We Love Dodge's Past, Present And Future..,

Dodge Muscle Cars (Concept)

2011-10-03T07:41:00.000-07:00

Dodge Rampage

Dodge Daytona and Plymouth Superbird | American Classic Cars

Dodge Challenger SMS 570

Dodge ZEO 290

Dodge Coronet

Source: Internet

Ram Expands RamBox

2011-09-30T11:13:00.001-07:00

Click Here: to read the entire article.

Source: Internet

1964 Dodge 440

2011-09-01T12:50:00.000-07:00

Click Here to see more pictures.

Source: Internet

Dodge Charger Daytona

2011-08-02T15:57:00.000-07:00

Click Here: for mor pictures and information on this car.

2012 Dodge Charger SRT8 Muscle Sedan

2011-07-27T07:03:00.000-07:00

Source: Internet

Baracuda

2011-07-04T11:46:00.000-07:00

Source: Internet

1966 Dodge Charger - Read The Tag

2009-04-03T01:53:00.000-07:00

Daniel Daigneault Is Inspired By Mopar Muscle To Build A Completely Absurd 528 Hemi-Powered '66 Charger

By Kevin DiOssi
Photography by Kevin DiOssi

In recent years, Daniel Daigneault had a dream to build a grey Charger with a red interior. He previously owned a similar car and made the decision to part ways with the B-Body for family reasons. Later in life, things began to settle down as he and his family moved from Montreal to Florida. "I kept seeing all these classic cars around me when I was in Florida and I got the passion for the Charger again," he says. This fueled his search to find his dream muscle car.

Have the time?

Daniel started his search in Florida but wasn't left with very many leads. He couldn't find what he was looking for but knew of a black '66 with red interior up in British Columbia, Canada. The seller was asking a fair price considering its condition, but it was far away and not exactly like the one he was looking for. "I decided to call [the owner] just for fun and we continued to talk for three months and negotiate a price," he recalls. It's always hard to purchase anything site unseen, so he enlisted an inspector to check out the Charger before he sent up the check. It checked out and a month and a half later, it was being unloaded in his driveway.

It was a non A/C car and was powered by a 318 with an automatic transmission. He drove the car like that for about five years but in the back of his mind, he knew he wanted more. An issue of Mopar Muscle kept finding its way into his hands every month and this got the gears turning. "I began to cut out anything that I thought might be cool to have on the Charger. These clippings continued to grow until I had amassed a 'Charger Bible,' " he jokes. After four years of dreaming, Daniel felt it was time to get the ball rolling. His first plan was to enlist a new product from a company called Kovalt that increased the number of valves on a set of Chrysler heads from 16 to 32. This new four-valve setup was just what he wanted and he figured he would buy a 440 to put the heads on. Unfortunately, the man who developed the setup passed away before Daniel was able to order them, so the heads weren't available.

Dodge Division Emblem

Now it was back to the drawing board on what would motivate his Charger. He cracked open his "Charger Bible" and began to look for an alternative. If he couldn't run a 32-valve 440, he was going to run a Hemi. "My wife didn't even know what a Hemi was, but she told me that if it's what I wanted, I needed to get it." He dismantled the Dodge in his driveway by himself in three days during October 2005. The body was sent out to Patrick Dupuis of Classic Coach Works in Mount Dora, Florida. He met Patrick at a car show in Florida, and they immediately hit it off and Daniel trusted him to do the job right.

The custom Budnick Groove wheels add a g-machine look to this capable Charger

Daniel went to the DMV to select a custom plate for his Charger but "426 Hemi" was taken. Not to be discouraged, "Hemi 528" was available so he purchased it. This meant he needed to build a monster Hemi, a Mega Hemi to be more precise.

They didn't have a custom plate that read 426 Hemi so Daniel was forced to build a 528.

A San Diego engine builder, who Daniel wishes to remain nameless, was conscripted to build the 528. The promised date of completion of eight weeks was overshot by an additional ten weeks, putting a delay on the project. The engine finally arrived in February 2006 and he had the car painted in June.

Daniel did the restoration of this Metallic Red interior himself.

During the finally assembly process, Daniel completely restored the interior and added a surplus of aftermarket parts to the Dodge. This ensured it wasn't just another pretty car with a Hemi in it. Nope, it would be able to perform just as well as it looked. The automatic transmission wasn't put back in the car either. Instead, a Keisler five-speed manual was placed behind the 528. Three months later, the car was completely together. "All the parts went together very smoothly and I found almost all my ideas in Mopar Muscle," he claims.

1966 Dodge Charger Backview

The Charger has been completed for about two years now. Daniel built the car from the ground up with style, performance, and handling all in a classic package. It truly is a dream muscle car and he enjoys showing it off every chance he gets. With his selection of parts, it's an incredibly smooth and aggressive cruiser at home on the streets of Florida.

Florida isn't nearly as cool as Canada, so a muscle car without A/C won't cut it. This Billet Specialties polished serpentine kit includes an A/C system from Classic Auto Air.

Fast Facts

'66 Dodge Charger

Owned by Daniel Daigneault, St. Cloud, Florida

Mopar Power

Engine: The 528ci Hemi uses a new Mopar Performance Mega Block. Bore was increased to 4.50-inches and filled with Mopar Performance 10.25:1 compression pistons. Mopar connecting rods and a 4.15-inch stroke crankshaft complete the bottom end. A custom Comp Cams camshaft was ground to .534/.517-inch lift and 244/244-degrees of duration. Mopar Performance aluminum Hemi heads sit on top and the engine runs on a Mopar Electric Ignition system. The exhaust comes from tti and has been ceramic coated. The headers utilize 2 1/4-inch primary tubes that combine at a 3 1/2-inch collector and flow into a 3-inch stainless steel exhaust system with Dynomax mufflers.

Transmission: The automatic transmission was replaced with a Keisler Engineering five-speed manual with a dual disc Ram clutch. The floor board had to be slightly modified to fit the new transmission, and a preproduction '70 pistol grip Hurst shifts gears.

Sure Grip

Suspension and Brakes: Suspension performance has been taken up a notch thanks to KYB Gas-A-Just shocks at all corners. A Just Suspension front suspension kit improves front stability while a Firm Feel Torsion bar and sway bar kit add control. In the rear, Mopar Performance XHD leaf springs, Competition Engineering Slide-A-Links, and a Firm Feel sway bar tighten things up. A Stage II Firm Feel power steering kit provides smooth steering while Wilwoon Dynalite Pro Series front and rear disc brakes slow down the 3,900-pound B-Body. The 8 3/4-inch rearend houses a Detroit Locker Truetrac with 3.91 gears and stock axles.

Wheels: A massive set of custom Budnick Groove wheels measuring 18x8-inch fronts and 18x10-inch rears fill the wheelwells and provide intense grip. Toyo T1-R tires are fitted to the deep-dish wheels and offer modern wet and dry performance.

High Impact

Paint and Body: The body was in good shape when Daniel took ownership, but it was sent out to Classic Coach Works in Mount Dora, Florida. There, Patrick Dupuis assessed the bodywork and applied the BBQ1 Black paint to the factory Chrysler body. The only modification was the addition of a small, aluminum NASCAR lip spoiler.

Interior: Daniel tackled the metallic red interior on his own. Legendary Interiors parts and seats covers were used while an A1 Carpets replacement kit covers the floors. This is a radio delete car but it now benefits from a Classic Auto Air AC system-plumbing was recently completed. The steering wheel is original.

1972 Dodge Dart Swinger - Dart Resurrection

2009-04-03T01:38:00.000-07:00

Young Guns Club

The final product of Megan's hard work is this show-worthy '72 Dart Swinger painted in Plum Crazy.

For many people who start in this hobby at a young age, limited funds force them to work on their cars themselves. This is the only way they can afford to have work done on their cars, and it's a great way to learn about the hobby. At the end of the day, it's a feeling like no other. It becomes a rolling tribute to your accomplishment. For 18-year-old Megan Knop, the feeling is something she will always have. Not only did she restore this '72 Dart Swinger herself, she earned it.

In 2003, Megan had a '57 Ford convertible that she sold for a cool grand. This gave her a bit of breathing room to hunt down a Mopar. A few months went by and she collected $500 more and tracked down this '72 Dodge. It was in good shape and was powered by a 318 small-block. She went to take a look at the car with her grandfather and met the wife of the owner who told them the car was for sale for $1,500. The only catch was they would have to come back and pick it up the next day. They complied and picked up the car the following day, only to find out the husband left her a few days later. Sounds like young Megan may have gotten too good of a deal.

The original powerplant of the Dart was a 318 but Megan wanted more power. She installed a 340 and cleaned up the engine bay to be more presentable at shows.

Immediately after getting the Dart home, Megan tore into her new project/obsession. She removed the front driver-side fender and repaired the hood hinge. The car was torn down and sanded twice before it was painted. Megan took to the spray gun and painted the Dart Plum Crazy, and the hood was blacked out-this was her dream color combination.

After the paint and body had been taken care of, her attention turned to the powerplant. The 318 wasn't enough to show the boys who's boss, so a 340 small-block was enlisted to satisfy her need to put boys in their place. She and her grandfather built the engine and installed it into the Dart. With everything else out of the way, the interior was the last element to focus on. Everything inside came from Legendary Auto Interiors, including the custom seat skins. Like the rest of the car, she did all the work herself. "I wanted to keep the car as original as possible so I only changed the color and the motor," she says. However, there are a few modifications she couldn't live without. A Bazooka tube and a remote radio in the glovebox were added to meet her melodic needs.

Here's what she had to start with. Nearly all the work was performed by Megan by herself, including the engine build, bodywork, paint, and interior.

Now that the project is closer to completion, Megan can sit back and enjoy her work. Maybe she would prefer to sit inside and take it for a spin, though. "It's not every day you see a female driving a nice car that's older than her," she jokes. "Even rarer is a girl that owns one and works on one." Megan has a lot to be proud of with her resurrection of this Dart. Keep on wrenching, Megan.

For over 35 years, Indy Cylinder Head has been supplying the aftermarket with high quality engine parts as well as complete engines to power everything from Street cars to full-on Drag race cars. We have always been dedicated to making all Indy racers winners. Our secret is simple. We transferred our years of racing experience into our parts. Through thorough engineering and extensive testing, we have been able to assemble the correct combinations of blocks, cylinder heads, manifolds, pistons, camshafts, and every other engine component used to produce the ultimate in power.

We really understand what is needed to get you where you want to be-quickly. Please feel free to contact us with any questions you may have. Call 317/862-0224 or visit indyheads.com.

Do You Feel Lucky? Do you want to see your Mopar here? Do you want to be immortalized as a Mopar Muscle Young Gun? Is your car the nastiest thing on four wheels at your high school or college? Then send in your entry to mopar.muscle@sourceinterlink.com, or to Mopar Muscle, Young Guns, 9036 Brittany Way, Tampa, FL 33619. Here's all you need to do: Send us some photos of you and your car, a description of your car, what you have done to it, and future plans for it. Be sure to include contact information and current e-mail address. Good luck!

1971 Dodge Charger RT - A Family Affair

2009-04-03T01:29:00.000-07:00

Rare Finds

By Dave Young

Dewey Jones of Hamilton, Ohio, says that hunting Mopars is an affliction that runs in his family. His son, 13-year-old Nicholas, found this '71 Charger R/T while working one day with his grandfather.

Finding a rare Mopar just isn't as easy as it used to be. Cars that were once abandoned and sitting in plain view have long been snatched up by enthusiasts and collectors, forcing those of us seeking a car to restore or race to search harder than was once necessary. Scrap yards used to be a place where we could find a potential project as well, but very few scrap yards have any cars worth building these days. Televised auctions haven't helped the average enthusiast much either, as they can convince potential sellers that their Slant-Six-powered four-door Belvedere is worth the hundreds of thousands that the Hemi model sold for. With all this working against us, how are we to find old Mopars we can restore at a reasonable cost? The answer for many of us, including Dewey Jones, is to enlist the help of our family and friends.

Having family members who enjoy your hobby can really pay off. Just ask Dewey Jones whose son Nicholas found this complete, numbers-matching Charger R/T.

If you're like us, you look for Mopars wherever you go. It's just fun to find hidden treasure, and road trips certainly go by quicker if you're occupied looking in the woods, carports, and barns along the way. But even if you drive hundreds of miles, the odds are you'll miss something unless you have some help. This is why Dewey Jones of Hamilton, Ohio, appreciates his family helping him search for cool cars, and family help is exactly how he landed a deal on the '71 Charger R/T you see here.

What's better than finding a '71 Charger R/T? Finding one with an Air-Grabber hood and all the hardware underneath!

Following his dad's example, Nicholas Yocham always has his eyes peeled for that special car, hidden where nobody else has seen it. One day while working with his grandfather (Dewey's father), Nicholas was riding through a neighborhood and spotted what he knew was a Mopar sitting partially hidden under some trees. Although in a hurry, Nicholas said to his grandfather, "Please turn around and go back. I just saw a '71 R/T!" Nicholas's grandfather quickly turned around (as any good grandfather would), and sure enough found a '71 Charger R/T sitting exactly where Nicholas said it was, in a side driveway on blocks.

From the rear, you can see this Charger has some rust damage, but simply finding a complete numbers-matching car in any condition these days is pretty rare.

Nicholas couldn't wait to get home, and upon doing so quickly told his dad about the car he had found. Going back to the house where the R/T was, they quickly found that it was a numbers-matching, N96 code, '71 Charger R/T, and it was for sale at a reasonable price so they made their purchase immediately. Though a little rusty (of course the term rusty is relative these days), the car was nearly complete and equipped with the desirable Air-Grabber hood and accompanying underhood hardware. The original engine wasn't in the car, but the owner had it stored along with the transmission under his deck and it was included in the deal.

While Dewey says he loves the Charger, the greatest part of this find-and his hobby-is having a son like Nicholas who can enjoy it with him. While many 13-year-old boys won't even carry on a conversation with their parents, Dewey is fortunate to have a son who enjoys finding, restoring, and collecting old Mopars with his dad. We're glad to see it runs in the family.

This Charger R/T proves rare finds are still out there waiting to be discovered, with a little help from the family.

1973 Dodge Charger Rallye - Total Recall

2009-04-03T01:05:00.000-07:00

For Chuck Hughes, A Restored '73 Charger 340 Is A Great Way To Go Back Again

By Geoff Stunkard
Photography by Geoff Stunkard

By mid-1972, things had changed significantly in the muscle car market. Not only were most of the big-engine options gone; so was the attitude that had highlighted the cars built just months prior. Moreover, compression on what engines were left had fallen, the heavy-duty driveline hardware was on its way out, everything was designed with bulky bumpers, and paint and graphics were considered pass. Still, for a college guy like Chuck Hughes, there was still hope.

In July of that year, his buddies at Brohawn's, the local Chrysler/Plymouth/Dodge dealer in Cambridge, Maryland, let him actually take home the latest dealer albums to put together the '73 Charger of his dreams. The hot ticket was no longer the R/T (sorry, Jim, they're all dead), but you could get a Rallye version, which had performance-oriented themes. The standard B-engine was the ticket for 1973 unless you had deeper pockets for insurance to put a 440 under the bonnet. So it would be a 400 four-barrel backed by a Torqueflite and 3.55 rear for Chuck.

Although Chuck's original Charger was a big-block, he's more than happy with his Charger's last-year-of-production 340. It's basically stock with the exception of an Edelbrock intake and carburetor.

To say he enjoyed his new car would be an understatement; he drove it 180,000 miles, finally trading it in the '80s when the rust problems inherent to high-mileage Northeast iron had begun to show themselves. He is humorously hesitant to admit just what he traded it for (it was a brand X car since Chrysler was all K-car all the time at the moment), but suffice to say, it wasn't like the old days. By the mid-'90s, he decided to try to go back to the past again.

What is sometimes forgotten as we look back on those days is that performance cars from 1973 are harder to find than, say, cars from 1969. Chuck wanted another big-block Rallye. His old car was found slowly decaying in St. Michaels, Maryland, but was a no-go; the owner was "gonna restore it one of these days." It's probably still there. There wasn't much turning up in Hemmings or Mopar Collector's Guide, either.

Although the odometer shows only 77,000 miles right now, it still received a full-on restoration.

Finally, in March 2001, a '73 Charger Rallye did surface for Chuck. Originally sold in Georgia, the 70,000-mile machine was located in Michigan. What's more, it was a near twin to the one Chuck had purchased almost 30 years earlier-GB5 Blue paint, Rallye package, and performance engine (though it was a final-year 340 rather than the 400). The only real difference was the interior color and the optional side mirrors. What's more, the car was a solid driver.

Although Chuck's original Charger was a big-block, he's more than happy with his Charger's last-year-of-production 340. It's basically stock with the exception of an Edelbrock intake and carburetor.

But owning a somewhat nice car wasn't quite the same as having a '73 when it was brand-new, so Chuck and his son Charlie (Charlie is actually the proud owner of the car at 7 years old) began the process of a complete restoration on the car once it was back in Mason-Dixon territory. Chuck will be the first to admit that he was somewhat frustrated with the way some of the hobby's suppliers treated him. At this point, these cars didn't have the appeal of their '71 and earlier kin. However, he did find big help in dealer Tony D'Agostino, who happens to be down in southern Delaware, not too far from where Chuck lives on Maryland's eastern shore. "Without Tony's help, my resto would not be this complete," says Chuck. "I wanted NOS stuff. He located it for me and spent the time with me talking about the car so he knew what I needed. It made a real difference."

So as the pile of gathered parts grew, Chuck was busy getting ready for the rebuild. The engine was brought back to completely stock form, with the only change being a late model Edelbrock intake and AVS-style Performer carburetor. The rest of the driveline has also been serviced and detailed; it is a numbers-matching combo. Anything that Tony could find in terms of NOS pieces was replaced.

Meanwhile, a car restorer in Easton, Maryland, named Tommy Blades got a chance to work on some vintage Mopar iron. Chuck says he wanted to be involved and was sort of a "go-fer" as Tommy did the body, paint, and reassembly. The two of them worked together and the restoration is just what he had planned. The interior and fresh top skin came together with the help of Carroll Beauchamp at Delmarva Auto Glass in Salisbury. The end result was one that anyone would be proud of.

In reality, even with 2,415 examples built, Charger Rallye 340s are not a dime a dozen. As the prices on their big-inch kin continue to increase, the '72-'74 Chargers have come into their own. They are well-built, comfortable vehicles with the styling that had helped bring the model to prominence (plus that guy Petty was winning a lot of races with them). For Chuck, however, that Charger Rallye was also a way to return to those days when he joined the muscle car craze, even as it wound down in 1973.

Fast Facts

'73 Dodge Charger Rallye

Car Owner: Charles Hughes, Cambridge, MD

Mopar Power

Engine: This one is just like new-back in the day. A standard rebuild was done with minor changes like the Edelbrock intake and carb, but for the most part, this was recreated to look right. Tony D'Agostino helped with many NOS pieces to detail the engine, and a proper-looking Mopar service replacement battery rounds it out. A set of Flowmaster mufflers was the only addition to the exhaust system.

Transmission: Rebuilt 727 TorqueFlite

Differential: 8 3/4 with 3.55 gear and Sure Grip.
Horsepower and Performance: The 340 was factory-rated at 245 brake horsepower.

Sure Grip

Suspension: Stock

Brakes: Rebuilt stock

Wheels: Factory 14-inch road wheels.

Rubber: Just like the old days, G70-14 Goodyear raised white letter rubber is on all four corners.

High Impact

Body: Chuck admits Tommy spent a lot of time after the disassembly scraping red Georgia clay out of the undercarriage. Once that was done, Blades Enterprises in Easton did the final prep. Carroll Beauchamp did the vinyl top. Options on the body included painted outside mirrors, exhaust tips, fender-mounted turn signals, and hoodpins on the "blistered" hood.

Paint: Tommy Blades also did the spray using a deep DuPont Chromabase color computer-matched to the GB5 Blue OE tint and organisol paint for the hood.

Interior: Carroll Beauchamp redid the seats and interior; pieces came from Just Dashes and Legendary. Like the car Chuck ordered back in the day, this Charger was factory equipped with the Tuff wheel, in-dash tach, AC and console-mounted Slap-Stik shifter. If you bought a Rallye, you also got that cool 150-mph speedo on early order '73s.

Best Performance: Big smiles and several show awards.

Special Thanks: Tony's Parts, Harrington, DE; Tommy Blades, Easton MD; Carroll Beauchamp, Salisbury, MD; Charlie McMahan, Cambridge, MD; Tommy White of Aloha Automotive; and many vendors at Carlisle.

1964 Dodge 440 Station Wagon - Built To Haul

2009-04-03T00:46:00.000-07:00

Creamsicle-Colored Wagon Can Handle Groceries And The Quarter-Mile

By Scott Ross
Photography by Jerry Heasley

Back in the day, Mopar's B-Body wagons were familiar sights around the country-not just in shopping-center parking lots and hauling families around deepest, darkest Suburbia, but they were also seen trackside. At the drags, you'd see them push-starting the gas and fuel dragsters of the day, as well as towing, parts-carrying, and crew-hauling.

Pushbutton Patina. 1964 marked the last year for dash-mounted Torqueflite pushbuttons. Over the years, these weren't power-shifted too often.

But you'd rarely see them built to run or show, unlike Ma Mopar's midsized two-doors. That is until the last decade or so, when the supply of project-ready two-doors shrank at a faster rate than that of similar four-door sedans and wagons, while the supply of project-ready Mopar builders stayed the same, or grew.

With the air cleaners off, the dual four-barrels, their linkage and "short-ram" intake manifold look like mid-'60s modern art. Modern dual-circuit master cylinder/power brake booster keeps the exhibition from closing prematurely.

Tim Simpson's '64 Dodge wagon had seen both civilian-hauler and hauling-down-the-strip duty before he found it. It's not certain what engine was in it when it was built-Slant Six, 318 Poly, or a 361 or 383 B-engine-but there was a 426 Max Wedge in there at one time. "The car originally came out of Illinois," he says from his Lebanon, Pennsylvania, shop. "I found it over the Internet, and it had a 440 in it when I bought it. The guy I bought it from said he'd got the car out of Texas, and the guy he bought it from had been drag-racing the car with a Max Wedge in it. He also had an original Max Wedge car, and that's why he originally bought the wagon-to put the Max Wedge engine in it. Eventually, he dropped the 440 in the wagon and sold it, and that's how I ended up with it."

Tim shows off his '64 Dodge's rear cargo room with the back seat down. Back then this was billed as "full-sized." Nowadays, this much room gets its own area code!

Tim decided to make a dual-purpose wagon out of the '64, one that would handle occasional load-carrying as well as occasional bursts down the quarter-mile. He also wanted to make it look like something that a Mopar devotee would have assembled with the help of the Direct Connection performance-parts catalog. "What I did was I got hold of a friend who worked at a Chrysler dealership, and he turned around and got me an old Direct Connection catalog, and that's basically how we built that car-exactly the way it was back in the '70s," says Tim. "That was my whole intention-to make the car look like they were back then." Remembering a buddy's '64 Plymouth wagon, and how it was built, also gave Tim some period-correct inspiration.

Orange It Cool? The orange-centered color scheme carries over to the inside of Tim's wagon. The dash is stock except for the Grant GT steering wheel and Vintage Air A/C outlets.

Under the original, unscooped steel hood went a 440, built by Midway Performance in nearby Bethel, Pennsylvania. "We took a 440 and, as you can see by the pictures, it looks like a Max Wedge. I put aluminum heads on it and all that."

The 727 got freshened, thanks to John Seiberling at Seiberling's Service Center, also located in Bethel. Inside the OEM aluminum case, a rebuild kit was joined by a 1,500-stall converter, and the original pushbutton shifter (which made its last factory-installed appearance in 1964) was retained. Out back, the 8¾ rearend was also upgraded, gaining a set of 3.90:1 rear gears in the process.

The chassis also received plenty of upgrades, just like the rest of the car. The braking system got a power-brake booster along with a dual-circuit master cylinder that replaced the original single-circuit stock piece, while a pair of SSBC discs went on in front and a pair of 11-inch Mopar drums were fitted in back. Suspension-wise, the original front torsion bar/rear leaf setup was retained, with a pair of Mopar Super Stock rear leaf bundles (which were moved inboard for tire clearance) replacing the well-worn original springs. Period-correct Cragas S/S five-spoke wheels also went on each corner.

When it came time for bodywork, Tim kept that in-house at his shop (Simpson's Body Shop in Lebanon, Pennsylvania). They kept the mid-level 440 series trim while adding a decidedly non-original paint scheme. "The paint is actually a mix of Mazda and Toyota colors," says Tim. "I used the Mazda base and the Toyota pearl on top of that. My son and I came up with it."

1964 Dodge 440 Station Wagon - Built To Haul

The resulting color combination reminded a lot of people of a favorite frozen treat. "I laugh when everybody tells me that I should have a Creamsicle logo put on the side of it," Tim says. "I say, 'Well, I've been thinking of that-calling it the Creamsicle!' "

Orange and white are also the colors covering the stock bench seats and the door panels-joined by tan carpeting on the floors, lower door panels, and in the cargo area. "I had that done by Gruber's Upholstery in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania," Tim notes.

The result is a '64 Dodge 440 wagon that excels at both kinds of hauling, especially on the quarter-mile Maple Grove Raceway strip, where Tim opened it up. "We ran the car there just to see what it would do the way it sits-we didn't do anything to it," Jim says. "We turned a 12.70 with it at 105 mph." How about the more routine kind of hauling such as groceries, etc.? Tim says, "Oh yes! That's what I put it together for, and to have fun with it."

So you see, dear Dodge devotees and Plymouth people, you can build a four-door early B-Body to look and run great, just like you can with the two-door ones. Plus, with the wagon body style, your family and friends can get in and out easier .and you can haul groceries home in it as easily as you can haul you-know-what on the strip.

For more exclusive photos, check out www.moparmusclemagazine.com

Fast Facts

'64 Dodge 440 Station Wagon
Owned by: Tim Simpson, Lebanon, Pennsylvania

Mopar Power

Engine: A Max Wedge-ified 440, wearing the classic "Ramcharger" cross-ram 2x4 intake between a set of aluminum heads. Carburetion is a pair of Carter four-barrels with correct Max Wedge linkage. This RB also has an aluminum radiator and an MSD ignition with a 6,000-rpm rev limiter.

Transmission: Rebuilt 727 with a 1,500 stall converter and original dash-mounted pushbutton/cable shift linkage.

Rearend: 3.90-geared 8¾ rearend is stout enough for the 440-powered 440.

Sure Grip

Suspension: OEM-style front torsion bars are joined by Mopar Super Stock rear leaf springs, moved inboard for tire clearance.

Brakes: Updated system has dual-circuit master cylinder, SSBC front discs, OEM Mopar 11-inch rear drums, and is power assisted.

Wheels: Period-correct Cragar S/S five-spokes.

High Impact

Body: Original '64 B-Body station wagon unibody wears correct Dodge 440 trim, plus a correct-for-'64 chrome roof rack. Owner Tim Simpson, helped by his son and one of his Simpson's Body Shop craftsmen, did the bodywork himself.

Paint: A combination of Mazda Orange and Toyota Pearl White, sprayed on at Simpson's Body Shop, Lebanon, Pennsylvania

Interior: Gruber's Upholstery in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania, went with the orange/white "Creamsicle" theme with vinyl matching the exterior colors on the original bench seats and the upper door panels. Tan carpeting covers the rear cargo area, rear sear back, and the bottom of each door panel. Also inside: a Grant GT steering wheel, tachometer, OEM pushbutton AM radio, and Vintage Air AC system.

Welcome to Old Dodge Trucks

2009-04-01T21:41:00.001-07:00

This is the old truck that got me interested in things Dodge-related, built in Detroit 1940, and shipped over to Mulliners in England. They bodied it as a RAF crewbus coach, and was used on wartime airfields in the UK. Post WW2 it was sold off at a dispersal auction and lightly modified for a new civilian life as a racing car transporter, until being laid up in 1955.

1940 Dodge VK62B Ex RAF

This unique old Dodge was used in the late 1940s and early 1950s as a racing car transporter by R.D. Poore motor racing, when Dennis Poore competed with his 1935 ex-Scuderia Ferrari / Nuvolari supercharged Alfa Romeo Tipo 8C-35. He competed in numerous sprint meetings, hillclimbs and formula libre motor racing meetings in the postwar years.

Immediately after WW2, Dennis Poore used his old Ford V8 road car to tow the Alfa on its custom made trailer around the country. This was proving to be heavy going for the wheezy old Ford, as the Alfa was a lot more substantial than the little K3 MGs that Poore raced pre-war.

The search began for a replacement tow vehicle. Poore was ex-RAF himself, and I understand that the Dodge he bought came from a dispersal auction not long after WW2, when many of these sturdy 3 ton Detroit Dodges were disposed of, not least due to their thirst for 4 star. This LHD example, shipped over originally in 1940/41 as a chassis/scuttle assembly direct from Chryslers plant in Michigan, was part of a consignment originally destined for France, but, on the invasion by the axis powers, was re-assigned to British forces where they were split between both the Army and Royal Air Force. Many RAF vehicles were fitted out with a standard cargo body, but a number were dispatched to the coachbuilding firm Mulliners, in Birmingham, to be fitted up with coachbuilt crewbus bodywork. 2 versions were designed, one with the standard Dodge cab and separate Mulliner rear bodywork (a speaker tube connecting the driver to his crew) and an integral version, where the Dodge chassis/scuttle (to just above the windscreen) had an integral version of the 'bus bodywork fitted. Its the latter that mine has, featuring non-Dodge panelwork from the doors and cab roof, back. Separate bodies were also fitted to Fordson chassis' of the period, one of which has been restored as an RAF vehicle at East Kirkby airfield in Lincs.

During the war, it would have been fitted with a substantial brush guard ahead of the grille assembly (as testified by the holes let into the front grille to accomodate the guard stays), and blackout curtains to the rear windows, none of which are there now (and were probably removed prior to auction just after the war). Other than these few modifications, the truck would have been sold on pretty much 'as is', the intricate folding step below the 2 rear doors for instance still remaining. I haven't yet found any markings to indicate where my old Dodge was used, or anything else to shed light on its wartime role.

To modify the vehicle for its new role, Poore added in a winch, wheel stops, and bracketry to support the ramps that the car would have gone up and down. Later on in its new life it was fitted with a hinged frame to the nearside bodywork, which hinges out and clipped to a pair of vertical support legs, over which a canvas cover would be rolled, this being rolled up and tied to the Dodge's roof when not required. This acted as an awning under which repairs could be made to the Alfa Romeo between races. The original headlamps were removed at some time in its life, being deemed not very effective (6v electrics still remain however) and were replaced with an expensive pair of Marchal lamps, one of which has been damaged some time ago, but for which I have a replacement 'in stock'. I have no idea where the original lamps went to.

Similar vehicles were used by other drivers & teams after the war. I understand that the Connaught racing team used a similarly styled separate bodied version on a 6 wheeled Austin chassis, and I have seen a photograph of a converted Dodge crewbus (separate rear body, standard Dodge cab) behind a photo of George Abecassis' racing car, this one having had its windows paneled over and covered with numerous period sponsor advertisements. My Dodge still bears some of the hallmarks of its earlier, pre-racing, life, most notably in the varied selection of tyres that it still wears, a few of which are to original 1940s military pattern. Behind the rear doors, a pair of small lockers with hinged down lids are visible, and careful investigation beneath several layers of paint exposed an original plastic-type label affixed to the cover of one of these locker lids, proclaiming 'Chains', which presumably meant that they held tyre chains for fitting when the going got boggy out on an airfield somewhere.

A few years back I was fortunate to meet a gent that makes small volume white metal kits for the specialist model builder market, and needed an original crewbus to measure up for his plans. This he did, spending several hours measuring and making notes on my truck. In return, he was able to provide me with some faded photocopies of the original Mulliner design blueprints for my exact vehicle, and the separate bodied version also, both on the 3 ton 188" wheelbase VK spec (VK62B) Dodge chassis.

This was a great find, and has allowed me to further understand the original layout of the vehicle during it's earlier years in active service. From an article in Wheels and Tracks there is a good write-up on the VK62B Dodge, and mention is made of my type of vehicle, plus details of how some were converted later on in the war to be used as mobile training classrooms, used by companies such as Rotol in the maintenance of their propellers. Wheels and Tracks was also able to confirm that the civilian style Dodge panelwork is correct for this model of Dodge used by both the Army and Air Force, the only change being the inclusion of holes in the front ('41 style) grille for the brush guard stays.

One curious feature that I've yet to get to the bottom of is the existence of the very Mulliner-esque aluminium swoopy strips that exist on the front doors and on top of the bonnet, running from the centre of the bonnet's leading edge, diagonally across the top panel, extending across the cowl and down the front doors. These seem to be strange things to have on a military vehicle, the need for which must have been quite pressing and urgent at the time. Maybe it was a demonstrator vehicle produced by Mulliners, on to which they added a few styling cues hinting at their earlier (grander) designs for coach bodywork prior to the war? Or were they just feeling slightly flamboyant one Friday afternoon and using up some redundant stock they had lying around? On removing them the paint below is just a yellow primer type stuff, the various blues and (in Poore's ownership) dark green being applied around the strips. If I look closely there are signs of there having been 2 similar swoopy strips running down each side of the rear bodywork, starting narrow and splaying out and downwards as they pass over the rear wheels, again in the style of civilian buses from the 1930s. The strips along the rear sides have long since been removed, possibly by Poore, probably so as not obscure the sponsorship signwriting that has been applied. Only the mounting screw holes remain for where the trim once ran, that and signs of early corrosion that must have occurred as a result of a reaction between the alloy trim and steel panelling, marking out where the trim once ran.

I've tried to establish what colour schemes the Dodge has had during its life. Now very faded, the paintwork seen here in the photographs started out as a deep green colour, probably matching the green that Poore ran the Alfa in, confirmed by both of the 2 team mechanics who I was fortunate in being able to speak with about their times with Poore and his motor racing outings. Scraping through the layers of paint however does throw up some questions. Below and to the outside of the aluminium strips already mentioned there are signs of a dark blue on top of a lighter blue paint colour, this runs from the outside of the bonnet top strips, down the sides, taking in the front wings and the front doors below the strips. However above the aluminium strips, and between them on top of the bonnet, running rear up and over the cab, there are signs of a dusty yellow directly beneath its current green topcoat, which seems to indicate that it may have run with a strange colour scheme at some point in its life. And as the colour scheme seems to directly follow the line of these aluminium flashing strips, the earlier life of this truck seems ever more confusing. Was it converted into a mobile classroom sometime during the war and then updated with these civilian style aluminium flashings and a different paintjob? maybe it saw some service out in the desert (hence the sandy yellow paint to be found), then brought back and assigned to training duties, receiving at this point localised areas of repainting in blue and the trim strips, possibly applied by some RAF engineers just to improve the look of the vehicle, or differentiate it from those still in active airfield duty? If anyone can advise it would be appreciated!

During my research I have tried to locate photographs of the truck in action after the war at race meetings. One of my earlier finds was courtesy of the programme issued for the first Goodwood Revival meeting back in 1998, which shows an overhead view of the paddock at the very first Goodwood meeting in 1948. Along the righthandside is a line of parked racing cars and their transporters, one of which is the Dodge, although only the back end can be seen, with the Alfa a couple of positions further along, being worked on by the mechanics (Sten 'Tammy' Aberg and Bill Lawes).

A better picture can be seen in a book on motor racing that I found. Inside is a picture of a racing driver in 500cc single seater racing car. In the background, and out of focus, is the back end of my Dodge (this time emblazoned with its sponsor advertising) with the ramps extended and the Alfa parked alongside, partially covered up. Another period shot was found at the 2002 Goodwood Festival of Speed, whilst I was flicking through a mountain of old motor racing photographs. In a binder of amateur photographs, I discovered a picture of a 1930s Mercedes sports car, and clearly parked behing it is the Dodge, showing 2/3rds of the truck and this time, including the front end, with the Alfa alongside surrounded by inquisitive children. Finding pictures of Poore driving, whether in his Alfa, or for the Connaught or Aston teams, is not too difficult, bit finding anything that shows him in a paddock with the Dodge is very difficult, and if anyone can add to my collection please get in touch.

Another find was pointed out to me in the form of an article published in Classic & Sportscar magazine back in 1988, shortly after Poore's death. This article discussed whether old racing cars should be preserved 'as is' or restored to as-new condition. Much of the article was given over to the extrication of the timewarp Alfa Romeo and the Dodge, plus all the other team effects such as pit boards and spares, from the barn in which they had been stored. There were some great pictures of both the car and the Dodge at slumber. A contact of mine also furnished me with a picture of the Dodge when it was temporarily put on display in the Donington Park motor racing museum. Another interesting find was an original auction catalogue for the '88 Monaco racing car sale, when the Alfa and all the team effects including the Dodge and trailer were sold off. Of course, if anyone has any further pictures showing the old Dodge in use, and they'd be willing to let me take a copy of it (or at least see it) then please do get in touch, it'd be much appreciated. Shortly after getting the Dodge I was fortunate enough to get the matching trailer, designed pre-war and modified later to carry the Alfa. It was roadtested to 98mph, although quite what the towcar was to get the trailer upto such velocities is not recorded!

Another stroke of luck was when a gentleman got in touch whose father ran an identical Dodge bus to mine after the war for his travelling funfair business. He sent me some great photographs (which can be viewed on this VK page) and a drawing of their Dodge VK, a vehicle which sadly was cut up despite being in good order, in the early 1960s (sob). Someone told me that a building firm ran a fleet of these buses to ferry out brickies to building sites in postwar Britain, but I've yet to have this confirmed. I have however found photos of VK Dodges that were bought, rebodied, and used as coaches in Southend by a local operator.

As I've already mentioned briefly, I was fortunate enough to be able to make contact with the 2 mechanics who worked for Dennis Poore 50+ years ago. Initially it was Tammy (real name Sten) Aberg who I found, or rather who found me, via a picture I sent of the transporter to C&S magazine. I met up with Tammy a number of times, and spent many hours talking about 1940s/50s motor racing, not just with Poore, but the whole scene of postwar motorsport in the UK. He was able to tell me some great stories about the Dodge. He put me in touch with Bill Lawes, who now lives in New Zealand, and was Dennis Poore's #1 mechanic. I was also fortunate enough to meet up with Bill at Goodwood, and he was able to add to the stories that Tammy (who is sadly no longer with us) told me.

Had the Dodge not been in dry store from 1955 (when Poore retired from racing) through to 1987, I doubt it would have survived. When I first saw it in the 1990s it had suffered at the hands of both the elements and vandals, with glass & dials smashed, piled up with rubbish and one small step from the cutters torch. Since then I have had it in dry store until such time as I had facility to commence what would be a lengthy rebuild, acquiring spares whenever I can in the meantime. Finding parts unique to the 3 ton, 5.4 engined VK is far from easy, so I'd welcome all leads that anyone can suggest please. If you know of a VK in a breakers yard in the UK, USA or wherever, please let me know!! The rebuild of my old Dodge can now be followed on a blog I'm running on a different website - click here to have a look.

Follow the restoration of a 1940s Dodge lorry, originally built for WW2 and later used by Dennis Poore

Click Here for Old Dodge Trucks in the UK

Australian Pilothouse Style Trucks

2009-04-01T21:31:00.000-07:00

http://dodgepilothouseclub.org/index.htm

Welcome to the Land of OZ

I have tried to piece together a brief history of the Pilot-house style Dodge trucks in Australia. Some information has come from workshop and parts manuals, other info comes from sticking my head into every truck of this type I have seen since my father brought a used one, some forty years ago. I will not state that it is all 100%correct, but it should give you a guide when combined with the brochures as to the history of these trucks in Australia.

Initially the information below deals with the 108 range of trucks.

As time allows I intend to add more info, hopefully including photograph’s, to cover full range of these trucks.

If anyone has any information, remarks or comments they would like to pass on I would appreciate it. I can usually be found lurking around GTK`s www.pilot-house.com. forum or email me at bts53@bigpond.net.au

From 1948 until early 53 Chrysler Australia imported their Pilot-house truck line from Canada in a knock down form and assembled them here. (Not sure what form that took)

They were sold under the Dodge and Fargo name. The Fargo name seems to be the most predominate I have seen on trucks of this time period.

DE-FM 48,49 Eng, T143 (3 3/8 x 4 1/16, 218.06 cu”) All engines fitted
DF-FN 50 Eng, T173 (3 3/8 x 4 1/16, 218.06 cu”) in Australian are

Examples of chassis numbers 90080286, 90086233 long blocks (25”)
108 model available as Standard Utility, only.
GVW 4850 lbs

When in 1951-53, the Canadian (DG-DH, FO-FP) and US (B3-B4) models changed the hood, grille panel, grille and doors, Australia did not.

Our model continued on the same as the 1950 model, though it carried the DG-FO Identification. (I think the panels were still pressed in Canada? not sure!) DG-FO

51 to early 53 Eng, T307 (3 3/8 x 4 1/16, 218.06 cu”)

Examples of Chassis numbers on these imports were 90093538, 9010281371C
51-52 available as Standard Utility only.

From late 52 until May 53, the model range increased to included Standard Ute, Panel Van and Tray top.

GVW 4850 lbs No DH- FO model.

From May 53 Chrysler Australia, commenced production of the Pilothouse range of trucks, at their Keswick plant, in Maple Avenue, South Australia.

The body style stayed the same as the earlier (1950) import models.

They were sold under the names, Dodge, Fargo and Desoto.

All trucks were the same, just the badges changed. (Badge engineering)

The Serial Number Plate (vin #) was stamped to denote which brand name was to be used i.e.,

108A D is a Dodge
108A F is a Fargo
108A S is a Desoto

It is not uncommon to find a serial plate saying one thing and the badging saying another.

Apparently if a customer wanted a particular brand name and body style and it was not in stock, the local dealer would just take the badging of another truck to match what the customer wanted. (Customer service or what) Dodge and Fargo are the most common names seen for this time period. Desoto badged trucks are very rare.

May 1953 to July 1955,108 A and B

The 108 A was a carry-over from the Canadian import model. The A model used the earlier Canadian steering parts, and Canadian chassis. The B model used a different steering box (fore-aft motion) and tie rod system, and the chassis were locally produced.

All body panels were now produced in Australia.

All models had the electrical system changed from the 6V Autolite system to a 12V Lucas positive earth system.

Both A and B models 108`s, until early 54, came with three engine choices.

All long blocks. (25”)

T307 =218.06 (3 3/8 x 4 1/16)
T311 =228 (3 3/8 x 4 ¼)

Kew 2B =250.06 (3 7/16 x 4 ½ Usually called 251cu”, in Australia)
From early 54 on, all 108`s were fitted with a KEW-2B, 251” standard.

The 108 GVW was increased from 4850 lbs to 5250 lbs.

Model range included

108A Standard (1068 produced, model ended July 1954) available as-Standard Ute only.
108B Deluxe (5697 produced) available as- Standard Ute, Deluxe Ute, Tray Top, Panel Van, Suburban (Panel Van with windows, single seat, bench seat, 3 seats), and Express.

The words, standard and deluxe, after 108 are used as a way to distinguish between the A and B models only. There is no difference in the cab options.
Australia used (from 48) the cab with door vent windows and rear three windows. In Canada and the US this would be called a custom cab. To my knowledge we never had the single rear window cab.

There is however a large difference between the Standard Ute and the Deluxe Ute in the108B (C, D, E, F) model line. The Deluxe Ute was also called the Coupe Ute.

Aug 1955 to Aug 58, 108 C and D

(This model is also referred to in the parts manuals as the face lift model) The cab was slightly modified to fit a one-piece front window, and the grille panel and grille were changed.

Hood ornament and front name badge changed.

These modifications as you can see are a flow on from the Us-Canada 1954 changes, although we still use the Pilot-house body.

All engines Kew 2B, 251”

Model range included - Standard Ute, Deluxe Ute, Tray Top, Panel Van, Suburban and Express.

Aug 1958 and 59 108 E

All trucks now are sold under the Dodge banner. Fargo and Desoto names were discontinued. The only cosmetic change was the grille, from a two bar to one bar, across the front.

Brakes were upgraded to 12”. Engine was still the 251”, the prefix now TE 1.
Though the large trucks (20,000 lbs GVW) received the V8 motor, they were never available in the 108-model range.

The 108 GVW increased from 5250 lbs to5500 lbs

Model range included - Standard Ute, Deluxe Ute, Tray Top, Panel Van, Suburban and Express

1960, 61 108F

Again the grille panel was changed. This time twin headlights were added, and a large chrome grille piece.

Engine still the TE 1, 251”. Model range included - Standard Ute, Deluxe Ute, Tray Top, Panel Van, Suburban and Express.

1962 The Pilothouse range was still being sold; but it was the end of the line.
The new AT4 line up had arrived. (Australian built. There was to be another badge engineering effort in this model range beween Dodge and International)

Tony Buckley
Perth
Western Australia.

Li'l Red Express Truck

2009-04-01T21:20:00.000-07:00

The Dodge Boys put out appearance packages (on both cars and trucks) several times through their history. An example of this came on the 1970 Adventurer Pickup with the DUDE package on the Sweptline body style. In the early 1970's they came out with the HANG 10 on the Duster body style.

As the 1970's progressed, the U.S. Government was (and still is) choking the performance out of the American Automakers and Dodge was no exception. For all intents and purposes, vehicles produced during this time were unexciting at best. During the 1950's and 1960's, we were used to the Automotive Industry producing distinctive vehicles that each manufacturer's supporters would proudly purchase. After the Oil Embargo of 1973, the Big Four (General Motors, Ford, Chrysler & AMC) were scrambling to make anything the American public would buy. Thank goodness, people still needed trucks so the manufacturers kept on pumping them out. But at that time, they were work vehicles and not very interesting.

In order to change this perception, Dodge decided to spice up life a bit by putting something interesting out for public consumption with their Adult Toy Program. Beginning in April of 1978, Dodge put out the Li'l Red Express Truck.

At the time the Li'l Red Express Truck was produced, government regulations had already choked the horsepower out of muscle cars, but light trucks were still relatively regulation free. This was the last year that light trucks were exempt from the pollution controls that had robbed the horsepower from performance vehicles. Dodge decided it was going to create one of North America's last factory "Hot Rods". The Li'l Red Truck was pretty wild appearance wise, with chrome wheels mounted with fat tires, bright red paint, dual exhaust stacks and rakish stance. If you were looking for something that would have everyone looking at you, this was the truck. Under the hood was a 360 cu. in. police engine without all the smog control and lean burning parts that had choked the horsepower out of passenger cars. A dual snorkel air cleaner inhaled fresh air to feed a large 850 cfm ThermoQuad carb. Along with the free flowing 2 1/2" chrome stacks located directly behind the cab, the special engine produced horsepower to its peak with a thunderous roar.

The History of the Last American Hot Rod

The year was 1977. Uncle Sam had his hands around the throats of the auto manufacturers who still wanted to build performance cars. Focus on emissions and fuel economy were taking the fun out of Detroit and Tom Hoover, Chrysler's longtime race engine guru, was lusting to build "The Last American Hot Rod". Racers are always looking for loopholes in the rulebook.

Hoover was a racer to his core and understood loopholes. He was also a dedicated believer in, and practitioner of, the fine art of performance on the street. Uncle Sam's regulations in the 70's had made it very difficult to build low volume, special performance packages for the street. So Hoover went to his friends in Chrysler's emission group to look for a loophole - and he found one. Through that loophole came the Li'l Red Express Truck. Hoover discovered truck emissions rules were a little more lenient than they were for cars. If an established and certified engine family was installed in a light truck, the Feds allowed a minimal number of changes to the engine package without having to return the full certification cycle (Hoover thinks the number was somewhere between 6 and 9). "Well!" Hoover thought, "we may have just found the way to build my 'Last American Hot Rod'".

He spec'd out a package to include street W-2 heads, more cam, a dual snorkel air cleaner with cold air induction, a low restriction exhaust system, a 3.55 Sure-Grip rear axle, chrome wheels and big tires. Using W-2 heads offered two advantages. The first and most obvious was increased performance. The second, a little more subtle, was: We were looking for a way to get them legal for drag racing. Building a W-2 production truck package would help establish W-2 availability and legalize their use. The next step was to get Sales and Product Planning behind his new project. Hoover came to me and we went to Gordon Cherry, Truck Product Planning Manager, with the proposal. Cherry, a performance enthusiast, liked the idea a lot and saw it as a way to add some glamour to Dodge trucks, which were somewhat dated at that time. Gordon said, "Build a prototype wile I work on lining up Sales Division support." We got Hoover a truck and sent it to Ted Spehar’s Specialized Vehicles, Chrysler’s race shop at the time, to be built into the Li’l Red Truck prototype. Hoover gave the project responsibility to Dave Koffel. Koffel was running the drag racing program for Hoover but, like everyone else in the Race Group, he got to wear many hats in addition to his "regular" job. Since Spehar was up to his ears in other race projects at the time, Koffel sent the engine buildup job to Gary Ostrich in Nevada, Iowa. Ostrich had been a contact drag racer and was building drag and short track engines in his shop.

Starting with a production 360 four-barrel truck engine, they had added W-2 heads, a ’68 340 automatic cam (P/N 2899206) with a 268 degree intake lobe, a reworked Edelbrock LD-340 intake manifold with a big Carter ThermoQuad carburetor and a viscous fan drive. Dual exhausts were added with a balance tube and big mufflers. Cold air came in through the parking lights. The transmission was an A-727 TorqueFlite (LoafFlite for trucks) with 440 four-barrel (A-134) Internals and an A-904 torque converter. Most people think of Hoover as a died-in-the-wool engine enthusiast, but he also has a soft spot for appearance, so the LRT got chrome valve covers, chrome wheels (15x7 in front, 15x8 in back), big (LR-60x15) tires and those oh-so-recognizable vertical exhaust stacks. The stacks had "flapper lids" on them like the rain guards on diesel trucks. My input from the street rodder's perspective was to add taillights similar to those on a '36 Ford. The prototype was finished in December 1976. It spent a little time on the street to make sure it drove okay and was quick enough to be interesting. Then Spehar and Bill Hancock drove it to DeSoto drag strip in Bradenton, Florida, for some final testing. Hoover told Hancock when they left to test at Bradenton, "Don't bring it back until it runs in the 14s and over 100 mph." They left the track at 13.76 and 119. In the meantime, planning for the 1978 Long Lead Press Preview in which all of the new 1978 models would be introduced to the print press was beginning. While the Long Lead focuses on new models, the public relations folks never turn down a chance to have something unusual there to stir up the press. Since they and the Truck Product Planners were all familiar with the LRT and what it stood for, it was decided to bring the prototype to the Long Lead. To use a hackneyed phrase, it was decided to run the LRT up the flagpole and see if anyone saluted. Well, salute they did!!

Keeping in mind that the pickup truck market was much more industrial in 1978, the idea of a unique performance truck was BIG news and the LRT was a huge hit with the performance press. For a "Gee, we might build a few of these" project vehicle, it received an inordinate amount of exposure. Probably the biggest coup to come out of the Long Lead was when Don Sherman, then with Car & Driver magazine, decided it would be interesting to take the LRT to the State of Ohio Transportation Research Center in Marysville, Ohio, where there was a 7.5-mile-long, high-speed oval. There, he planned to run it against industry performance cars in a double the double-nickel (over 110 mph) high-speed and acceleration test he was doing for his magazine. The public relations, product planning and especially the race people thought that was a great idea and off to Ohio it went. When the testing was over, the LRT was a star. Running against a 350/220 hp L-82 Corvette, a 400/225 hp Pontiac Trans-Am, a 305/145 hp Chevy Monza Spyder and a 121/110 hp Porsche 944, the 360/225 hp LRT was the quickest 0-100 at 19.9 seconds and fourth fastest at 118.8mph. In another dragstrip test against a Porsche 928, Porsche 911SC, Ferrari 308GTS, Porsche Turbo, and the fastest Corvette of the time, only the Porsche Turbo was quicker. The LRT ran the quarter mile in 14.71 seconds against the 928 at 15.3, the 911SC at 14.8, the Ferrari at 15.8 and the Corvette at 15.3. Keeping in mind this was 1978, over 20 years ago, and the LRT was powered by a small-block, it was pretty exciting when this red brick with chrome stacks had a top speed of well over 118 mph. Dragstrip results were even more frosting on the LRT cake. As you might expect, Hoover's package was a better drag racer than high-speed runner; it truly was America's last hot rod.

After the truck was returned, it was time to present it to the Engineering department for their blessing for production. The reception was less than enthusiastic. The reaction to the W-2 heads in production could generally be described as, "Not in my lifetime!" by the Engine Design and Development Chief Engineer. The consensus was the heads were too much of a deviation to fit through the emissions loophole and would be too hard to get through certification. Since no durability work of any consequence had been done, there was also concern about how the heads would hold up in a daily driver. In truth, a certification engine was covertly run on the night shift and did pass the truck "short" test. The Chief Engineer found out, got rid of the guys who ran the test and said, "No!" By the time the battles in Engineering were over, the W-2 heads were gone, and the cold air had become "not quite so cold" air from the radiator yoke, but the camshaft, carburetor, viscous fan and exhaust had survived. The taillights didn't make the cut either. While it was still a pretty good package, it obviously wasn't as fast as the prototype. For those who would say all the magazine testing was with a package that didn't truly represent a production vehicle, I'd say that at the time of the test, the prototype was legitimate. All the production changes came later. While Engineering was mulling over the entire package, Product Planning was adding their input. To make the LRT more distinctive, wood was added to the sides, tailgate and bed and the decals to the doors. As you can imagine, there was some resistance to the decals by the race guys, but if that was part of the political price to be paid for getting the project through, so be it. Heat shields on the pipes came after a few people burned their legs on the unshielded pipes. The last hurdle was noise. Uncle Sam had noise limits on light trucks and the LRT, which sounded good to racers, was too loud. Koffel went to the Sound Lab for an education in sound testing, borrowed some equipment and took the prototype to Milan Dragway to sort out the noise problems. The noise problem nearly drove him to the end of his notoriously short patience. As usual, it wasn't just the exhaust. While the fan and air cleaner were big contributors, the exhaust was the only one we could fix, and the rattling "flappers" were the worst offenders. After getting rid of the flappers and adding exit bends to the top of the pipes, pointing them towards the rear, he was able to pass Federal test. Three locations had sound limits we couldn't meet, the state of California, Rockford, Illinois, and Murray, Utah. The solution to that problem was simple: Don't sell them there. Finally, the LRT was approved and ready for production.

Records show 2,188 were built in 1978. The 1978 LRT was a big hit in the market and with dealers, so production was upped to 5,118 for '79. The 1979 LRT was cosmetically nearly identical to the '78, with just enough subtle changes to distinguish the two. However, the 340 cam was dropped in favor of the standard 360 cam to simplify assembly in the engine plant and catalysts were added. The trucks were sailing out of the dealership's doors, when BOOM-the gas crunch hit. A hot item in the marketplace suddenly went stone cold and orders stopped. Because of the gas crunch, Dodge dropped plans for a 1980 LRT. The '78's and '79's immediately dropped in value because of their appetite for fuel. However, owners who hung on to them found later that their LRT's had turned into very valuable assets. I think AutoWeek magazine summed the LRT up best when they said it didn't have any long-term impact on the market since it was only around for two years then disappeared. However, they also commented, "The Li'l Red Truck was perhaps simply an anachronism, but mostly it was a big nose thumbing to everyone who said you weren't allowed to enjoy yourself anymore. And maybe that's why it's so much fun." To that I would add, Tom Hoover was right on the mark when he proposed and speced out his "Last American Hot Rod."

Most everyone who knows anything about trucks has either heard of, seen one or owned one of the famous Li'l Red Express Pickups. Released to limited production, it came in any color as long as it was RED! You had your choice of engines, provided it was the 360 Hi Performance. The Li'l Red Express, with it's name emblazoned across the doors and tailgate and it's trademark vertical exhaust stacks behind the cab. A sharp looking truck, especially if you like blatent flash advertising the fact that Dodge produced the fastest production vehicle made in America!

The Lil Red Express and the Warlock both shared an oak lined bed. Both shared the short stepside bed Dodge had available on all pickups from 1958 to 1981. The actual body panels and mechanicals were all standard D 100/150 production. They both had standard stepside chrome bumpers and standard grille treatments. The Warlock had eight (8) spoke wheels painted Gold with black pinstripes, almost a counterpoint to the body scrolling. The Li'l Red Express had Chrome five-slot disc road wheels.

The Dodge Warlock was produced from 1976 to 1979, even though the 1979 said Warlock II on the tailgate. The Li'l Red, which was produced in 1978 & 1979, made a good impression on the buying public and has become a very popular truck even today.The Warlock was not near as popular and has been relegated to an almost mythical status. It has become one of the most misunderstood vehicles to come along in quite some time.

Concept Truck, The Maxx

2009-03-28T18:44:00.000-07:00

THE MAXXIMUM TRUCK

Dodge engineers have accomplished what seemed to be the impossible by creating a truck that makes passengers a priority.

One gaze at this powerful concept vehicle from Dodge and you'll realize that it's different. Dodge MAXXcab turns the traditional upside down by providing plenty of comfort. You might even call it a Passenger Priority Pick-up. We do. After all, MAXXcab utilizes cab-forward design to provide uncommon interior spaciousness, and can accommodate kids with three built-in child safety seats.

With all the interior comforts we didn't forget about the cargo aspect. The 4.7-liter V8 engine has all the horsepower and torque that a Dodge enthusiast demands - 238 horsepower and 295 pound feet of torque, to be exact, meaning MAXXcab has the power to pull the heaviest of loads. Plus, to make loading and unloading easier, the MAXXcab features an elevator tailgate.

The Dodge MAXXcab concept vehicle provides a different approach to the traditional pickup, because at Dodge, different is what we're all about.

Key Features:

Cab Forward Design improves interior volume and creates a "SemiTruck" appearance

Integrated steps support the importance of passengers

Power child safety seat in the middle of the back row makes access easier

Overhead camera allows the driver to monitor the kids

Edu-tainment center includes Internet, a sketch pad and DVD player

Infotronic system includes a plug-n-play laptop computer, e-mail, Internet and voice recognition for phone, navigation, laptop functions and vehicle diagnostics

Butane Blue Pearl exterior with Navy leather seats and trim