Zebra Three
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article or section needs sources or references that appear in reliable, third-party publications. Primary sources and sources affiliated with the subject of the article are generally not sufficient for a Wikipedia article. Please include more appropriate citations from reliable sources, or discuss the issue on the talk page. This article has been tagged since February 2008. |
 |
This article or section needs copy editing for grammar, style, cohesion, tone or spelling. You can assist by editing it now. A how-to guide is available. (March 2008) |
| This article may not meet the general notability guideline or one of the following specific guidelines for inclusion on Wikipedia: Biographies, Books, Companies, Fiction, Music, Neologisms, Numbers, Web content, or several proposals for new guidelines. If you are familiar with the subject matter, please expand or rewrite the article to establish its notability. The best way to address this concern is to reference published, third-party sources about the subject. If notability cannot be established, the article is more likely to be considered for redirection, merge or ultimately deletion, per Wikipedia:Guide to deletion. This article has been tagged since March 2008. |
| Zebra Three | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Manufacturer | Ford Motor Company |
| Production | 1974 - 1976 |
| Assembly | Dearborn, Michigan Chicago, Illinois Atlanta, Georgia Lorain, Ohio |
| Class | Muscle car |
| Body style(s) | 2-door coupe |
| Layout | FR layout |
| Engine(s) | 302 Windsor 351 Windsor 351 Cleveland 351 Modified 400 Modified 429 Super Cobra Jet 460 Lima |
| Transmission(s) | 3-speed automatic |
| Length | 213.6" (2-door) |
Zebra Three was the code name from the Los Angeles Police Department given to Starsky's famous red and white souped up Ford Torino from the television series Starsky and Hutch, which it's license plate reads 537 ONN, and driven by Detective Dave Starsky, and his partner Detective Ken "Hutch" Hutchinson. The car was also featured in the Starsky & Hutch film.
[edit] Original Perfect Car
.
Originally, the show's creator, William Blinn, was to have Starsky drive a green and white souped up 1971 Chevrolet Camaro because he remembered one that he had owned previously.
When the production was being planned, the studio was unable to locate another green and white 1971 Chevrolet Camaro or order a 1975 Camaro from General Motors, because of their lease contract with the Ford Motor Company.
[edit] Perfect Car
When production started on the pilot, Ford Motor Company's studio-TV car loan program was the lease supplier for Spelling-Goldberg that year. Producers looked at lease stock and chose two (one main, one backup) 351 Windsor V8-powered "Bright Red" (code 2B) 2-door Gran Torinos for the characters.
The cars were equipped with chrome exterior rearview mirrors and protective black rubber bodyside moldings; the interiors were black with vinyl bench seats, and oversize blackwall Goodyear HR78x17 seventy series cop tires. They were custom painted (on top of the factory red paint color) with the distinctive white "vector" stripe (running from the front fender, across the doors, up and over the roof, and then symmetrically back down the other side above the molding, ending in a point at the middle of the front marker lights on either side), had their rear ends lifted by air shocks, had "U.S." brand 5-slotted aluminum magnum 500 wheels added with larger rear tires, and had fat chrome tips on to the dual exhaust pipes.
They also replaced the original 2.75 to 1 rear axle gearing (standard, along with automatic transmission, on 1975 and newer Torinos) with numerically higher gears for better acceleration during stunt driving scenes; this was done during all four seasons to the S-G Torinos. Engine sounds were dubbed in since the Torinos were stock; California law forbade mechanically modifying the engines of new cars.
When the pilot was successful, Spelling-Goldberg ordered two new red Torinos for the first season. These cars were powered by 400 Modified V8s because extra power was going to be needed for additional stunt driving scenes. Ford produced 1,000 limited editions of red and white Starsky and Hutch Torinos in March 1976.
