Car of the Month

For past car's of the month scroll down below this picture & text

David Chisholm's 1970 GTX “Car of the Month”

As the original buyer and current owner, here is David's story of his uniquely customized 1970 GTX, in his own words.

I ordered the 1970 GTX on February 20, 1970 and it was delivered to me on April 11th with a total price tag of $4,303.90. I have had possession of the vehicle since then. When choosing an engine for the car, the saleman at the dealership went over the options I could choose from, and my choice was the 440-6bbl engine with an automatic transmission with shifter on the console. That engine selection cost an additional $119.00. I remember his asking me if I thought about choosing the hemi engine which would cost around $200 more if my memory serves me now, but I decided against it because of the gasoline mileage one would get with that powerful engine. Although not a lot of extra money today, $200 bought a lot more in 1970 than it does at present. I wanted air conditioning, but this option was not available with the air grabber hood. That was an easy decision to make. I kept an accuate record of the gasoline I put into the car, and it worked out to be 11+ miles per gallon on high test gasoline and it hasn't improved with age.

In the 70's it was common place to see cars with aftermarket spoilers installed by the owners. Some were attractive and added to the appearance of the vehicle. But when I saw the "wing" on a Plymouth Superbird, that was impressive and an eye catcher. I learned that the owner of the junkyard was collecting damaged Superbirds and a few of them still had the spoiler attached to them. Needless to say it fit perfectly on the rear of my GTX because it, the Roadrunners, and Superbirds all had the same shaped rearend.

I chose the 3.55 rear end ratio with the limited slip differential hoping to get better gas mileage. The vehicle has never been raced or taken part in any lawful or unlawful speed competition. The side pipes, which are functional, were added about 10 years later. I still have the original exhaust system and the original wheels. It cam equipped with the AM radio and 8-track tape player. However, though still installed, it doesn't operate because I have installed an under-the-dash AM/FM radio with cassette and disc player while utilizing the factory installed speakers which were connected to the AM/8-track setup. Being fascinated by electronic devices, I have also installed a under-the-dash police scanner and a CB radio. These devices account for the trunk mounted antenna and the extra long antenna in the front. The vinyl seat covers are the originals purchased from Fingerhut, except the driver's seat cover which had to be replaced.

Only 278 or 3.9% of the 1970 GTX model Plymouths were painted the "black velvet" color and only 114 or 1.6% came with the 6bbl. engine and 3.55 gears with the automatic transmission. Two thousand one hundred sixty-four or 30.3% came with the air-grabber hood; 4934 or 69.1% came with the floor console; 2235 or 31.3% came with the clock/tachometer option. And there were only 328 GTXs built with the automatic transmission and 440-6bbl. engine combination.

The vehicle has not been without problems. The windshield has leaked since I have owned it. As a result it has ot been driven in wet weather at all. There is no rust anywhere. The black paint is the original. The transmission developed an itermittent slip in it from 2nd to high gear. Unfortunately, it came with just a one year warranty and so I have lived with the problem since. A person operating the vehicle at a steady cruising speed could detect a "surging" action in the movement of the car if he were real attentive. Local "experts" were unable to give me a satisfactory reason for this dilemma. I called a factory representative about the problem and he indicated tht in order to meet the pollution standards for that year, the engine carburetion had been leaned down so much that only installing larger jets would cure the problem. Making that modification would just decrease my already bad gasoline mileage, so I have accepted that situation, too. It has had the cam sahft replaced because the lobs on the original one were just worn off. The same type was installed with much more temper in the metal. The center carburetor has been replaced. An electronic ignition has been installed to replace the old distributor point system. It has been driven 96,610 miles.

David comments that when he is out driving his GTX that it gets plenty of attention.

May 2006

Past Car's of the Month

John Borzych's FJ5 GTX race car
Rick Richard's EB5 6bbl 4 spd GTX
Don Collom's FT6 4 speed 440-4bbl GTX
Bob Thompson's GTX 440-4bbl automatic
Joe Petrungaro's FC7 automatic 440-4bbl GTX
Darren Phiipp's FE5 automatic GTX
Mark Sillar's EB7 A/C auto GTX
Norm VerHage's EB7 4 speed GTX
Chris Akin's FC7 automatic GTX
Steve Lester's EV2 automatic GTX
Ed Aprile's EB5 w/white vinyl top & side stripe 4 speed GTX
Ron Simonar's FC7 4bbl auto GTX
Fred Gilmore's Ivy Green GTX w/ Hemi engine
Brian Moceri's black 440-4bbl 4 spd GTX
Dave Kruszewski's TX9 GTX w/ white interior
Mats & Eva's FK5 6bbl. 4 spd GTX
Doug Dufour's EW1 4bbl GTX w/AC
Frank Forest's FK5 6bbl. 4 speed GTX
Chris Lobascio's EB5 automatic 440-6bbl. GTX
Mike Doddo's 440+6bbl. 4 speed GTX
Russ Carpenter's EB7 4bbl. 4 speed GTX
Ivan Kron's FE5 6bbl. 4 speed GTX
Nick Pieramico's FK5 6bbl. 4 speed GTX
Chuck Brunell's FJ5 GTX
Steve Coe's EK2 4 speed GTX
Dave Drozdowski's FJ5 GTX

[Home]