Inhaltsverzeichnis für August 2022 in Mopar Action

PA MOPAR (STELLANTIS) is putting muscle where their mouth is. Promising to deliver electric-powered vehicles to match the blistering performance of their mighty internal combustion Hemis, the company unleashed a Jeep Wrangler concept dubbed the Wrangler Magneto 2.0. We emphasize “concept” (not production ready) so as to prevent a stampede to your local Mope dealer, but we know how concepts can morph into showroom models if Stellantis sees enough consumer interest. One look at the specs and performance numbers, and if that doesn’t spark your interest, you’d better have someone check you for a pulse. Take acceleration. Who doesn’t have an interest in acceleration (hey you, in the back of the room with your hand raised—please leave now)! How does zero to 60 MPH in 2 seconds grab you? That…

DART BOUNCE Hi Richard–I emailed you a short time ago regarding the production numbers for my ’65 Dart. I have another question for you. It has a Dana 60 with Super Stock springs and shocks. That was the setup from the race days many moons ago. Since I don’t race the car anymore, I would like a little softer ride. Can you recommend a good quality stock type shock? I am not sure but are the S/S shocks longer? The front suspension is stock. John Heidenreich via email John–Yes, S/S springs, assuming not de-arched, were meant to be paired with 25" C-body shocks. The springs are not any longer than stock A-body springs but have lots more arch. With stock front suspension, it must be Corvair-like (massive oversteer when pushed).…

SEPTEMBER 14, 1969, marked the inaugural running of the Talladega 500 at the just-opened Alabama International Motor Speedway. It was also the début of the new and radical 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona with its wild 23-inch high wing and nose cone. Fans were treated to a thrilling race, ultimately ending in a Charger Daytona victory with Richard Brickhouse behind the wheel. Fans were also treated to a closeup of the new production street Daytona in a static display, clad in eyeball-spinning V2 Hemi Orange. This Charger, with VIN ending in 355109, was the 9th of the 503 Daytonas converted from an assembly-line 1969 Charger R/T by subcontractor Creative Industries. Though it wasn’t one of the 70 that packed the 426 Hemi under the hood, it also was one of probably…

CHRYSLER CORPORATION built some of the most compelling and influential concept cars of the immediate post-WWII era, with many under the auspices of new styling boss Virgil Exner. Among the list were four successive Dodge Firearrows wearing handcrafted coachwork by Carrozzeria Ghia of Turin, Italy. Manufacturers quickly resumed automobile production following World War II by using prewar designs with mild styling updates. By the late 1940s and early 1950s, new models were emerging, with modern styling and many cues inspired by aircraft designs and the pioneering space race. Designers began building concepts and “idea cars” in greater numbers as a method of testing new ideas, feasibility, and gauging public interest. The dazzling concepts penned by Exner were among the most dramatic, elegant, and daring, influencing his “Forward Look” theme that…

HUBCENTRIC , say what? Simple, it means your wheel’s center bore (the pilot hole) fits precisely onto the hub of the rear axle, front drum, or rotor, thereby holding wheel / rim runout to near zero, assuring a vibration-free installation and maximum safety. Remember, no matter the quality of the balance job, a wheel/tire with runout cannot run true. Ever. This seems obvious, but it is amazing what a can of worms it can become if ignored. If everything is stock, this problem cannot, and does not, occur. Here’s what can happen: Joe Blow, from the infamous city of Kokomo, finds a nice set of Ford styled-steel wheels he likes for his 1972 318 4-door Satellite. They are 15", a nice upgrade from his 14" black steelies that are all…

IT WAS A GRAY DAY in November 1965 when Gary Dyer hitched an open trailer onto the back of his station wagon, fired up the Grand-Spaulding Dodge-lettered ‘65 Coronet, and drove it up onto that basic rig. With gray skies and a brisk wind foreshadowing a long Windy City winter, Dyer pulled out of the driveway of his suburban Chicago home and drove a few miles west where he turned onto Route 66 and began the long journey to the California coast. While Gary expected to be met with higher temperatures in California, he was not anticipating a warm reception. For months his partner and sponsor Norm Kraus had been trumpeting the success of their supercharged nitro-burning Coronet with full page ads in Drag News, brashly claiming the big Dodge…

THE LATE 1960s meant a lot of things to car guys, but for Dodge buyers, the division did not yet have a “swoopy cutie” equivalent to the Camaro, Mustang or even Barracuda. No, the hard-chiseled edges of the Dart GTS meant business as usual, no games. The next year, Challenger arrived to “challenge” and all big-block factory A-bodies went into the history books. For Angela Hames, it was the desire for a big-block model that started the quest for the pair of classic Darts you see here. A his-and-hers set of real 4-speed 383 four-barrel-powered ’69s. Angela became a Mopar girl because she married a Mopar guy, JW (we did not ask what the initials stand for, maybe Just Watch) Hames. As a young man, JW became smitten with her,…

“AH, TO BE YOUNG AGAIN. Back when the idea of swapping an intake manifold out on the street before school started seemed wise, even if it was below freezing. The excitement of seeing a cop giving you that second once-over as you idled by…without mufflers. The joy of trying to limp home after busting up a U-joint.” And so on. Memories. I have memories, not all good ones. Ever have a battery explode in your face in 10-degree weather? The Chevy guy working at the gas station with me that day was very fast to get me off the ground, rush me into the service bay, and plunge my face into the oval water tank use for checking tire leaks. The ambulance guys were impressed. Arrests? Oops. Tickets? Yep, got…

NAME-DROPPING. We all do it a little bit. “Ya know, I met blah blah (famous or infamous name here) and we’re like good buddies now.” This after standing in an autograph line for 3 hours and only saying, “Hello, sign this, please,” to make the acquaintance. Anyhow, Chris Parker may not know anybody really famous, but his car is a name-dropper. Super Bee, Petty by Dodge, and WhippleCharger all perk people’s ears up. We will add Jon Sipple to that group as well. Sipple is a late-model transmission guru we see at the modern Hemi events, and Parker’s Petty ’Bee is the result of Sipple’s Speed & Performance Shop further foraging into the realm of powerbuilding. But let’s see what makes Chris famous first. “I didn’t get my first Mopar…

CHRYSLER’S FIRST COLLABORATION with Ghia of Turin wasn’t a dream car or concept in the usual sense. Rather, Chrysler President K.T. Keller was in search of a more economical means of constructing prototype and experimental vehicles, and Italy’s struggling postwar economy and considerable pool of car-making expertise presented an opportunity. In 1950, Keller commissioned two cars on Plymouth chassis, one from Ghia and another from the Pininfarina coachbuilding house, also of Turin, as a trial run for the prototyping process. Ultimately, Chrysler chose Ghia as its partner, kicking off a highly successful run of show cars and concepts. Starting with a standard 1950 Plymouth P20 chassis with 118.5-inch wheelbase provided by Chrysler, Carrozzeria Ghia crafted a stylish but conservative four-door sedan with an elegant six-window greenhouse and sloping roofline, all…

NUMBERS GAME JAIME BROWN is a numbers guy. No, he doesn’t play the numbers, he collects themas in limited-production Mopars. So this #16 of 77 produced 2020 50th Anniversary Edition Gold Rush T/A Challenger was right up his alley. Why 77 when the data plate indicates a production number of 70. Well, that’s another story (see below). Jaime found this car on Auto Trader for 10 grand off sticker, and Jaime had the Chally shipped from California to his home in Mechanicsburg, Pa. The T/A is slated to be displayed at car shows, but Jaime already drove it 1500 miles, including to Pittsburgh to celebrate his wife’s 50th birthday at the Steelers game. She said, “we gotta take the Challenger because it’s black and gold.” Jaime contacted Dodge with his…

FIT IT AND GRIP IT SPEEDTECH’S EXTREME FRONT SUB FRAME FOR MOPAR B-BODY SPEEDTECH PERFORMANCE LLC . is proud to announce their new chassis and suspension products for Mopar B-Body are now available. The ExtReme product line is expanding to B-Body for model years 1968 to 1970, including the ExtReme Front Subframe (EFSF), which replaces the torsion bar layout with tubular upper and lower control arms and coil-over shocks. The EFSF provides nearly zero bump steer, fully adjustable alignment angles, and sealed maintenance-free wheel bearings, with Speedtech’s exclusive forged spindles and dual ram power rack and pinion. No body modifications are necessary to fit a 325/30/19 tire upfront while still retaining a 30-degree steering angle. Finally, this EFSF is a removable bolt-in component of the chassis, simplifying the engine…

AUCTIONS! Who doesn’t love to check ’em out and see what stuff is selling for? Mecum, Barrett Jackson, and the rest become the Wild West. Outlaws with deep pockets are having a showdown using the almighty dollar as their six-shooter. Every time you hear “I got 100 thousand! do I have 110 thousand?” from the auctioneer, another shot is about to be fired and the magic number keeps climbing. You know what I am talking about, the bid keeps climbing and just when you think that it flatlined…boom, the reserve comes off with the price jumping like Clint Eastwood shooting rounds at your feet. Serious six- and seven-figure prices are becoming the norm. When you think about the insanity of it all—the bidding reaching more than the price of a…

CHRYSLER’S OWN LITERATURE describes the Plymouth Explorer thusly (cue the music, maestro): “Here is a car with real imagination—Plymouth’s exciting Explorer, a 2-passenger coupe offers the ultimate in American styling with a Continental flavor. It was designed by Chrysler Corporation and built on a standard 114-inch wheelbase Plymouth chassis by Italy’s master coachmaker, Ghia of Turin, Italy. “With an overall height of 54½ inches and extremely short front and rear overhang, the Explorer presents a long, low flowing profile. Its graceful proportions are rakishly accented by sharply creased fenders and a low, flat hoodline. Exterior innovations include a wide wraparound windshield, semi-full wheel openings, integral taillight and exhaust pipe assemblies and recessed directional lights fitted into the front of the rub rail. “Inside, eggshell white aviation-style seats edged in black…

BULLET . CANNONBALL . BLADE . Three movies that every fan of the 1968 Charger knows, though the latter Wesley Snipes’ Marvel superhero may not be as familiar to our more seasoned readership. The first year of the B-body model’s restyling was further accompanied on the silver screen by ’69 versions in The Dukes of Hazard and Dirty Mary, Crazy Larry and ’70 models that showed off in a variety of The Fast and the Furious franchise. So what does that have to do with the car here? Well, it’s our mindless intro to Steve Rodgers, who wanted a Charger that turned corners like those machines in the movies, but without the normal amount of sheetmetal-twisting destruction they endured. “My first love for…

IT WAS SUPPOSED TO BE the ‘catfight of the century… OK, maybe the ‘catfight of the month. Two of the world’s quickest fastest Hellcats were slated to go head-to-head in a 2-out-of-3-runs shootout for the “king of the ‘cats” crown. And it was all going down at the Musclecars at the Strip event in Las Vegas. Except it didn’t happen. Behind door #1 was Leon Epling’s “007” 2015 Challenger Hellcat out of Tennessee with creds of a best run of 6.96 @ 200.7 MPH. Behind door number 2 was North Carolina’s “GRMPYCAT” 2016 Challenger Hellcat of Kevin Helmick, with a 6.99/200.05 best. Leon’s son Jason was the wheelman for 007 while Kevin suited up to shoe his own Grump’cat. Both were scheduled to make some trial runs to sort things…

JON STEVENS was at the top of his game on his paper route, slinging the news and hitting the front porch every time, then calling on reserve foot power to spurt away from Rover, who thought catching Jon’s bicycle was the doggy thing to do. When the paper route money filled up his cigar box, Jon went shopping… for a car. What he found, in 1977 at the age of 15, was a 1970 Challenger convertible, with a black manual top, FE5 Red paint and a Slant-Six/automatic drivetrain. The cigar box was $1000 lighter after the purchase. The Challenger was rusty, and Jon had planned to restore it. But it just languished in his garage for years as more important life events—marriage, kids, divorce—took precedent. In 2013, Jon’s cigar box…

IN THE BEGINNING 1960 WAS TRULY A WATERSHED YEAR for Chrysler Corporation. All cars, with the exception of the Imperial, were advertised as being unit construction. It was also the first year for tuned ram-effect intake manifolds, which have since become standard on virtually any motor vehicle you can buy for the last 30 to 40 years. Combine the unibody’s light weight, with the all-new Slant Six, which also helped to lower the C/G, and a plethora of die-cast aluminum components which became a hallmark of ’60s Chrysler Engineering, (topping the list was an all-new one-piece automatic transmission case). Yes, Chrysler upped the bar up, way up, for 1960. Back to unibody basics: With all the body and “frame” components of the car welded into a single unit, weight was…

BACK IN 1959 , a group of engineers from Chrysler Corp. put together a bizarre-looking ’49 Plymouth coupe that they dubbed “The High and the Mighty.” Fitted with a sky-high intake setup (the first ram induction), the group, soon to bear the name The Ramchargers, proceeded to kick butt on the dragstrip with the Plymouth and subsequently a number of Max Wedge and Hemi-powered Dodges. The Ramchargers were innovators in go-fast performance technology and, over the years, and along with personalities such as Ronnie Sox, Buddy Martin, and Dick Landy, have become larger than life. The last thing the Ramchargers would have thought back in the ’60s was that 50+ years down the road they’d be sitting behind a table signing autographs for Mo’fans. Then the thought hit me, 50…