saw this today

http://www.pro-touring.com/threads/11848...256#post1165256

what's the next car going to be??!!

I saw that on Facebook. I'm pretty bummed about it. I'll be one of the only ones next year waving the Mopar banner in SoCal once my Dart is done. I'm trying to convince my dad to pick it up as it would be perfect for him as a weekend car or something to get him into autocross, but he has a lot of dental work to get done and probably won't afford it for another 2-3 months. Unless Tom wants to hold it for that long?

Either way, I wish the best of luck to Tom and him selling the iconic purple Valiant. Tom mentioned yesterday what his next car was going to be and it should be pretty cool. I remember him talking about it this past summer or the summer before.

Selling the car because a sponsor wants him to drive a brand X car?
That sucks ass. Sounds like a politician that only says what his donors want him to say. Terrible.
A man should be able to do what he wants without being controlled by outside influences.

Hey Samy...You are not alone. There are guys out there that may not be Moparts or FABO members. AutoXcuda is still active, right?

looks like i'll probably be the lone mopar at nationals again next year. Wish I could buy Tom's car. It would probably be cheaper in the long run than building my valiant to its level. GLWS Tom!

If he was running nascar, all he would have to was change a few decals.

I know what the next car will be and again, I remember him talking about this project this summer or the summer before.

I'm not sure if Autoxcuda has autocrossed recently. For the SCCA, in the LA region the CAM class doesn't exist as there's almost no interest. In the San Diego region, there's a really strong presence with quite a few cars none of which are mopars besides the Valiant.



I'll try to make nationals, but I'm not sure if my driving skill are good enough. I'm just starting to get good with the Scion tC, but that's a 180 hp FWD car which will be completely different than a 500+hp RWD Dart. I'm going to try to take some driving schools before my Dart is finished to better and fine tune my skills.

But, I've ridden in Tom's car and it's good and very well put together. I'd say it's definitely a good car if you want to start off in the CAM class.

Awesome thing about cam class at nationals is the people. No big egos, no looking down on lesser cars. Just a bunch of motorheads stoked to be out beating on their cars. Everyone was cheering on their competitors and having fun. I went into nationals with no chance but had a great time and met some great people. Hoping to move up the ladder in national results for 2016 but i need to fix the driver before i worry about the car.


I'd love to get Tom's car but that would involve selling my scat pack and my valiant. Not quite ready to give them up right now. It would be cheaper to buy a known good car but i think i'd regret not getting to build it on my own.

That car will always be known as 'Tom's car'.


Yes, it would be loads of fun to own and drive it.

At all the events I went to, everyone knew THAT car. When it would drive in everyone would say, "O no, there's Tom and the Purple Valiant."

If I make it to Nationals, there would definitely be more car than driver for me, so I really need to get in as much practice the next couple of months.

Well, I have the new throwout bearing in the AMX, and the close ratio trans, so I'll have to come down and show y'all how to drive.

You'll note I said 'drive'.


NOT 'drive good'.

cool car.. going to show my buddy who works for pat dakin hes looking for a turn key car.. he;s an amx guy but likes odd ball stuff. who knows. i know to build something like this would be much more than asking price.. neat little ripper.

Ha! I like the politician idea, it has to be easier than Air Traffic Control!
Unfortunately as a humble Air Traffic Controller by day and Mopar Racer on the weekends, when the family of 4 allows, as you guys know, seasons of racing and tires gets expensive! Really what it comes down to for next year is my friend/painter/bodyman/shop owner George Reiss of Reiss Restoration wants to use me as a driver next year to try and promote his business, which is unfortunately 90% Chevy owners. Now nobody has ever offered to pay for ANY of my racing endevours before, so it's hard to turn down. The Valiant is a great fun car, and who knows if it doesn't sell I may be right back in it in 2017. I would love to see a Mopar guy from here buy it and use it to win in CAM next year however, so $2k off for any of you guys, and if you add up all the parts and paint costs, you know $16k is a steal!

If it's still around in about 2-3 months, I'll attempt to convince my dad to pick it up.

Sounds good Samy! Again I would love a Mopar guy to pick it up, and give the CAM class Hell with it!

Bingo! When I had the chance to get back in to rounder-rounders with an acquaintance who wanted me to wheel his Nova, it didn't take long for me to agree. After that ended and I had another opportunity to drive on someone else's dime in Fords (Pintos no less) I jumped on that one too. When they decided to evolve their program into Ford chassis and powered modifieds, I followed them there too. Learn a lot about the differences between the big three in those years.

Would I have preferred to have driven a Mopar, absolutely. But in my corner of the world, the sole Mopar owner out there willing to do that was not going to bump their son-in-law out of a ride just because I wanted it, despite my Mopar background that most everyone around there knew about. Could I have been faster than him, maybe, but we'll never know.

Now I have my Mopar that I wrench on when time and funds allow. Maybe some day it will be done enough to show up in some CAM races. If the chance comes up to drive for someone else again in something else, I sure might consider it.

Sometimes you just gotta drive what comes. After all these years of being a test and R&D driver, I've developed a lot of respect for various platforms and manufactures.

Thanks guys, I do think Mopar owners are the most loyal you'll ever meet, but to help a buddy and get some costs covered, it seems like the right thing to do, for this year anyway.

Maybe after autocross my Dart for at least a year, George could paint my Dart for me. Lol. With all the modifications done to it, I'd feel bad if I left it with it's quarter panel bubbles, dents, and paint cracks.

But just think of all the people that would be crying because they got beat by 'that old beater'.

I rejoiced when I beat them with my Rambler. I've even beat LOTS of drivers in the rookie class with the SS/T. I ended up 2nd for the season and I only ran it in autocross for the last half of the season in '98. I started racing it with 500 miles on it. lol

This thread makes me want to enter my Valiant (the Red Brick) in CAM. Are there Northern CA events? Sorry for the hijack.

Of course there is. I believe there's a member who autocrosses his '72? Dart in a Northern Region.

This is the link for the San Francisco region: http://www.sfrscca.org/

Glad to see you got a paid for ride but not so glad to see the "money" doesn't see the benefit in campaigning something other than a brand X machine. "Everyone" runs one of those so getting the attention he seeks for his business is going to be harder than if he sponsored something that stands out from the crowd..... like a freakin' purple Valiant!

Whoever gets this is going to have a proven well set up car. It's been an inspiration to me, as have several other rides mentioned here.

Yeah, but its kinda like college scholarships. You can chose to pay your own way at your preferred institute of higher learning where you may not be good enough to play on the JV team. Or you can score a full ride scholarship at the college third on your list and play on the varsity team.

Well, the third on your list may not benefit you as much in the long term than the first one, all in what's important overall.

Sorry to see the Valiant go, but hope it goes to a deserving driver who can carry on the tradition.

Thanks guys, It's a great little race car, I hope someone can enjoy racing it this year.

Exactly, and no one knows that better for himself than Tom.

Yep, while I'm sad to see the valiant move on, I am equally excited to see Tom move up.

Still have one more race this year, cleaned up the night before...

hope it's still around when my dad's estate settles. Might just be able to make it happen...

Chris you would love it, particularly the 800 lb weight drop!

Wait, I'm confused. He wants to use you as a driver, but you have to sell your car and build one that meets his criteria? Why can't he build his own car and you drive that?

Sorry, but a paid ride doesn't include me selling my car and spending my money to build a car that someone else likes. Maybe if I wanted to attract sponsors, it would make sense to build a car to their tastes, but if he already wants to use you as a driver then tell him to give you a car.

Heck, being that he owns a restoration shop, sounds like the best way to promote his business is for him to build it anyway. One more reason it makes no sense to me.

But a car is just a car in the end, and I'm way too far on the outside to know all of your reasons, so do what makes you happy.

Just feels a little one sides on the investment scale to me. Hope it doesn't turn into one of those deals where you end up with a car you don't like, and spend money you never intended to spend.

Either way, good luck. Enjoyed following your success, helped keep me motivated and excited about my car. Thanks for all the hard work.

I'm thinking it's because the Sponsor would like to use a car they built from top to bottom. Generally speaking, sponsorship gets you stuff cheap or at cost, not free. While we don't know the economics of the deal, none of us really know how good the deal may or may not be.
What we do know is that a chassis I built is up for sale for less than you could build or buy it for, so someone needs to buy this thing and get it going.
If I didn't already have a 68 A body in the stable, I'd buy this thing back from Tom just so I could beat up their next car with it
Its a well sorted, well built car with a fresh paint job and Tom has driven it brilliantly all year to a much deserved Championship. I have no doubt this car has many more Championships in its future, should the next owner desire.

Tom! Sad to hear of your Valiant for sale, but great buy for someone! Good luck in your 2016 venture, and thanks again for "taking us along" on your Valiant efforts. (pun intended) It was nice meeting you and your dad this year, and congratulations on a terrific performance this year. I have a few mods planned for mine for next year, to see if I can change the second to a first.
Thanks again and good luck! Rick

Same here Tom, Rick and I enjoyed watching your car at Crows landing. I made a mistake and bought an 04 ZO6 from my brother in law. I would rather have the Purple people eater. Good luck with sale.

Thanks Dan, Rick, and Joe. Great hanging out with you guys this year as well. The deal on the new car is he gives me the shell and the title, I buy the new parts, he assembles/paints. I'm far from a professional driver so people don't just hand me cars (Dan will attest to that!). The good thing about the new car is it should be a beast, and I'll own it in the end, so hopefully it will work out for both of us. I do have a hope that the Valiant won't sell, and I'll sell my Dads old Vette instead to fund this new project, which would have the added benefit of me continuing to race the Valiant as the new car gets built, and maybe even get my son involved Autocrossing it next year! Anyone know someone looking for a restored 73 Vette?

Ain't no way in hell I'd go for that deal.


Keep the Valiant.

Sell the Vette Tom! You know it's just too nice and original to do anything with. Lol. That would definitely be cool. Father/son autocrossing teams.