1972 Plymouth Road Runner GTX - Optioned-Out Oddity

The history of this rare bird was uncovered through shear determination, hard work, and a lot of luck. David stumbled across a previous owner by chance while he was working for Caterpillar. That lead directed him to a Mopar club in Texas, which led him to his strongest lead-a State Farm agent who had owned the car previously. Bryan Tilbrook in Abilene, Texas, told David that he once owned a bright orange Plymouth with a sunroof and a four-speed. How many bright orange Plymouths with sunroofs could be in a town of 100,000 people?

Bryan had purchased the car from his college roommate, Jerry Tucker, in 1980. Jerry had purchased the car from a Michigan man. Bryan told David the car had been designated as a Chrysler PR (public relations) car and had supposedly been driven by a Canadian hockey player. This is why the car was so highly optioned. Bryan said when he got the car there was a hockey puck from the player in the glovebox. The puck had stuck with the car to remind all of its origin. David said, "OK, I'll bite, who was the hockey player?" Bryan couldn't remember, but thought it might be Bobby Hull. Bryan sent David onto the man he sold the car to, Mike Farmer, who teased David with some repair receipts, an owner's manual, and even the ASC sunroof operating instructions. David had only one question, "You wouldn't happen to have the buildsheet would you?" Mike said, yes, he did.

Well, now that David owned the car, what was to become of it? the body was given to Huffman Auto body in Hadley, Pennsylvania, where the necessary body repairs were made, and a new shell of Tor-Red paint applied. Inside, the seat frames were covered with new material from legendary Auto Interiors. The interior accoutrements include: power windows, brakes, and steering, a console-shifted four-speed, tinted glass, Tuff wheel, AM/FM stereo complete with microphone, and the aforementioned sunroof.

Under the hood of David's Road Runner X, is the completely rebuilt 440, filled with parts from Crane, Keith Black, Hughes, and Ma Mopar herself. The 346 casting heads feature some porting and over-size valves to give the RB a little more airflow. Fleming Engine Service got the nod to make sure the 440 lived up to its history, and according to Dave, the guys did it proud. Behind the RB is a manual gearbox that has been treated to a rebuild courtesy of Brewer's Performance in Troy, Ohio. Rounding it out is the original Dana 60 sporting 3.54 gears and a Sure Grip.

Intrigued by this story, we at Mopar Muscle hope our readership can help identify the hockey player who drove this ultra-rare '72. it's more the story than the numbers that makes a car a legend-and this could be one legendary '72 GTX.