Odd looking Petty Charger at Daytona 500 photo!!

[odcics2]

Here's a pic of a Charger without much flair in front of the rear wheel or added metal above the rear tire, to compare to the Petty car I posted.

HUGE difference!

 

[DeltaV]

Looks stock to me.

 

[autoxcuda]

The Petty cars you see now were reskinned for show. No reason to put that effort out for a show car.

 

[odcics2]

And, exactly which car of Pettys fleet is it?? He had quite a few Chargers in the 1973 to 1977 timeframe.

 

[autoxcuda]

And, exactly which car of Pettys fleet is it?? He had quite a few Chargers in the 1973 to 1977 timeframe.

Weren't most these turned into Magnums bodies?

And Petty also sold old cars. Did they reskin them before being sold so they didn't reveal in aero or other secrets?

 

[YY1]

Here, Petty had a narrowed bumper.
Compare the fenders between the two cars. View attachment 1902811

That's a 71/72 body vs a 73/74 body.

 

[YY1]

Paint job distorts size and angles of quarter panel, as does varying size and placement of giant STP decal.

OP has larger tires tucked up into the body. Tire design varies according to track, right?

Panel covering tail light area varies and covers part of bumper, distorting perceived size of tail light area.

Bumper is tucked like a 71/72 but also has side gaps filled over with aluminum, which distorts the size and angles.

That's all I see.

 

[#41]

At this point they were reworking every part of the car body to find aero improvements. Narrowing the car at the front, widening it at the tires, etc. The fender lip in the rear has been lowered to swallow up more of the tire. I'm sure the list is longer than any of us can imagine.

 

[YY1]

The tires in the OP are clearly wider than in any other pic.

My bet is they are also taller, and tucked.

Much more believable than adding metal to the quarter to cover them.

 

[#41]

Much more believable than adding metal to the quarter to cover them.

Bring up a photo of a stock 73-74 Charger and compare side by side. It's quite obvious that the ratio of the wheel arch height vs. the height of the quarter to the bottom of the rear roof pillar are significantly different.

 

[odcics2]

That's a 71/72 body vs a 73/74 body.

Easily seen is the gentle curve on the 43 compared to the straight fender on 71.
We know that the fenders are the same except for side marker and wheel cutout.

 

[odcics2]

Weren't most these turned into Magnums bodies?

And Petty also sold old cars. Did they reskin them before being sold so they didn't reveal in aero or other secrets?

No idea how many were sold or converted.
Remember, they built chassis and then placed the body parts on!
Raked for Daytona, flat for short tracks.

 

[odcics2]

The tires in the OP are clearly wider than in any other pic.

My bet is they are also taller, and tucked.

Much more believable than adding metal to the quarter to cover them.

Tires are the same - Both cars are at the Daytona 500.

 

[DeltaV]

Up closer on the rear quarter:

Dale Inman, Petty's Crew Chief at Richmond.

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Supposedly NAPA 500 at Charlotte in Oct. 1977

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Place & date not given:

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Petty at Martinsville?

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Petty at Martinsville:

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Richard Petty at Richmond:

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Photo/Gallery credit: Donald L. Evans

 

[DeltaV]

A couple more showing the rear quarter and wheel well at different angles:

 

[odcics2]

Compare rear wheel cutout between #5 and #43.

 

[DeltaV]

1977 Charlotte Motor Speedway

Photo credit: David Allio

 

[DeltaV]

Neil Bonnett racing in the July 1977 Nashville 420. He finished 21st with engine problems:

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Collector card: