Parnelli Jones is something of a legend in the racing world, having won victories at motorsport events as diverse as the Indianapolis 500 and Baja 1000 desert race. And now you can own a piece of Ford Bronco and Baja history as its iconic “Big Oly” is up for auction.
Mecum even auctionsf the whole Parnelli Jones collection, including six cars from the man’s personal collection. But the shining star is undoubtedly the Big Oly Bronco. This distinctive machine was nicknamed by its title sponsor, Olympia Beer, and won the Baja 1000 back-to-back in 1971 and 1972. They also took home the 1973 Baja 500 and the 1973 Mint 400. boy has family tree
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And let’s run through some specs:
- 154 ” length
- 72 ” width
- 2620 pounds dry weight
- Chrome moly tubing space frame
- Fiberglass and aluminum body
- 351/390 hp Ford Windsor V-8 engine
- Modified Ford C6 B&M hydro transmission
- Gold / white / black exterior with No. 1 livery
- 45 liter fuel capacity
- Runs on high octane racing fuel
- Extreme shock absorber and travel
- Custom large wing on top
- Split windshield to reduce dust in the cockpit
- Back of spool for better traction
- Firestone Off-road tires with white lettering
Jones started off-road racing after losing with just four laps to go on the Indy 500 when his turbine car run by Andy Granatelli broke down. Co-driver Bill Stroppe actually dared Jones, saying: “Jones wasn’t man enough for off-road racing. “
But Jones wasn’t going to lie down, and he wasn’t going to it’s easy, and the Big Oly is designed to push every possible boundary. Aside from the roof, which was really just designed as a huge wing, there were plenty of other innovations: a split windshield to reduce cockpit dust, built-in Thermos hydration systems for the drivers, a fiberglass frame, a backlit device with a hand-held map roller that functioned like an analog GPS, and heavily modified suspension. If any aspect could be changed, it was. And the worked. Driving off-road was never the same after that.
However, one of the coolest things about this machine is that it has stayed in Jones’s personal collection since he raced it. At the time, it was common for successful cars to be sold and essentially run over, but the Big Oly was something different. Jones knew that. So he kept it safe and took it out of storage to loan it out occasionally for a museum exhibition.
Due to the untouched nature and historical significance of the Big Oly, Hagerty estimates it could sell for more than a million dollars. It’s hard to imagine it going for less.