Behind the biggest names in the automotive performance industry, are some of the most dedicated and knowledgeable people you can imagine. Holley has their own gear heads on their staff, including one Ricky Richter.
Holding title to a ’68 GTX with a 440 under the hood, Ricky is a long-time owner of the car who has owned it for a number of decades. It was originally purchased as a daily driver to replace the ’68 Road Runner that he had briefly owned, purchased from his brother in his younger years.
It served as a daily for about a year, even bringing his son and daughter home form the hospital in it, until it was shelved for some time and underwent a restification — essentially restoring the car on the surface, but making subtle modifications that would substantially the car’s performance.
First, that 440 was actually bumped up in size to a full 500-cubic inches, a deep Weiand oil pan was attached at the bottom, a Frostbite 4-core radiator went in place up front, and a Holley carburetor was bolted up top, replacing the original 585cfm Carter.
The transmission was paid with the original 727 TorqueFlite automatic, but it was fortified with the help of TCI internals. Ricky admits that he could have done more with he car in order to make it a little more audible and to bump up the power levels further, but he wanted to retain a factory appearance as much as possible. It might not be the textbook definition of “sleeper,” but we love the subdued aesthetic of the car.
These days, the GTX has been used to bring home his grandkids, and has been used in two music videos. The first, for Diamond Rio’s “Walking Away,” and Hank Williams Jr.’s “That Ain’t Good.” In fact, Hank liked the car so much, that he actually tried to buy the car off off Ricky, but to no avail.
In the meantime, Ricky is committed to his GTX, just as much as he is committed to working for Holley in Bowling Green, KY. He’s been with the company for almost 25 years, and we don’t think he’ll be going anywhere anytime soon.
Rick Seitz is the owner and founder of AutoCentric Media, the parent company to Timeless Muscle Magazine, and has a true love and passion for all vehicles. When he isn’t tuning, testing, or competing with the magazine’s current crop of project vehicles, he’s busy tinkering and planning the next round modifications for his own cars.
