the auction eBay auction ended without any further info. Either it sold or seller will try again another day. In the meantime, check out pics documenting what’s left of this old Mopar war horse.