Mopar Muscle – October 2019

FAMILY HEIRLOOM

The object of his desire rolled off the

assembly line in 1969 wearing B7 Jamaica

Blue paint, a white and blue interior, a

440 backed by an A-833 four-speed, and

a 4.10:1 Dana rear. That was also how it

was configured when Jimmy purchased it in

1971. He had a pretty clear idea of what the

car could do, and from day 1 in his hands,

he wasn’t shy about hammering on it. Part of

that came in the form of some street racing,

which he regularly indulged in. The GTX was

also the car that he used while he was dat-

ing Bernice, so beyond its hot rod appeal, it

held a deep sentimental value to him—one

he wasn’t willing to part with. By the late-

1980s, he was forced to park it because he

could no longer drive it due to a combina-

tion of maintenance and health issues. At one

point prior to that, in an attempt to keep the

car on the road, he swapped the four-speed

out and installed a 727 Torqueflite, but even

that didn’t prevent the inevitable outcome of

his deteriorating physical limitations. The GTX

was tucked out of the way and a cover was

thrown over it. It wasn’t completely aban-

doned because he would start it up every few

months, change the oil when needed, and

kept it registered. He really felt there would

be a time when he could fix it or have one of

his sons help him to get it back on the road.

That didn’t happen, and it eventually ended

up being used as a makeshift shed that Ber-

nice kept all her gardening supplies and tools

in. Armando recalls, “I made a deal with

Aunt Bernice because she was using the GTX

as a shed. She told me she needed a shed,

so I could have that car.” After many failed

attempts, he thought that was his best chance

to snap it up, so he drove down to Virginia

with his tools and was ready to build her a

shed until Jimmy asked, “What are you doing

with all that stuff?” Armando pointed out that

Bernice had told him he could have the car

if he built her a shed. Jimmy’s angry reply

as he stormed into the house was, “[She]

doesn’t know what she is talking about.” That

day, Armando did not leave with the car. At

one point, it seemed like he had finally caved

in and was willing to sell it, so he called

Armando and said he was ready to let it go.

Transportation arrangements were made, and

the day prior to pick up, the transportation

company called to let him know what time

they were arriving; the reply from the other

end: “I can’t. I can’t let it go.” This back and

forth between the two lasted for many years,

but as his health deteriorated, he apprehen-

sively accepted the reality that he could no

longer hold on to a hope that wasn’t going to

materialize. With that decision made, Jimmy

made the trip to Pennsylvania to hand the

keys and title over. Armando recalls, “When

Uncle Blesdoe was signing the title over, he

went on about don’t do this to the car, don’t

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