December 1997 MoparCollector’s Guide, F-Body of AnotherColor:
Ultra Rare Jamaican Blue ’76 Road Runner. By Randy Holden, photos by RobWolf
Robert and Debbie Robison of Milwaukee, WI, own one of the most unique and show stopping F-bodies on the show circuit. If we have to tell you why, then you must be color blind. What we have here is a rare MB5 Jamaican Blue ’76 Road Runner. This one-year-only color was not common on Road Runners. In fact, this is the only blue version we’ve seen in all our years of going to Mopar shows.
Sold new in Wisconsin, it’s never travelled far from home. Found advertised in the local paper at a stiff $4,000, Robert figured it had to be something special. It was in the hands of a Chevy guy that didn’t have much interest in the car, but knew it was unusual. The Road Runner once belonged to a friend of the Chevy guy. Back in 1986, he loaned this friend a lot of money to restore the car. After being completely disassembled rightdown to the bare body shell, it was shoved off into storage. Which is where it sat for the next ten years.
Finally the Chevy guy cried foul and wanted his moneyback! Unable to pay him back, he gave him the disassembled car! Only wanting his money back, he put the Road Runner together and put it up for sale immediately. That’s where Robert arrived on the scene.
While the F-body was in very presentable condition, Robert and his wife Debbie knew this one was scarce enough to warrant a full concourse restoration. Having sold his ’73 RoadRunner to buy this one, he now sold his ’71 Charger R/T to finance the restoration.
Starting with a clean 56,000 mile rust free car, the process of turning it into a concours show stopper was made a little easier, but as any F-body restorer will tell you, parts chasing was a royal pain in the duff! Being a scrounger of the highest caliber, Robert managed to round up an amazing array of NOS parts from swap meets allover the east and Midwest and from dealerships coast to coast. All the brightwork inside and out is NOS, as are the ultra-rare blue Road Runner side stripes. This may have been the last set of NOS blue stripes left!
The Road Runner went to ProComp Auto Body in October of ’96, where Bruce Harvey stripped the body down to the bare metal for the total restoration. Bruce the layed down multiple coats of the rare MB5 blue and puton the precious NOS decals. Don’t be fooled into thinking this is merely acosmetic resto. Hardly!
Top-to-bottom, this one is detailed to the teeth. There’s even NOS shock absorbers on this thing! The original 318 has been revamped to lookbetter than the day it left the factory. Literally every nut and bolt on this one’s been replaced, repainted, or replaced.
The interior needed less work than any other area thanks to the car’s years of storage. Robert recovered the driver’s seat because of a slight tear with NOS material, but therest of the rare black and silver/gray material is factory original and mint.
To make this one a blast to drive, there’s a three speedstick tranny with overdrive. This makes the little 318 pull with a lot more spirit than you’d think. Optionwise, it also has tinted glass, a locking gas cap, F70x14 Polyglas tires, Rallye Wheels, deluxe trunk carpeting, an AM/FM radio, remote mirrors, power steering and power brakes. About the only thing this doesn’t have is air conditioning.
Since making its debut this season, the ‘Runner has taken 1st Place at every show it’s been to and won it’s class at the Mopar Nats. And, even though the belly of the bird is fully detailed, this one’s driven to every event it attends! Actually, Robert’s wide Debbie has taken to considering this one her car, and he’s consented.
This last generation Road Runner serves as a vivid example that a car doesn’t have to have a Hemi in it to steal the show. Due to its level of restoration and its scarcity, the Robison’s blue machine consistently steals the thunder away from far more expensive machines. This is proof positive it pays to be different, even within the Mopar camp itself!
1976 Volare Road Runner 