This is an original Atari Pole Position arcade game that was built in 1982. It’s the full sit-down arcade cabinet version of Pole Position and it’s in fully working and playable condition ready for a new owner.
This cabinet was bought by the seller in September of this year, and it then underwent a series of fixes – the G07 monitor has been recapped, the width coil was replaced, and a new piece of plexiglass was cut and installed in the rear canopy. The machine is now set up for free play, with no coins required.
Above Video: This episode from the YouTube channel Pat the NES Punk about Pole Position and its impact on the gaming world when it debuted in 1982.
History Speedrun: Atari Pole Position Arcade Game
When Namco released the Pole Position arcade game in 1982 it completely reset expectations for coin-op racing games – and the entire industry would never be the same again. Planned by Shinichirō Okamoto with design/planning by Kazunori Sawano, and programmed by Koichi Tashiro, it brought a convincing “behind-the-car” racing perspective, a timed qualifying lap, and an officially modeled circuit into one cohesive, coin-operated package.
Namco’s electro-mechanical and cabinet engineer Shō Osugi contributed on the hardware and cabinet side. Atari licensed the game for manufacture and distribution in North America, developing both upright and sit-down environmental cabinets.
The race track was a recognizable replica of Japan’s Fuji Speedway, players first set a qualifying time to earn a grid slot, only then did the main race begin. Controls mirrored real driving – there was a steering wheel, a two-position shifter, and pedals. The upright cabinet used an accelerator only, while the cockpit cabinet added a brake for a more race simulator-like feel.
Under the hood, Pole Position ran on Namco hardware built around a Z80 main CPU with two 16-bit Z8002 processors for the heavy lifting. That computing power enabled fast roadside scaling, convincing depth cues, and responsive input at a time when most racers still felt decidedly simple. The result of all this was an arcade game phenomenon – it topped Japan’s arcade earnings in 1982 and became the most popular arcade title internationally in 1983, with Pole Position II arriving later that year.
Home conversions for the Atari 2600, 5200, and various computers spread the game far and wide, but the arcade machine, especially the full sit-down cabinet, remains the definitive Pole Position experience.
The Atari Pole Position Arcade Game Shown Here
The Atari Pole Position arcade game you see here is a sit-down version, and as noted above it received a series of fixes a few months ago to bring it up to full working condition, and it’s set up for coin-free unlimited play.
The machine is equipped with a steering wheel, two-position shifter, and both accelerator and brake pedals. It has a mono speaker providing engine audio through the cabinet, with a simple bench-style seat designed for use in high-use arcades.
This is an original Atari Pole Position arcade game that was built in 1982. It’s the full sit-down arcade cabinet version of Pole Position and it’s in fully working and playable condition ready for a new owner.
The cabinet measures in at approximately 65 inches long, 25 inches wide, and between 51 and 60 inches tall (front to back), with both sections joined by metal strips and screws. It weighs 250 lbs and keeps its original dual coin slots, with switches for diagnostic mode and free-play settings.
It’s now available out of Castle Rock, Colorado on Bring a Trailer and you can visit the listing here if you’d like to read more or place a bid.
Images courtesy of Bring a Trailer
Articles that Ben Branch has written have been covered on CNN, Popular Mechanics, Smithsonian Magazine, Road & Track Magazine, the official Pinterest blog, the official eBay Motors blog, BuzzFeed, Autoweek Magazine, Wired Magazine, Autoblog, Gear Patrol, Jalopnik, The Verge, and many more.
Silodrome was founded by Ben back in 2010, in the years since the site has grown to become a world leader in the alternative and vintage motoring sector, with well over a million monthly readers from around the world and many hundreds of thousands of followers on social media.
