Let's face it; any one of us worth a grain of salt would jump at the chance to own a Hemi car. Make it a convertible B-Body, and it's a no-brainer. Even if the correct engine and transmission are missing, as long as a Hemi is between the fenderwells, all is good. right? Ivan Daigle, a construction worker living in the little town of Black Lake, Ontario, acquired just such a ride. This '68 GTX was purchased from a guy in Ottawa. The black-as-coal drop-top needed a complete restoration. However, it did have a Hemi engine and a four-speed transmission, but it wasn't the right "numbers matching" one for the car. Even though the GTX came with the wrong iron lung and a four-speed, it was definitely worthy of a redo. In 1968, $3,590 netted you a GTX convertible, standard with the 440ci tire-fryer. If you paid an additional $604.75, the St. Louis assembly plant (where all the convertibles were built) would install a 426 Hemi that not only fried the tires, but also turned them into asphalt crayons. In 1968, the future collectibility of these cars was not foreseen; only 36 Hemi convertibles were built-making this one rare ride. Yep, Ivan's car is one of those 36 Hemi-powered convertibles, but when he bought it, the correct Hemi engine and transmission were gone.
Sometimes the proverbial pot of gold at the end of the rainbow does exist. Ivan's rainbow ended three years after he purchased the car, when he found the original engine for his X and bought it. he then had Rene Delilse rebuild it to original specs. When the restoration of the car was almost complete, Ivan received a call from a friend who had found a four-speed transmission during a garage cleaning session. The trans was being used as a dummy; the internals had been removed, but they were there in a bucket. Would you believe it was the correct tranny for his car! (With this kind of luck, Ivan should've headed for Vegas.) Ivan pulled the incorrect Hemi and tranny out and replaced them with his newfound pieces. Now Ivan has a complete Hemi drivetrain sitting in his garage. Ya never know when you may need another Hemi engine and tranny. Ivan's well-optioned ride rolled off the assembly line complete with power steering, tinted glass, right-and-left mirrors, and front-and-rear bumper guards. Out back the original 3.23 Sure Grip-equipped 831/44 rear spins the Magnum 500 wheels wrapped in reproduction Redline tires.
Living in Canada limits the time Ivan can enjoy driving his gem, but you better believe during the shiny times he drives as much as possible to get a little Northern exposure.