Dale Jarrett’s UPS race truck up for auction

[TheOldProgrammer]

By
Scott Page December 2, 2019 at 6:46 AM

If you ever wondered what it was like to drive insanely fast in a UPS box truck, then here’s your chance to turn that dream into a reality. The iconic UPS race truck driven by NASCAR star Dale Jarrett in the mid-2000s is up for sale via Iron Horse Auctions in North Carolina, and it’s certifiably nutty.

Featured in a campaign of UPS commercials, this 1990 UPS P-800 Box Truck retired from duty with 300,000 miles on the odometer, ready to receive a complete overhaul for an advertising campaign with NASCAR. With the help of renowned stunt-truck builder and racing champion Mike Ryan, who’s known for his victories at the Pikes Peak Hillclimb, the team gutted the parcel delivery vehicle and fitted it with the works.

Originally, UPS created the truck to advertise with NASCAR just as a showpiece. However, it unexpectedly generated a lot of hype and excitement, to the point where NASCAR fans begged UPS to race the truck.

[gnatsum]

Could be an interesting auction. UPS doesn't sell its retired trucks at all--they're driven until they're ready to be scrapped, then they're scrapped. I don't think they even salvage any parts from them.

Years ago, I did a job interview in Abilene, Texas, and I took some out-of-the way drive back to KIlleen (easy run would've been US 183 out of Cisco from I-35 (east of Abilene, then follow 183 back to Lampasas, then take a left, but I didn't run that route). This road was hilly as it gets in west central Texas, and at the top of one of the hills, I saw a cavalcade of red and blue light bars flashing in the distance, a few hills away. When I got to the "light show" I discovered that there was a UPS truck in the oncoming lanes...with the top of the cab missing, and a nice big, spot on the aluminuim hood that was devoid of paint (burnt off from the hear of the burning engine)...surrounded by the local VFD, a few Texas DPS cruisers, and a couple of 'county mounties'. Headed past the fire several miles down the road, I encountered another UPS truck, emergency flashers going, and moving towards the incident site at a rate of speed I've never seen UPS trucks moving at...

[Grasshopperglock]

It's a UPS truck with a Chevy 6.2 (LS3).

Estimates on the trucks empty weight is between 5000#-9500#. If it's 5000 it's sorta peppy. At 9500 it's a dog.

[gnatsum]

An LS? Would've figured that a NASCAR UPS truck would have a proper NASCAR-spec Chevy engine, not an LS street motor...

[Grasshopperglock]

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An LS? Would've figured that a NASCAR UPS truck would have a proper NASCAR-spec Chevy engine, not an LS street motor...

A NASCAR engine has two speeds. Idle and full blast. If you drove it to HEB, your be at 8000rpm until you hit HEBs parking lot. 3-4 miles to the gallon.

The truck is a brick. It's a square aeroplane situation.

Chevy sells a 427 crate motor. Or stick a Cummins in it.

[mac]

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A NASCAR engine has two speeds. Idle and full blast. If you drove it to HEB, your be at 8000rpm until you hit HEBs parking lot. 3-4 miles to the gallon. .

sorry grasshopper, but that's just not so. they obviously have a full range of rpms....pit row, to the garage, caution laps, saving fuel laps..... on and on and on....just sayin'......mac

[mac]

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An LS? Would've figured that a NASCAR UPS truck would have a proper NASCAR-spec Chevy engine, not an LS street motor...

i would've thought something like an econoboost.......i mean, after all, both, the jarretts and were ford folks as well as their 88 UPS ride.....mac

[gnatsum]

Forgot the exact timeline of events, but I seem to recall that by the time UPS did the "we wanna race the truck" campaign, Dale had taken his UPS sponsorship from Robert Yates Racing's Fords to a Toyota team, and changed "his number" from 88 to 44.
I was a solid DJ fan back then, until he jumped ship. Became a bit less of a fan of his after that.

[Grasshopperglock]

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i would've thought something like an econoboost.......i mean, after all, both, the jarretts and were ford folks as well as their 88 UPS ride.....mac

Ecoboost is Fords name for making a gasoline engine run kinda like a diesel engine. The fuel is injected in way that combustion temperature ignites the fuel more uniformly over just using the spark plug. More complete combustion of fuel.

Fords new flagship motor is now a v6. An Ecobooty v6.


Buy the Chevy 427....Or The 454. Both are LS platforms.

[mac]

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Ecoboost is Fords name for making a gasoline engine run kinda like a diesel engine. .

yep, and purrs like a kitten and runs like a scalded dog! hard to beat a crate echoboost......mac