Photo: Tod Deppe
Known as The King by fans and on-track rivals alike, Richard Lee Petty competed in NASCAR from 1958 to 1992. Now aged 82, he has 200 wins under his belt and no fewer than seven cup championship titles.
Those who don’t know too much about Stock Car Auto Racing may not be familiar to Richard’s exploits in the sport, yet they’ll surely associate the blue Superbird with him. Currently on display in North Carolina, car number #43 took Petty to fourth place in the Grand National standings.
Probably the most famous of aero warriors, Chrysler executives convinced Richard to drop Ford in favor of the big bird although the bright-red Dodge Charger Daytona of Bobby Isaac was a little bit faster. Driven in 2015 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed for the first time since 1970, the Superbird continues to inspire both older and younger NASCAR enthusiasts.
Graphic designer Tod Deppe is one of them, and his pixel work centers around a widebody kit for the slippery muscle car. 426 cubic inches on the hood is a reference to the HEMI blunderbuss, the more potent option over the 440 Super Commando engines from the RB series.
Rated at 425 horsepower (431 PS) when new, the 7.0-liter HEMI is capable of propelling the Superbird to 60 miles per hour (97 kph) in 5.5 seconds. As for top speed, well, the buffed rendering with wider tires and a larger frontal area may not be on par with Richard Petty’s race-winning aero warrior.
Equipped with Goodyear Eagle slicks and a plethora of sponsor decals on the front fenders, the most striking detail about the rendering the nosecone. Group 5 appears to have influenced its design, a racing class that gave us the likes of the Porsche 935, BMW 320, and Toyota Celica LB Turbo.
A total of 1,935 examples of the Superbird were made for the 1970 model year, most of them with the RB 440 four-barrel carb and a handful with the Six Pack option. The 426 HEMI is the rarest of the lot, numbering 135 units.
Probably the most famous of aero warriors, Chrysler executives convinced Richard to drop Ford in favor of the big bird although the bright-red Dodge Charger Daytona of Bobby Isaac was a little bit faster. Driven in 2015 at the Goodwood Festival of Speed for the first time since 1970, the Superbird continues to inspire both older and younger NASCAR enthusiasts.
Graphic designer Tod Deppe is one of them, and his pixel work centers around a widebody kit for the slippery muscle car. 426 cubic inches on the hood is a reference to the HEMI blunderbuss, the more potent option over the 440 Super Commando engines from the RB series.
Rated at 425 horsepower (431 PS) when new, the 7.0-liter HEMI is capable of propelling the Superbird to 60 miles per hour (97 kph) in 5.5 seconds. As for top speed, well, the buffed rendering with wider tires and a larger frontal area may not be on par with Richard Petty’s race-winning aero warrior.
Equipped with Goodyear Eagle slicks and a plethora of sponsor decals on the front fenders, the most striking detail about the rendering the nosecone. Group 5 appears to have influenced its design, a racing class that gave us the likes of the Porsche 935, BMW 320, and Toyota Celica LB Turbo.
A total of 1,935 examples of the Superbird were made for the 1970 model year, most of them with the RB 440 four-barrel carb and a handful with the Six Pack option. The 426 HEMI is the rarest of the lot, numbering 135 units.
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