The world-famous Specialty Equipment and Manufacturer’s Association show, also known as SEMA, is in full swing and Toyota revealed one of its latest concepts, the Suprabird, to pay tribute to NASCAR legend, Richard Petty. Created in partnership with Rutledge Wood, the Suprabird, is an homage to Petty’s original 1970 Plymouth Superbird game-changing racecar.
It was a car so influential and so fast in the American racing league that it forced regulators to change some of the rules back in the day, resulting in the eventual ban on the Plymouth Superbird’s qualification for the succeeding seasons. And to this day, it remains as one of the league’s most historic icons.
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Celebrating The Past, Present, And Future Of NASCAR
So why did Toyota decide to pay tribute to a legendary American icon? Well, Rutledge Wood, who is a well-known and self-professed NASCAR fan and a long-time childhood friend of Richard Petty’s son, Kyle, joined came together one day and decided to create something cool for SEMA and to celebrate the long and storied successes of “The King,” who’s known for racking up a whopping 200 career wins over his 35-year NASCAR career. Additionally, because Toyota also has history of participating in the racing league, it only made sense to make those two ends meet for the occasion.
“Twenty years ago, there were skeptics who questioned whether a car like this, or even the entire GR lineup, would ever come into being,” Mike Tripp said in a statement, Toyota Division Marketing’s North American group vice president. “Today, Toyota not only plays a significant role in NASCAR, but is also honored to be associated with the most legendary name in the sport. The Suprabird represents the incredible journey of both Richard Petty and Toyota.”
As such, the Suprabird starts life as a GR Supra 3.0 Premium, from Wood’s personal collection. It was then treated to a full livery consisting of a complete repaint in “Petty blue” for the exterior, versus a vinyl wrap, which is the same color found on the original 1970 Superbird race car. Special artists then painted the Superbird’s original “#43” series lettering on the Supra’s doors, by hand, while other mods include some other performance upgrades, such as a short-ram cold-air intake, a fully customized cat-back exhaust system, bespoke coilover suspension. Completing the look is a set of equally custom 19-inch three-piece wheels.
“I wanted to welcome Petty to the Toyota Gazoo Racing Family, celebrate his affiliation with Legacy Motor Club, and pay homage to the 75th Anniversary of the Petty Family in Racing,” Rutledge Wood said in his own statement. “The vision was to recreate the aesthetic of the iconic Superbird in the form of a modern-day GR Supra, and thus the Suprabird was born!”
