Monday, May 25, 2009

'73 Baja 1000




Pete Springer (left) and Bill Sanders–Toyota first off-road race winners.
Taken from a historical context, off-road racing's ability to povide room for nearly anything an individual or manufacturer would want to race has proven one of its greatest assets. This philosophy has created a fertile environment for generating continued race publicity and an outlet for journalists hungry for an interactive racing experience. Over the history of the sport, much of what the public knows about the race came from reporters who took the dirt challenge. They provided readers with colorful stories of endurance, adventure and, of course, first-hand product testimonials for the automotive business.

Bill Sanders and Pete Springer didn't know they wrote the first entry into what would become one manufacturer's storied legacy in desert off-road racing when they rumbled past the La Paz finish line at 1:00 p.m. on November 9, 1973. In fact, after more than 26 straight hours of battling Baja in a bouncing Four Wheeler magazine-sponsored Toyota Land Cruiser, the journalist and the then semi-retired off-road fabricator hadn't even realized they won the race at all.

Much like Vic Hickey's Baja Boot project in 1967, the Four Wheeler Toyota Land Cruiser project went from idea to finish line in exactly 30 days. Toyota's Norm Lean and Max Jamieson approached Four Wheeler magazine and Sanders about preparing their Land Cruiser for entry in the upcoming Baja Sports Committee (BSC)-sanctioned Baja 1000. Sanders and the magazine had just completed a unique propane conversion to the vehicle, which they dubbed the "Clean Air Land Cruiser." With reasonable modifications the Toyota could indeed be prepared to run in Class 3 for production four-wheel drives. Sanders and Four Wheeler decided the offer was just too good to refuse.


In order to accommodate the beefy 2-inch diameter, 1/8-inch wall Smittybilt-fabricated roll cage and help lighten up the heavy machine, Springer opted to remove the Land Cruiser top and doors. Taylor Enterprises provided a pair of its special racing seats and also fabricated the custom vinyl top and door replacement panels.
The Toyota project had a head start thanks to the completed propane conversion by IMPCO and a Garrett turbocharger installed by hot-rod builder and Baja legend Ak Miller. With little time for experimentation, the project was turned over to off-road fabricator Pete Springer, who set about the task of making the Land Cruiser ready for the 875-mile event. Taking advantage of a long list of Four Wheeler advertisers, Springer added 10 Gabriel shocks, various suspension pieces, a racing clutch and a fiberglass hood by Man-A-Fre, a bolt-in double shock kit by Schrillo, special leaf springs by Commercial Spring Company and a combination of Armstrong Tru-Track tires and aluminum competition wheels by Superior. Determined to stick to the "Clean Air" concept and provide a highly efficient and consistent source of off-road power, the crew also installed a massive 60-gallon propane tank by Manchester Tank Company.

The bright red No. 169 Land Cruiser took the green flag at precisely 10:49 a.m. on November 7, 1973. Three Toyota Hilux mini trucks outfitted with huge 80-gallon refueling tanks supported the cruiser. But their worst fears came true as the Toyota ground to a halt only 10 miles outside of Ojos Negros. Fortunately, a loose vacuum hose was found and the team roared off toward San Felipe at full song 30 minutes later. Stopping only for propane and servicing one flat tire, the Land Cruiser crossed the finish line in a time of 26:05:15, good for an average speed of 33.6 mph.

In La Paz, the newly-formed BSC mistakenly combined the modified and production 4x4 class results. Happily for all involved, this oversight was corrected the next day. Springer and Sanders climbed the victory platform at the famed La Perla hotel to claim an unplanned, unexpected victory for both Toyota and Four Wheeler magazine.
From Biography
Photographs of the Land Cruiser graced the cover of the February 1974 issue, along with a banner that proclaimed "Baja 1000...We Won!"


While the Toyota Land Cruiser took the Baja 1000 victory painted red, it was later changed to Bob Lewis' yellow and blue race team colors. KC supplied its "Daylighter" off-road lights as a replacement to the stock sealed-beam units.
Toyota sold the vehicle to Four Wheeler for a mere $1.00 in 1976 and it changed hands several times before Land Cruiser enthusiast Marv Spector purchased it in 1995. The car is unrestored but in nearly exact condition to the very last time Sanders drove it in competition.

Bill Sanders looks back fondly to the time nearly 30 years before when a journalist gave Toyota its first taste of victory in the desert. "Pete and I took some grief from the other competitors who said that our win wasn't really deserved," Sanders acknowledges. "Time has just added more pride to what we accomplished, and that's especially true considering we did it with a Toyota. It's one of the biggest memories I have of my entire career."

For Toyota, not only did they win a perfectly executed PR project, but the sturdy red No. 169 Land Cruiser blazed the early trail that the growing company, a talented mechanic named Cal Wells and a young construction foreman nicknamed "the Ironman" would follow for decades to come.

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