Yes, the detective work is a fun part about all this.
I talked to Scott last night. We had a great time talking. Unfortunatly, this cold case isn't going in the direction I wish it were...
Scott bought the car from Ken on 4/17/87. He sold it to George on 11/19/87.
He told me that he didn't have it very long because there was so much missing on the car.
When he bought it, it had VW Rabbit seats in it and the shaker hood was replaced by a rallye hood.The car was originally a B-3 Ice Blue. But it was painted over with a GM midnight blue over it.The car had Centerline wheels on it. The fender tags were missing and so was the build sheet under the seat. The dash has the R code on it and is original. The steering column was the wrong one. It had an electric fuel pump near the trunk. He recalls the car vividly.That it was a very rust free car that had never been hit. He said it had a Dana 60 in it and was sure it had 4:10 gears in it.
He went with his Dad one night and drove it home. It was a powerful car that could do 12's in the quarter. As he told me details of the event, I could almost feel like I was there with him the night he brought it home. Later on, he pulled the engine out. He told me that the K member was butchered up from converting it to a 440 set up. He told me there was a rumor that it was a 4 speed car. But that he swears when he had it, that there was a hole for the linkage for an automatic. The door panels on it had the wood grain trim on them. For 70 models, that would indicate that it should of originally had leather seats in it.(correct me if I'm wrong) He also recalls the overhead console on it.
But this is what doesn't make sense. When he sold it to George, he did not give him Hemi exhaust manifolds during the sale of the car. It was sold without an engine. which was of course the 440 that Ken had. Scott kept the 440 and sold that off separately. And then there's the balancer question. Mine is black. George says he has an orange one that he got with the car.
I believe that there is the possibility that George might have some of the facts mixed up. If it does turn out that this is an automatic car, then all bets are off on us getting my engine and his car back together. George told me yesterday that he had an offer of 4,000 dollars for the manifolds. HA! I'll buy reproduction one's and save 3,200. Before I go to the trouble of recovering my Vin no.s, I have to go see this car...period. Even then, it really will never fetch the high dollar value of the Hemi cars we all watched on Barrett Jackson last month. Because the documentation and so many parts are missing on the car. the main thing that needs to be found out now are: Where is Ken Moss? Who pulled the engine? Why? Is the car really an automatic afterall? Are there any pics of the car from before? Even if it turns out that the engine and car never were a match, I still plan on trying to solve this story of this Hemi Cuda and it's past. Please be patient about me getting pictures of this car. Scott warned me that George can be wary of new people that he first meets. That if I come off acting like someone who wants to see his car then just disapear afterwards that I'll never get to see it. According to Scott, George is a really nice guy once you get to know him. So far, that is the impression I have had talking to him over the phone. So once George trusts me, I should have permission to take pictures of the car.
To be continued....
