Barrett-Jackson 2009: The Pace Cars
Click above for a high-res gallery of pace cars from Barrett-Jackson
There was a plethora of pace cars this year at Barrett-Jackson, mostly coming from General Motor's Heritage Collection. Some of them we would love to have in the garage, like the 2007 Corvette Indy pace car pictured above or a 2003 Corvette that paced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, and we'd even sport the 1996 Chevrolet Camaro Brickyard pace car. On the other side of the spectrum is a 1998 Pontiac Grand Am M&M pace car covered in confetti or a 2001 Oldsmobile Bravada pace truck. In the "so uncool that it's cool" category is the 1977 Oldsmobile Delta 88 that paced Indy and a 1990 Beretta that was the only Chevy concept car to pace the Indy 500.
Gallery: Barrett-Jackson 2009: The Pace Cars
Photos copyright ©2009 Drew Phillips / Weblogs, Inc.
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Peter 8:42PM (1/19/2009)
it never ceases to amaze me how many of these cars just sit and still look new today. then they go to auction and sell for outrageous amounts of money.. most of the time
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firstplace 8:59PM (1/19/2009)
it amazes me anyone would pay more for ugly graphics and an older vette.
Jared 9:58PM (1/19/2009)
Why are they all sold on scrap titles?
StickShift 8:44PM (1/19/2009)
Too bad most of the GM cars are sold on scrap titles. Is there any way title and drive them with that?
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Luce 7:04PM (1/20/2009)
It makes me sad that they're selling off the Corvette pace cars. I loved seeing those at some of the car shows around here...
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Sean Morris 11:08PM (1/19/2009)
They sell them on a scrap title as the vehicles are prototypes or not emissions legal.
There are ways to turn scrap titles into things you can register. Thousands of cars are sold at insurance auctions everyday.
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Acefighter 2:47AM (1/20/2009)
"On the other side of the spectrum is a 1998 Pontiac Grand Am M&M pace car covered in confetti..."
Come on, guys, it's a Grand Prix. Don't insult it by calling it a Grand Am. It amuses me how you got it wrong there, but right in the caption. *shakes head* lol
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phoenixdude24 3:28AM (1/20/2009)
you can't deny those Monte Carlos look nice
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Menice 9:07AM (1/20/2009)
seriously..... you want TAZ on your car??? or Chevy Rock & Roll + a guitar??
i'd laugh if i saw someone driving those, sorry.
Nic 9:13AM (1/20/2009)
actually i do have taz on my car.
Not sure if that works or not but heres a direct link otherwise - http://s49.photobucket.com/albums/f252/phoenixdude24/?action=view¤t=CIMG1668.jpg
adrenalnjunky 9:51AM (1/20/2009)
Dibs on the Syclone, and/or the Typhoon. Man I remember when those 2 came out - I was driving a GMC S-series Jimmy at the time, wishing I had the Typhoon.
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Benfolio 11:03AM (1/20/2009)
Anyone else want that Olds Intrigue in the background of one of those pics?
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Pokey 4:43PM (1/20/2009)
The blue one, next to the Bravada?
Hell yeah, I'd take it! I wonder how much it went for. Looks CLEAN.
allaboutwheelss 8:41PM (1/22/2009)
When you're into pace cars, at first it can be difficult to understand their allure. It's different for each person I've met over the last 10 years. For me, I guess it's all about owning a unique piece that has ties to racing--something I've been a fan of my entire life. With the exception of the '77 Olds, all of the pace cars/trucks that sold at Barrett-Jackson last week saw actual race day duty. In addition, they have interesting mods., some quirks, and full Whelan strobe systems that become quite the conversation piece at the local Sonic drive-in. These cars aren't daily drivers, they're garaged in collections, driven if street legal (sometimes even when they aren't =) ) and taken to gatherings where other people who share a common interest get together to talk cars, the future of stock car and openwheel racing, and enjoy some cruise night comradre. If you grew up listening to the Indy 500 on a transister radio every Memorial day because the race wasn't shown live, or listened to MRN before flag to flag coverage of NASCAR was picked up by the mainstreem television networks, you probably understand what having your own piece of race history is all about. If not, these cars probably just look like some nut with decals went crazy.
Me? I enjoyed firing up the modified 2002 Olds Bravada with the nice rumble and working strobe lights that put smiles on the faces of my kids when I flipped the "On" switch. The transport driver that delivered it to me Tuesday night bent my ear for 45 minutes asking questions about the thing..."who won that 2001 race?"..."what's under the hood?"..."how'd they wire the strobe lights?"... "when did they kill Oldsmobile anyway--too bad ain't it?) It's all about cars, racing, stories and people to me. Best $14k I ever spent.
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