Stories from Steve: 1968 Plymouth Hemi Road Runner

This was one of the last completely restored “1 of” cars we bought for our collection. The year was 1998, and I was just off the road from four straight road shows. These included Spring Carlisle, Spring Charlotte, and Spring Englishtown­—all of which pointed to a surging future for our industry.

After looking at new products and the internal health of our companies, Joan and I decided to investigate another United States National Park. This was our twelfth one­—the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, located on the border of Tennessee and North Carolina.

We made arrangements to stay in Pigeon Forge, which was perfect for spending three days in the park and also spending time with Floyd and Ava Garrett at their Muscle Car Museum in Sevierville, Tennessee.

We arrived on a Sunday, went to Cades Cove, and dropped into Garrett’s Car Museum. We bought one car years earlier from Floyd’s Museum and didn’t expect to find another. That night, while having supper with the Garretts, Floyd mentioned he had rotated many of the cars at his museum and some were for sale.

We planned on spending each morning for three days with Floyd and his cars, then touring the park, and returning to flip coins to see who would buy supper. Therefore, bright and early on Monday, we were off to the museum to see Floyd and Ava. Floyd said, “This is your first day with the new layout, so why don’t you and Joan take a long look at what we’ve done.”

We passed through the gate, and I was amazed at the new cars and new arrangement. However, even with all the new cars, one drove me crazy: a fresh restoration of a 1968 Hemi Road Runner. The car was done so well that it looked new. I couldn’t wait to run to his office and ask about the newly restored Road Runner.

“Floyd,” I gasped, “is the ’68 Road Runner one of the cars on your for-sale list?”

“Not a chance” he returned, “I just got that from Mark Headrick and Ava loves it. I’d be a lonely man if I sold that car.”

“But you said some of the new cars would be for sale,” I countered.

“Yes, but that is not one of them!” Floyd said emphatically.

My next stop, of course, was Ava, who was in the museum store. I didn’t even open my mouth, and I was hit with a barrage of, “No! No! No!” I tucked my tail between my legs and Joan and I headed for the Smoky Mountains. My next move was, of course, to call Mark Headrick. We were a good customer of his and his company, Goodmark, and I knew he would level with me about the car.

The first thing out of his mouth was, “I just finished the restoration on that car, and I sold it to Floyd last week. How do you even know about it?”

“I’m at Floyd’s now and he already put it on display. Tell me about why it looks so fantastic.” He countered with, “Well, it’s the last restoration I’m going to do, so everything you see there is NOS. It took me years to find all that stuff, and it is the best restoration I’ve ever done.”

“You mean all those plated pieces like the latches, locks, and regulators are original Plymouth factory pieces?!” I exclaimed.

“Yup, it’s the best Hemi I’ve ever seen, and Galen Gravier gave me the factory paperwork to be kept with the car.”

As you can imagine, the next day, I pestered Floyd like a rabid dog. We left for our third day at the park with a resounding, “No!” from Floyd. Wednesday was the last day of our Floyd/Smoky Mountains trip, and we were met with a barrage of “nopes.”

Finally, I said, “Floyd, I’ll pay more than you’re asking.”

“Well then, step into my office” he said in a very low tone. Once in the office, I showed him the check for his “if I ever-sell-it-price” and I held the blank check. We agreed on a higher price. I filled out the blank check and he slid it under his blotter. Suddenly Ava walked in and asked what we were doing. Sheepishly, Floyd said he had just sold her car. She called him a few names, picked up the blotter, took the check, and left the room. Boy, did I feel like it was my first rodeo!

Written 2003, Steve Ames

Additional Info:  Steve and Floyd knew each other for many years, had a great friendship, and loved to banter. Floyd passed away on October 31, 2021 (see his obituary online).

Last Edited: March 22, 2025, JA