Dale Earnhardt race car sold at auction

Richard Childress put a NASCAR race winning Dale Earnhardt car up for sale; It sold over the weekend with a hefty bid

Several weeks ago, Richard Childress announced he would be auctioning off a series of collectors items from his personal collection. An authentic Dale Earnhardt race car was one of those items.

Richard Childress is a team owner in the NASCAR Cup Series. Dale Earnhardt drove for him between 1984-2001.

Only a handful of Earnhardt cars were ever sold. All of those were from the early days as Childress sold off older equipment to other teams.

Within a couple years, Childress began to hoard the machines. As the machines piled up, he opened the Richard Childress Racing museum to the public.

Nearly every #3 machine piloted by Earnhardt has been stored in the North Carolina shop. Some for more than 30 years.

Earnhardt remained with the team until he lost his life in a crash at Daytona International Speedway on February 18, 2001.

The driver was 49 when he lost his life on the final lap of the Daytona 500. With seven career NASCAR championships, he’s tied with Richard Petty for the most all-time. He collected 76 NASCAR Cup Series wins throughout his 27-year career.

Dale Earnhardt 1996 NASCAR race car photo
Dale Earnhardt 1996 NASCAR race car photo

Auction

The coronavirus is drastically altering the lives of everyone. Some lives are being altered more than others and help is needed across the board.

Richard Childress elected to do something to help.

Childress put up memorabilia from his personal collection on ebay. Many of those bids are ongoing. The highest item so far is the ‘Dale Earnhardt The Movie Car #3/12 Wrangler 1986 Monte Carlo Windshield Wiper’ which has a high bid of $390 with 12 bids thus far.

But, that’s far from the highest bidding item. An authentic Dale Earnhardt race car was sent to a Barrett Jackson auction over the weekend.

The car is chassis No. 22 from the Richard Childress Racing shop. It was driven by Dale Earnhardt in the 1996 NASCAR Winston Cup Series season.

Chassis No. 22 took the green on four different tracks. It took home the win at Dover International Speedway that year.

Dover International Speedway has not been paved since 1996. It’s the oldest surface on the NASCAR schedule. You could theoretically put the 1996 setup on it, unload it at Dover and drive it like Dale. Well, you and I can’t, it’s out of our price range. But, the new owner of this race car could certainly do that.

Earnhardt finished 4th in the 1996 NASCAR championship. Terry Labonte claimed the series title.

The Dale Earnhardt car auction was done online in a time of social distancing. It concluded on Saturday and the car was sold.

Related: Richard Childress is confused to hear of Dale Earnhardt cars for sale (2019)

Dale Earnhardt race car - 1996 chassis
Dale Earnhardt race car – 1996 chassis

1996 Dale Earnhardt Car
Sold

Lot: #200

Here’s the info from the listing:

“#3 Chevrolet driven by Dale Earnhardt, from the personal collection of legendary NASCAR team owner Richard Childress. This marks the first time that Childress has parted with an original Earnhardt car from his collection.”

“The tube-frame stock car, replete with a 358ci V8 NASCAR engine and a 4-speed manual racing transmission, was built for short and intermediate oval-track competition.”

“Earnhardt made select NASCAR Cup Series starts in this Chevrolet at tracks such as Bristol Motor Speedway, Dover International Speedway, Rockingham Speedway and Darlington Raceway between 1996 and 1999.”

“Highlighted by a win at Rockingham Speedway in 1996, Earnhardt did not finish worse than fourth with Chassis No. 22 in its first three on-track appearances.”

“ADDED BONUS: The winning bidder will receive VIP treatment from Richard Childress himself upon visiting the Richard Childress Racing campus in Welcome, NC, to pick up the car.”

“The package includes an exclusive, VIP tour of Richard Childress Racing in Welcome, NC; lunch with Richard Childress at Childress Vineyards, an award-winning winery in Lexington, NC; a personalized case of Childress Vineyards wine and photo opportunities with Richard Childress.”

“NO BUYER’S FEE: 100% OF HAMMER PRICE TO BENEFIT FEEDING AMERICA AND SAMARITAN’S PURSE – COVID-19 RESPONDERS”

Sale Price: $425,000

View the full listing on Barrett Jackson.

Dale Earnhardt
Car Photos

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Links

Dale Earnhardt | Richard Childress Racing | NASCAR

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