Gas Monkey Garage
Richard Rawlings
1975 Chevy Impala LS Swap Gumball& Bullrun Car
NO RESERVE
Yes it isthe “real deal”. It is not a fake. If you want to draw a crowd at any car show,this will. Blast the train horn a time ortwo and all eyes will be on you and flocking to look this over. This particular car has likely been on theshow more times than likely any other automobile. This was built by Richard and Aaron(Kaufmann) long before there was any show.This was personally owned by Richard (title still issued in his name)and ran in the Gumball and Bullrun rallys.So, from a notoriety standpoint it checks off all the boxes. That could be enough for some so you can stopreading the rest of the listing and just bid away.
For thosewho want to know more about the car, please read along. First off, I love this car. Why?Well, when I was 16, these are the boats we had to drive around as ourparents wouldn’t let us buy anything fun, so we had to play with these boats. Mine was green as well, though curb feelerscompleted the look to my car…alright enough of memory lane, back to this one…Thisis a 1975 rust free Chevy Impala. Theseare difficult to find as most rusted or were used for demolition derby. From just the pure body and paint and finish,this is in excellent shape just as it is, but there are a number of addedfeatures that put his over the top.
The engineis a 6.0L LS swap from a Cadillac Escalade.This motor runs like a top, does not leak, fires right up and does havecold a/c and power steering. All youwould expect from a first class LS swap.Mechanically, I say it needs nothing.It has a strong rumble coming through the Magnaflow exhaust to duals inthe rear. Four wheel disc brakes havebeen added to add lots of “Whoa” to the “Go”.Sway bars the size of a wrestler forearm front and rear (chromed no lesstoo) makes this boat handle surprisingly well.A-Arms are also chromed for some show under the car, but the rest is allbusiness. Shocks appear to KYB and it issitting on stiff and tall spring set.
The exteriorof the car has the current sticker set Richard last put on it. You can see some fading where other stickersfor other events, etc were on it (no the Driver: Senor Fucstick did not burn in). It also has a Yakima rack and six Hella drivinglights, three forward, three back. Bothsets are wired separately so you can have the fronts or the rears on orboth. Toyo tires are in decent shape,though the rears are a bit more worn than the fronts…wonder why? One added feature that is easily missed withthe rack on it is the electric glass moonroof.
This car hasa ton of neat little add-ons that appeal to me.There is a CB with the external speaker (to yell at whomever youchoose), nice stereo with Alpine amp and subs, custom center console to housethe CB and stereo (keeping the stock one there in its original place). Autometer gauges are mounted in the dash onthe passenger side and tilted so the driver can see. Front bucket racing seats are upholstered ingreen to match the rear bench seat and have embroidery of the old Gas Monkeylogo. Last, but not least, is the triplehorn train whistle powered by VIAir pump in the trunk. This is one of the only things that does notwork all the time, but when it does it is LOUD.
Overall,this is just a kick ass fun car. It’s a kickass car even if it was not on or owned by a tv star. Frankly I think this is one of my favoritebuilds as it was long before the show even existed so it was build purely for apurpose. Since Richard had it for a longtime, any post build bugs have been long worked out. I planned to keep this one, but it is not gettingthe use this year and just sitting in the back of my warehouse. Time to let someone else enjoy it.
I should not have to say this, but please have your finances in place prior to bidding. Terms: Sincethis a modified car (plus 45 years old), it is being sold as-is, where-is allfaults known or unknown. Dealer fee of$149 applies to all sales. Indiana salestax will be required to be collected to residents of Indiana and neighboringstates (IL, OH, MI, KY, etc)Deposit of $149 is due within 24hrs. Its non-refundable for any reason. Your wife vetos the car purchase, lost deposit. I do this to pay for my relist fees as if youdon’t buy it, I have to pay again to list it.Full balance is due within 7 days.Cash, cashiers check, or bank wire transfer are the only payments accepted. Title is in hand.