RT EPISODE 7: No Other Car Like This One

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind.—All drag racing fans remember the legends of the sport. Their achievements. Their sponsors. The cars they drove. The thing is that seldom have multiple legends been behind the wheel of the same car. Almost never have dozens of legends jumped into the driver’s seat of the same car.

Almost

Angelo Taylor purchased a rare 1984 Plymouth Horizon that was one of just 84 made with the same drivetrain as the 1984 Shelby Charger. There were plans to make more than 84 until it was discovered that the car could travel at over 120-mph, but the tires were only rated for 112-mph. Additionally, just one of the 84 was made without a radio in the dash. That one belongs to Taylor.

“I had received a brochure with a silver Horizon on it and promptly threw it in the trash.  A few days later I am taking the trash out and I noticed that on the left side of the brochure it mentioned that it was available with the Shelby HO motor,” Taylor said of how he came to own the rare car. “I called Kokomo Chrysler Plymouth, a sponsor of mine back then. They thought it was a mistake. A few days later, I looked through the order book and it was listed as an option for less than $400!”

Beginning in 1985, Taylor won the track championship at Bunker Hill for five-consecutive years and seven times in eight years including a win at Division 3 ET Finals in 1987 for street. Eventually, Taylor began splitting time between Bunker Hill and Lucas Oil Raceway culminating in a street class track championship at both facilities in 1992.

Taylor has been no stranger to Lucas Oil Raceway since his track championship in 1992. Between NHRA, IHRA, and NMCA, he owns 51 championship crowns. As he puts it, “I don’t count wins, just championships.”

While an incredibly accomplished driver in his own right, Taylor likely does not meet the standard for a drag racing legend. So, who else has sat in Angelo Taylor’s 1984 Plymouth Horizon? Here is just a list of the racers Lucas Oil Raceway was given photo evidence of. There are more. Many more.

Ed “Ace” McCulloch	Cruz Pedregon	Tony “The Sarge” Schumacher
Andrew Hines	Don Schumacher	Scott Palmer
Antron Brown	Matt Hagan	Shawn Langdon
“Fast” Jack Beckman	Robert Hight	Tommy Johnson Jr.
Bo Butner III	John Force	Tony Pedregon
Ron Capps	Leah Pruett	Roland Leong
Courtney Force	Mike Salinas	Chris Karamesines

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Taylor is no stranger to NHRA member tracks, NHRA events, and community events where NHRA racers may be present. His race car is street legal. He can take it anywhere, and he does. When it leaves its destinations, it often does so with a trophy in the back seat or another legend added to the list.

It has more than 321,000 miles on the odometer and dozens of championships to its credit. It’s more than possible, it is likely that more NHRA legends have found themselves behind the wheel of this car than any other racing vehicle.

This 1984 Plymouth Horizon owned by Angelo Taylor is rare because there were only 84 ever built, but there may never be another race car with quite the same story.