It’s always fascinating to take a look at the cars of NBA players, who are generally very tall individuals that have the means to customize expensive cars to suit their physique and taste. For that reason, Shaquille O’Neal’s cars are always interesting to look at, but the former NBA star is hardly the first to possess an impressive and unique car collection.
Way before Shaq, NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain, who was over 7 feet tall, had the same problem of not fitting in most production cars. The Basketball Hall of Famer found a way around that by commissioning custom vehicles, the most spectacular of which recently crossed the auction block.
Chamberlain Wanted A Race Car For The Road – And He Got It
We’re talking about a 1986 Chamberlain Searcher 1, a one-off supercar with a General Motors heart that failed to sell despite receiving a high bid of $250,000. According to the listing on Julien’s Auctions (which was pulled from the website after the auction ended on November 6), the vehicle was estimated to be worth between $300,000 and $500,000, which means the reserve was not met.
The custom chassis for the Searcher 1 was made by British race car constructor Lyncar, which built many race cars back in the day, including a Formula 1 racer it entered at the British Grand Prix in 1974 and 1975. Founded by Martin Slater, a very talented engineer that worked for leading motorsport teams like Brabham, Lola and McLaren, Lyncar specialized in building race cars, but would occasionally take on unusual car projects as well, such as movie cars and kit cars.
1986 Chamberlain Searcher 1 custom supercar commissioned by NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain side profile viewJulien's Auctions
In 1986, Slater was approached by NBA superstar Wilt ‘The Stilt’ Chamberlain, who wanted to have a race car for the road. The design of the supercar was by Peter Bohanna, and resembled a Le Mans racer.
The problem was that Chamberlain lacked a platform on which to fit the sleek-looking fiberglass body, which was refined in a wind tunnel and featured a massive removable rear panel for access to the mid-mounted engine. That’s where Lyncar came in, offering its Group C race car for the job, more specifically a semi-monocoque chassis using aircraft-grade aluminum sheets that were riveted to a tubular steel frame.
1986 Chamberlain Searcher 1 custom supercar commissioned by NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain interiorJulien's Auctions
There was a problem, though. The car needed to be modified to accommodate Chamberlain’s 7-foot-1 frame. For that to happen, the chassis is believed to have been cut in half and received a 10-inch supplement to the wheelbase. The cabin benefitted the most from that, gaining 6 inches of length and a passenger seat. As you can see in the photos, the leather bucket seats are huge and feature race-style four-point harnesses. Highlights also include the Momo steering wheel and aircraft-spec gauges with digital speedometer and tachometer.
Lighter And More Powerful Than The Ferraris And Lambos Of The Day
1986 Chamberlain Searcher 1 custom supercar commissioned by NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain - rear viewJulien's Auctions
Despite the wheelbase modification, the chassis was said to be far stiffer than a conventional space frame, thanks in part to an integrated roll bar in the cockpit for safety. It was also very light, with the entire car tipping the scales at around 3,000 lbs. After Lyncar completed the chassis and body in the UK, the car was shipped to California for final assembly by Richard Paul Racing. The powertrain and all ancillary systems were installed, tested and tuned there.
The one-off supercar received a GM 6.0-liter marine-spec small-block V8 engine featuring forged internals, Brodix aluminum heads and an axial-flow supercharger, which fed air through an Edelbrock Scorpion intake and a Holley four-barrel carburetor. Rated at 467 hp at 6,750 rpm according to dyno sheets, the motor was hooked to a ZF-built five-speed manual transaxle derived from the legendary BMW M1.
1986 Chamberlain Searcher 1 custom supercar commissioned by NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain engineJulien's Auctions
The powertrain made the Searcher 1 a very fast car, capable of reaching a theoretical top speed of 200 mph at 7,500 rpm. To put things into perspective, most supercars of the time, like the Porsche 959, Ferrari Testarossa and Lamborghini Countach, were less powerful and heavier than the Searcher 1.
The supercar offered great handling too, as it featured fully independent suspension front and rear with Koni aluminum coil-over dampers that were adjustable for compression and rebound. Stopping power came from AP Racing four-piston aluminum calipers and vented iron rotors, housed inside the centerlock Lola-type wheels.
1986 Chamberlain Searcher 1 custom supercar commissioned by NBA legend Wilt Chamberlain - Side View With Doors OpenJulien's Auctions
Unfortunately, while the car offered extreme performance, Chamberlain reportedly drove it only occasionally, taking it on just a few track outings and racking up just 100 miles of total use. After the owner's death in 1999, Searcher 1 was donated by his estate to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, along with full documentation and technical drawings.
Source: Julien's Auctions via Silodrome