WINSTON-SALEM: Elvis Presley, who in his lifetime owned more than 200 automobiles and crooned the tune “No Room to Rhumba in a Sports Car,” took the wheel of one of his favorite cars in 1977 for what was to be his final drive.
After Presley drove his black 1973 Stutz Blackhawk III home, just hours before his death, the 230-horsepower V-8 vehicle with soft red leather interior and 18-karat gold trim sat nearly idle for decades at Graceland, the entertainer’s Tennessee estate.
The vintage car is on display this weekend in North Carolina, for the first time since undergoing a refurbishment aimed at getting it back in working condition without losing any of its physical ties to the “King of Rock and Roll.”
“It still has all of Elvis’ DNA on it,” said Walt Hollifield, the car collector and restorer chosen to oversee the recent 12-week preservation effort.
The Stutz will be featured in an auto show at Charlotte Motor Speedway through Sunday, then returned to the Graceland auto museum in Memphis to be exhibited with more than 20 others in the performer’s collection.
Presley typically drove cars for about six months before trading them in or giving them away, but the 1973 Stutz proved to be one of his favorites, said Angie Marchese, director of archives at Graceland.
Tweet This
Share on Facebook
Digg This
Save to delicious
Stumble it
RSS Feed
Source:
http://ift.tt/1e2qKuc