During the 1960s, leading NASCAR teams had little trouble finding factory sponsors with plenty of cash and engineering support. Factory-based crews enjoyed huge advantages in horsepower, handling, and aerodynamics. Ford, MOPAR, and Chevy brands typically dominated, so it was less common when other marques placed significantly well during races. It was an especially tough time for independent racers overall.
Roy Tyner stood out as one of the independents to contend with. He was a Native American, which helped earn him nicknames like “The Flying Indian” and “The Wild Indian.” He was a self-educated race driver known around the track for his perpetual half-grin, although peers often maintained their distance due to his generous temper, which he was known to flash as well. Tyner frequently drove Fords and Dodges but was most renowned for his ostentatious red, white, and blue 1969 Pontiac Grand Prix stock car. Friends regularly quipped, “Roy, what are you doing with a car that looks like that?”
The one-time red, white, and blue Pepsi NASCAR Grand National Pontiac of Roy Tyner somehow became gold and it eventually sat forgotten in a Delaware junkyard.
Restored to its historic livery, Tyner’s behemoth Grand Prix is in sharp contrast to the much smaller, “jelly bean”–appearing Cup cars for today. The car was restored and is owned today by Pontiac historian Dr. Keith Vrabec of Pennsylvania.
The Pepsi-sponsored car ran the circuit in 1969 and 1970, including the first Talladega race. Its heartbeat came from a factory Ram Air V engine and its specifically tuned Pontiac-based chassis. Strangely, the car included a tilt steering wheel and power windows in the rear, so colleagues often dubbed it “Roy’s Limousine.” Adding to its notoriety, the Grand Prix was the cover feature in the August 1969 issue of Stock Car Racing magazine.
Eventually Tyner retired from racing, opened his own auto body business, and occasionally worked as a show car driver for Junior Johnson. His death in 1989 was somewhat suspicious, and the case remains a mystery to this day.
Tyner’s Grand Prix somehow wound up in a Delaware junkyard, and its later history is uncertain. The Pepsi team colors were replaced with a blue-over-gold palette, and the number was changed. The engine and transmission were missing. The vehicle had obviously seen its share of abuse and neglect—the chassis and body panels were in terrible shape.
Eventually, the forgotten stock car was rediscovered by Dr. Keith Vrabec, of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. Dr. Vrabec is an avid admirer of 1969–1972 Pontiac Grand Prix models and a notable collector. In late 1991, an ad in Hemmings Motor News caught his attention. With some effort and negotiation, a deal was made, and Vrabec retrieved the car. Its restoration, though, would have to wait a while.
Finally, in 2009, Vrabec contracted the restoration to Vintage Mechanical Works in Sterling, Illinois. A Ram Air IV 400 cubic-inch motor was built to replace the missing engine. A Dearborn three-speed transmission coupled power to a Ford 9-inch rear end, featuring 3.50:1 gears. The race-specific chassis, steering, and suspension were fully refurbished. The restored stock car received high praise when it debuted at Darlington Raceway in September, 2010. Three of Tyner’s old team members were even there and shed tears of joy as they were reunited with the car.
Surely, somewhere, Tyner’s half-grin has now grown into a permanent smile.