Diem/Turner Cannonball 308 (1983)

Watched the fantastic Hagerty Cannonball Countach documentary this weekend, made me wonder if anyone here knows the chassis #/whereabouts of the 1983 Cannonball car driven by David Diem and Doug Turner. It set the coast-to-coast record that stood for 20 years; would be a cool vehicle to document here.

I know there's an old thread somewhere discussing the 308(s) used in the filming of the 1981 movie, which I recall concluded with no definitive answer besides director Hal Needham having owned one of them.

But I'd love to know who's got the "real life" Cannonball car.

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Just watched this tonight for the second time — got my wife to watch it too.
So strange that Cannonball Run is not streamable on any platform. Must be a rights issue. I ordered the Blu-Ray. It’s not a good movie (Gumball Rally is 100x better) but it’s nostalgia time. First film I ever saw. Age four!

+1 would also be interested to know about that 308!

 

I totally enjoyed watching it... Loved about the real event, the ambulance being pulled over which they stuck into the Cannonball movie!!!! Extremely glad to see a 308 which won the Cannonball race... Awesome!

 

Sorry guys, but a 308 never won a real Cannonball race. And the "record setting" 1983 308 mentioned in this thread never competed in a real Cannonball race, which were actual races organized by Brock Yates and held 5 times in the 1970's. And they were real races, not just coast to coast time trials. I raced in the infamous initial race, and it really was a race. For instance, I passed Dan Gurney’s winning Ferrari Daytona at 120 mph in a blinding snow storm and we raced nose to tail for the next 150 miles through New Mexico and Arizona. Dan brought the Daytona up to 175 mph. We finished third, losing second by 9 minutes, after racing the second place car and exchanging leads all the way into LA and the finish in Redondo Beach. We finished in 36:56, and had the fastest average speed notwithstanding 15 fuel stops, 6 police stops (2 at gunpoint) and a court appearance. Actually, much more exciting than the movie.

 

This might be the single best post I’ve ever read on Ferrarichat. You should’ve been interviewed in the film!

Semantic (but important) details aside, would still like to find the 308 that held the coast-to-coast record for 20 years.

 

Thanks. And for anyone interested I posted this "insider’s behind the scenes" account (and a few other posts preceding and after the post) of the infamous Cannonball race in the Best Lap Times thread of the Racing section several years ago.

https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/posts/144437282/

 

Great story! Thanks for Sharing.

 

The David Diem 308 was for sale in southern California via a Craigslist ad back in July 2012, as was discussed here:

308 GTSi 1980 Rare World Record Holder Car | FerrariChat

At that time, I traded e-mails with him as I had "impersonated" him with my car for a movie shoot, as I also discussed in the same link above.

He was amused!

This car "might" be no. 32457.

DM

 

Looking thru my old photo archives, the following copied and saved from the 2012 Craigslist ad mentioned above:

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And, the text from this ad:

Ferrari 308 GTSi -- 1980 Rare -- World Record Holder Car

This car is in excellent condition and has documented race history. This historical Ferrari holds the Coast to Coast World Record from New York to California set in 1983 in 32 Hours and 7 Minutes.

If you are looking for the 308 that is in the best condition out there, this car is awesome and a must see!

Red, black leather interior, 17 inch Boyd billet aluminum Ferrari wheels, new tires, 500 miles since major service, equipped with Daytona pistons, hi performance racing cams, Anza exhaust, fuel injected, electric Ferrari mirrors, no chips or dings. Also comes with original wheels, tires, exhaust, car cover and all original books and tools. 62k Miles. Original owner since new! Serious Inquiries only $59,500 obo. ddiem@( ... deleted by me for privacy)

 

My new hero.

 

Me in the infamous Daytona with Brock.
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Found this today:



Guess he didn't end up selling it?

 

Not if he was asking $60k for a 60k mile car in 2012...

 

I'm so impressed that in the span of three days, I've watched the Cannonball Run Countach documentary, connected with actual Cannonballer on F-chat, and watched this community solve the VIN for the "32hrs 7min" car, with pictures!

 

I agree with you Justin, this community is extremely resourceful and helpful.

 

Cannonball Run was the most fun of all the films that I ever did...period. Jq.

 

What was your role in the film? (Sorry if that should be obvious, I am new here!)

 

I want to be like Zeus! Wow! What a story


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I was one of our additional camera operators and also so set lighting and rigging. I also operated my Steadicam when it was required.... Jq.

 

Coincidentally I watched that same YouTube video last night. Though afterwards I was looking for some other video to bask in some testarossa glory.

Also, I got Road and Track magazine back then, but didn't recall the white Dino that won one year. Maybe it is as they mentioned that when they took pictures they put the white Porsche in front.

 

I would like to add here that, despite the post-carb injected cars getting a bad rap as being down on power and all that, it was still their choice to break the record based on the options of the day -- and plenty quick enough to do so!

Also, I've heard about enough of folks complaining about how Brock Yates's sanctioned runs were the only official records. Nonsense. Sure, you can debate whether a COVID-shutdown, no traffic, smartphone-, GPS-, and helicopter-assisted run should qualify in the same category -- I'm not sure that it should. But a run just a couple of years after Brock's stopped -- because he decided to stop running them, but otherwise under similar circumstances -- unquestionably "counts," to me.

 

FWIW, if you watch the YT video posted above with Dave’s interview as the car’s single owner since new, he installed high-compression pistons from a Daytona and “race cams” (P6 package?), which he claimed added 65hp to stock.

 

And I suppose next you're gonna tell us that the guy who strapped JATO's onto his Impala and emended himself into the side of a desert mesa never existed? That it was all just a yarn? Man, what a bummer....

 

Not trying to speak for him, but I suspect that what he is saying is that the "race" in which the 308 participated was not an officially Brock Yates organized event, but rather occurred after Brock had ended his involvement.

If you watch the video referenced in the first post of this thread, this distinction point is addressed.

DM

 

I have no issue with someone doing a solo coast to coast run with spotters along the route, airplane assistance, radar jammers and high tech police, traffic and road condition info equipment and then claiming their time, verified or not, as being a "record" coast to coast run. Power to them. My problem is when they claim their time to be a new "Cannonball Record" when they never raced in an actual Cannonball race.

Could someone pick an ideal day and do a solo run of the exact 26 mile 385 yards Boston Marathon route, from the Hopkington start to the Boston finish line, in 2 hours flat (the real record is 2:03:02) and then declare that they hold the new "Boston Marathon Record." I think not. One can easily conjure up many similar examples.

This is not semantics. There is only one Cannonball record, which was the fasted time of the 5 actual Cannonball Baker Sea to Shining Sea Memorial Trophy Dash races. Even Dan Gurney and Brock Yates, who won our infamous initial race in their Daytona, couldn’t claim that title. It was set by a Jaguar XJS in 1979.