1959 Pontiac Challenger I - Racing Legend Mickey Thompson
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Goodyear organized the grand unveiling of Challenger I at the Beverly Hilton before it first took to the salt in 1959. According to the "hero board" next to Mickey, Challenger I weighed 4,650 pounds, and was 19.7 feet long and 59 inches wide. Each of the four 13:1 410 (4.00-inch stroker crank) cubic-inch Pontiac engines was stated to have 500 hp (normally aspirated). HPP has seen varied published reports of 410ci, 414ci, and 415ci for the engines' displacements. Most likely, two of the engines were 414.68 (4.063 x 4.00 bore/stroke) and two were 440.60 ci (4.062 x 4.25 bore/stroke), based upon Chief Mechanic Fritz Voigt's recollection that two of the engines had a 4.00-inch stroker crank and two had a 4.25-inch stroker crank. View Related Article
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