Record Collector: The Story of a Special 1958 Chrysler 300-D

摘要

The first time that Norm Thatcher, a Southern California business-man, tuner, and racer with deep ties to Chrysler Corporation, got behind the wheel of a 1958 Chrysler 300-D it was a preproduction version with Bendix Eectrojector fuel injection. He was hired to drive the "fuelie" car from Detroit to Los Angeles as a publicity stunt to report on the performance of the new system-and he would later be contracted to remove Electrojectors from corporation cars delivered to the West Coast and replace them with carburetors when the program was deemed not viable. It would hardly be Thatcher's only experience with the '58 edition of Chrysler's mighty "letter car," however. Nor would it be the most exciting. During his visit to the factory or soon after, a secret agreement was made at the highest levels at Chrysler to supply Thatcher with a specially prepared 300-D hardtop that he would campaign in high-speed trials under the guise of an independent racing effort. Amazingly, the car he used to set records still exists in close-to-original condition.