.. 1954 Cadillac La Carrera Panamericana Race Car Rides Again
52 years ago, Keith
Andrews and Blu Plemons competed in the 1954 Carrera Panamericana
- the Mexican Road Race. Their privately funded 1954 Cadillac Series
62 coupe challenged the factory-backed teams, beating all of them
on the final two stages. Mr. Plemons has vivid memories of that
race, recalling with delight the adventure by "5 ordinary guys from
Colorado".
With a
car 'loaned' by a local Colorado Springs independent car
dealer (Barry Motor Sales), Andrews and Plemons were joined
by three friends to take on a factory team that arrived
with 28 mechanics, a doctor, a cook, a p.r. man, four cars
and drivers, not to mention two photographers. In spite
of the daunting odds, Andrews and Plemons almost won it
all.
This year
a "new" 1954 Cadillac "Carrera Panamericana" has taken shape
at GM's Performance Division in Warren, Michigan. The re-creation
was a "frame-on" restoration beginning with a vintage car
discovered in GM's vehicle inventory that matched the original
racer's specs ...even in color.
.
.
"We made updates
that would enhance the vehicle and occupant safety but maintain
the original design intent," said Al Oppenheiser, GM Performance
Division director of concept vehicle engineering. "We kept the project
in-house utilizing the Performance Division Garage, the pre-production
trim shop and the show car paint team. For example, the instrument
panel is as we found it but the seats and soft trim had to be reupholstered."
The Andrews/Plemons Cadillac
completed the 1907-mile race over treacherous highways and dusty cart paths
in less than 21 hours. In winning the two final stages, their Cadillac averaged
over 115 mph for the final 410 miles. "Their performance in 1954 is consistent
with Cadillac's DNA" said Kevin Smith, Manager Cadillac Communications.
"Cadillac's introduced America's first V8 in 1914, the first V16 in 1929
and the first high-compression OHV V8 in 1948. Today, the V-Series CTS,
STS and XLR express Cadillac's performance heritage with power and style".
The partnership of GM's
Performance Division and Cadillac delivers exciting benefits to people who
have a passion for driving great cars. The V-Series Cadillacs, developed
by the Performance Division, are some of the most powerful ever, offering
levels of style, performance and exclusivity clearly projecting the 'Breakthrough'
attitude that defines the brand.
Current plans have the
1954 Carrera Cadillac entered in this fall's restaging of the Carrera Panamericana.
At the starting line in Oaxaca, Blu Plemons will be reunited with this replica
of the car that he and Keith Andrews entered 52 years ago. Andrews, unfortunately,
was fatally injured in a crash at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway during
practice for the 1957 Indy 500.
The Carrera Cadillac re-creation
is just one of the more than 700 vehicles found in the GM Heritage Collection
of historically significant vehicles that date back to the early 1900s.
