Atari's Monte Carlo Restoration

whitefox

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Donor 5 years: 2016-2019, 2024
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Serial #20.

So this unusual and, seldom-found (rare?) cabinet came up for free thanks to coinopper in this post. Like any game I've never heard of, I went to google and found... not a whole lot outside of MAME plays. The gameplay looked neat, even played it a few times in MAME. It's not bad! And like a lot of games, it may be more fun when played with the proper controls, and this game sports a 4-gear shifter, nice! More chances to fail and hit things!

I was on the fence for it because it's an empty cabinet, and the only thing I saw on ebay was the steering & shifting assembly for $450. Well, it didn't take long for a few KLOV'ers to chime in and offer up the parts. All of them!

Once that happened I couldn't turn it down. Coinopper offered to drive it down (2.5 hour drive, big thanks for that!), and I started reaching out to the folks for the parts.

Like nearly all 80's Atari games, the side art on this game is gorgeous. Since it hasn't been reproduced, I'll do what I can with some magic erasers and get it cleaned up as best as I can. There is some wood rot on the bottom to address. The biggest problem with the cabinet are the chunks taken out on the very front of the control panel, which I'm guessing happened from the game falling forward somehow. You can see my early work on building this back up with DAP Plastic Wood.

I'm pretty excited with this restore. I've never seen this game in an arcade during my time (and growing up in south jersey, I got to play a lot of what are now seen as rare or low-run games, Freedom Fighter Laserdisc anyone?). The gameplay isn't exactly full of intense action. Four-directional scrolling of a larger map with some weather effects is pretty progressive for 1980, but Sega's Monaco GP predates this with much quicker, intense gameplay and prettier eye candy, albeit in a vertical only setup. Still, it's a driver with a 4-position shifter in a scrolling map, that's enough for my short attention span to enjoy.

Oh yeah, I heard KLOV likes photos of cabinets. If there's an angle desired while I have it stripped down, feel free to ask.

Here's Coinopper's original seller photos for posterity, and two photos of it in my garage after delivery. You can see how much of the front control panel wood is damaged, nearly an inch of it gone at the top!
 

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Model 230 XX Serial #20

Model 230 XX Serial #20
 

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Beauty Shots

Dig that lovely side art.
 

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Inside and Inside

Interior and foot pedal area plus the "Go Go Go" back part that has some damage.
 

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Sides & Top

It did have the original fluorescent light fixture in there. If it works, I'll use it, otherwise, I have LED replacements on hand.

Shown here is the damage to the control panel corners. Work in progress with the DAP Plastic wood. It looks like crap now, but after sanding down properly it will be all good.

What I will need is some white vinyl for the outside. Any leads for this stuff?
 

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Gas Pedal area

Gas Pedal area
 

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I have a complete one from seaside heights nj. If you need any pics for the restore let me know.
 
I have a complete one from seaside heights nj. If you need any pics for the restore let me know.

Nice! Huh, what arcade was that from? Never was in that area as a kid, but early 2000's I lived in Red Bank, shortly after the MTV Beach House incident.
 
Such a cool looking cabinet. Never seen one in person, but would like to give it a shot some day.

I have a PCB for it which I got just because it was uncommon & might be interesting.
 
Got it about 10 years ago from a little arcade at the end of the boardwalk. I don't remember the name but it had a mini golf on the roof and a bar called the wine cellar next to it. It was owned by two brothers. They knocked it all down to build but never did.
 
Man, I had the guts of one of these cabs for a while and nobody wanted it.

I still have the shifter collar with the 1,2,3,4 on it. I could trade if if you pickup a shifter that's got the standard pole position collar on it.

Also, I think that I might still have the main wiring harness
 
Guts!

Two big 'ole boxes (well, one very heavy medium sized box and one large) arrived today from Chopperthedog.
 

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And more guts!

A lot of thanks for the incredible packaging Chopperthedog did on these parts!
 

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A Couple of Requests

Two requests that I'm hoping someone can help me out with on this.

First, anyone with a Monte Carlo cabinet, can you take some photos of the wiring harness and how it's running through the cabinet? Interested especially in where the plastic tie-downs are stapled at (if that is indeed how Atari did it in this game, that's how my other Atari games are done).

Second, I'd like to buy a 12"x12" piece of white vinyl for the two sections I'm rebuilding. I'm not completely hoping for an exact color match due to age. I would like to avoid having to buy a 12' minimum order just for a small area.

Thanks!
 
It's amazing how you can see how so many of those parts evolved into the equivalent parts for the Pole Position cab design. It's really a spiritual precursor.

Makes you wonder if some of the design elements actually date back further than this cab.
 
It's amazing how you can see how so many of those parts evolved into the equivalent parts for the Pole Position cab design. It's really a spiritual precursor.

Makes you wonder if some of the design elements actually date back further than this cab.

Speaking of which, I reached out to Tim Lapetino of Art of Atari, this game art was not in his book, however he is looking into who created it.
 
Speaking of which, I reached out to Tim Lapetino of Art of Atari, this game art was not in his book, however he is looking into who created it.


Oh, that's very cool.

I really wish he'd become a member here, and contribute some of the undoubtedly volumes of knowledge he must have regarding Atari art.
 
Motherboard. Mainboard. PCBoard.

The board arrived today from Atari Force, well packaged and ran for a couple days!
 

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