Don Garlits Tribute Build Sheds Light On Good Cause

Oct 19, 2020 2 min read
Don Garlits Tribute Build Sheds Light On Good Cause

This Challenger is painted up to resemble one of Big Daddy's famous drag cars. It also draws attention to the importance of teaching trade skills to kids.


"Big Daddy" Don Garlits is a certified legend of drag racing. In his illustrious career, he won an incredible 144 events. He's widely considered to be the best drag racer of all time. Even today, we'd hesitate to line up against him.

Image Via DuPont Registry

While his vintage drag cars are now priceless collectibles, you can park this tribute in your garage. We found it for sale in DuPont Registry, and while no price is listed, we can safely assume it's much cheaper than one of his '60s racers.

This paint scheme was designed by Joe Adams to evoke classic Garlits race cars of the past. Dubbed the "Innovator," this car is the prototype for a planned line of Garlits tribute models.

Image Via DuPont Registry

Besides its role as a prototype for these tribute cars, this car was also used to draw attention to the dwindling talent pool in the trades. With most kids choosing college after high school, there is a real need to get youngsters interested in learning to work with their hands.

This is accomplished by teaching students how to build model cars. That explains the AMT, MPC, and Auto World decals on the side.

Image Via DuPont Registry

Inside, you'll find a red and black interior with embroidered signatures on the headrests and "INNOVATOR" stitched on the door cards. Otherwise, the interior is mostly stock.

It's stock under the hood, too, but we're sure that most folks won't mind. The base car is a 2017 Dodge Challenger T/A, with a 6.4 liter V8 making an impressive 485 horsepower. With that kind of power on tap, you might have a shot at keeping up with Big Daddy himself.

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