The 1968 Plymouth GTX owned by Steve Rhodes, of Lima, is the only GTX that Plymouth made that year that was black, with a red interior and a white top, and featured a 426 Hemi engine.
Jim Krumel | For The Lima News
LIMA – Steve Rhodes considers himself lucky to have picked up his 1968 Plymouth GTX six years ago at the widely acclaimed Mecum Auction in Kissimmee, Florida.
“It was not advertised. There were no fliers saying it was for sale. It had been fully restored, and I just stumbled across it,” Rhodes said.
The car is the only GTX that Plymouth made in 1968 that was black with a red interior and a white top and included a 426 Hemi engine.
“It’s one of one,” Rhodes says proudly.
The Lima resident regularly attends Mecum Auctions, which are held in various cities across the United States. The auctions are about more than buying or selling cars. They are a total automobile event.
“If it’s something that’s never been done, we’ll do it,” the auction house boasts. Web-based bidding platforms, vintage road signs, and burnouts in the parking lot are just some of the things you’ll find.
“We like to keep the pavement hot and push that redline every time,” its literature states.
It was at a Mecum Auction in 2010 that Rhodes met the The King of NASCAR, Richard Petty.
“I bought a Challenger from him,” Rhodes noted.
Petty never forgot that. Years later when Rhodes ran into the King, Petty autographed the visor of the GTX.
That was a crowning moment for Rhodes. After all, if you’re told by NASCAR legend Richard Petty that you have a gorgeous car, you know you have a special vehicle.
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