-
Home
- TV Shows
- TV Schedule
- NASCAR
-
Latest Headlines: NASCAR
-
-
Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Games
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
- Home
- TV Shows
-
TV Schedule
-
SPEED Showcase
-
- NASCAR
- Formula 1
- Auto Racing
- Moto Racing
- Cars
- Bikes
- Store
- Social
- Mobile
- Deals
- Videos
- Photos
Automotive Lifestyle
VINTAGE: Evernham Steps Up For Great Cause
FOR-PLY is a street-legal, 200 mile-per-hour 1964 Plymouth…
This one-of-a-kind 1964 Plymouth Belvedere custom built by NASCAR crew chief legend Ray Evernham is sold to benefit the Ignite Program for Young Adults with Aspergers.
When he was a NASCAR Sprint Cup championship crew chief for Jeff Gordon and later owner of his own race team, Ray Evernham built some of the best race cars the sport has ever seen.
Now, he’s built one of the best resto-mods ever seen at any Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Event.
Evernham’s amazing car, a 1964 Plymouth that he calls FOR-PLY, will be auctioned off tonight live on SPEED, with proceeds going to fund IGNITE, a Davidson, N.C. program that supports young adults with high-functioning autism or Asperger’s syndrome. Evernham’s son, Ray J, is one of many individuals who has Asperger’s.
FOR-PLY has the front and rear clips from an Evernham Motorsports Dodge that was raced in the Daytona 500 and a NASCAR Sprint Cup engine that was used in cars raced by Bill Elliott and Kasey Kahne. Evernham added electronic fuel injection and lower compression so it can be run on pump gas.
Evernham chose the ’64 Plymouth body because that was one he associated with Richard Petty’s glory days.
“To me, when I was growing up, and Richard Petty and Cotton Owens were winning all those races, that to me said Chrysler, even more so than the winged cars (Dodge Daytona and Plymouth Superbird), which are really cool. It makes a sexy car if you get the stance right.”
And he certainly did. The FOR-PLY strikes exactly the right balance of aggression and power, a striking look for a car of this vintage.
According to Evernham, the FOR-PLY is fully capable of running 200 miles per hour and is fully streetable. The build quality and attention to detail are remarkable, a trademark of Evernham’s days as Jeff Gordon’s crew chief.
“The actual front clip and rear clip from the race car, along with the front suspension, rear-end housing, trailing arms, steering — all that stuff — is the actual parts that raced at Daytona,” said Evernham.
Evernham is donating the proceeds of the sale tonight to IGNITE, an organization he is building to help young people with social disorders.
“It’s a small clubhouse right now, where we’re bringing young adults with Asperger’s and autism and work on social skills,” said Evernham. “Work on skills to transition them in the community, work on job interview skills. We’ve got chefs, mechanics, people donating time to come in here and talk to the kids. There’s not a lot of places where they can go and have social interaction with other people like them.
“Some of these kids are incredibly talented. There genius-like in a lot of ways,” said Evernham. “And we’ve got to find a way to help them use those things for the good of the community.”
Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100.
Now, he’s built one of the best resto-mods ever seen at any Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Event.
Evernham’s amazing car, a 1964 Plymouth that he calls FOR-PLY, will be auctioned off tonight live on SPEED, with proceeds going to fund IGNITE, a Davidson, N.C. program that supports young adults with high-functioning autism or Asperger’s syndrome. Evernham’s son, Ray J, is one of many individuals who has Asperger’s.
FOR-PLY has the front and rear clips from an Evernham Motorsports Dodge that was raced in the Daytona 500 and a NASCAR Sprint Cup engine that was used in cars raced by Bill Elliott and Kasey Kahne. Evernham added electronic fuel injection and lower compression so it can be run on pump gas.
Evernham chose the ’64 Plymouth body because that was one he associated with Richard Petty’s glory days.
“To me, when I was growing up, and Richard Petty and Cotton Owens were winning all those races, that to me said Chrysler, even more so than the winged cars (Dodge Daytona and Plymouth Superbird), which are really cool. It makes a sexy car if you get the stance right.”
And he certainly did. The FOR-PLY strikes exactly the right balance of aggression and power, a striking look for a car of this vintage.
According to Evernham, the FOR-PLY is fully capable of running 200 miles per hour and is fully streetable. The build quality and attention to detail are remarkable, a trademark of Evernham’s days as Jeff Gordon’s crew chief.
“The actual front clip and rear clip from the race car, along with the front suspension, rear-end housing, trailing arms, steering — all that stuff — is the actual parts that raced at Daytona,” said Evernham.
Evernham is donating the proceeds of the sale tonight to IGNITE, an organization he is building to help young people with social disorders.
“It’s a small clubhouse right now, where we’re bringing young adults with Asperger’s and autism and work on social skills,” said Evernham. “Work on skills to transition them in the community, work on job interview skills. We’ve got chefs, mechanics, people donating time to come in here and talk to the kids. There’s not a lot of places where they can go and have social interaction with other people like them.
“Some of these kids are incredibly talented. There genius-like in a lot of ways,” said Evernham. “And we’ve got to find a way to help them use those things for the good of the community.”
Tom Jensen is the Editor in Chief of SPEED.com, Senior NASCAR Editor at RACER and a contributing Editor for TruckSeries.com. You can follow him online at twitter.com/tomjensen100.
Goodwood Festival Of Speed
LATEST HEADLINES: AUTOMOTIVE
-
GREEN: Porsche Adding All-Model Hybrids
Gas/electric plug-versions of its entire lineup – including… -
AUTOS: Porsche Boosts 918 Spyder Power
The upcoming supercar will produce 887 horsepower from its gas/electric… -
AUTOS: Acura NSX Details Revealed
The rebirth of the mid-engine sports car – now an all-wheel-drive… -
DRIVEN: Jaguar’s Many-Splendored XJ
The British luxury sedan comes in 10 different flavors, with plenty… -
AUTOS: Lamborghini Egoista Launched
The wild single-seat concept car is unveiled at the end of the epic… -
AUTOS: Dale Earnhardt Jr.’s Hot Pontiac G8
NASCAR team owner Rick Hendrick helped his driver modify the 2009… -
VINTAGE: A Fast Historic Tour Of France
Vintage race and touring cars compete in the 22nd annual Tour de… - More News
