Vehicle Description
The Plymouth Road Runner is a mid-size car with a focus on
performance built by Plymouth in the United States between 1968 and
1980. By 1968, some of the original muscle cars were moving away
from their roots as relatively inexpensive, fast cars as they
gained features and increased in price. Plymouth developed the Road
Runner to market a lower priced, basic trim model to its upscale
GTX.
Plymouth paid $50,000 to Warner Bros.-Seven Arts to use the Road
Runner name and likeness from their Wile E. Coyote and The Road
Runner cartoons (as well as a "beep, beep" horn, which Plymouth
paid $10,000 to develop).The Road Runner was based on the Chrysler
B platform (the same as the Belvedere and Satellite), as a
back-to-basics mid-size performance car.
The earliest of the 1968 models were available only as 2-door
pillared coupes (with a B-pillar between the front and rear
windows), but later in the model year a 2-door "hardtop" model
(sans pillar) was offered. The Road Runner of 1968-1970 was based
on the Belvedere, while the GTX was based on the Sport Satellite, a
car with higher level trim and slight differences in the grilles
and taillights.
The interior was spartan with a basic vinyl bench seat, lacking
even carpets in early models, and few options were available - such
as power steering and front disc brakes, AM radio, air conditioning
(except with the 426 Hemi) and automatic transmission. A
floor-mounted shifter (for the four-speed) featured only a rubber
boot and no console so that a bench seat could be used.
The standard engine was an exclusive 383 cu in "Roadrunner" V8
engine rated at 335 bhp and 425 lb�ft of torque. Its extra 5 hp
rating was the result of using the radical cam from the 440 Super
Commando and a .25 raise in compression to 10.5:1 (vs. 10.25:1 with
the 330 hp (246 kW) 383).
When air conditioning was ordered, the cars received the 330 hp
version, as the radical cam specs of the 335 bhp version did not
create enough vacuum to accommodate air conditioning.
A $714 option was the 426 CID Hemi rated at 425 bhp and 490 lb�ft
of torque.
The standard equipment transmission was a 4-speed manual with floor
shifter and the three-speed TorqueFlite automatic was optional.
Early four-speed 1968 Road Runners featured Inland shifters, which
were replaced by Hurst shifters during the course of the model
year.
Plymouth expected to sell about 20,000 units in 1968; actual sales
numbered around 45,000. This placed the Road Runner third in sales
among muscle cars with only the Pontiac GTO and Chevy's SS-396
Chevelle outselling it. Dodge debuted the Road Runner's cousin, the
Super Bee, as a mid-1968 offering after seeing Plymouth's success
with the Road Runner.
The 1970 model year brought new front and rear end looks to the
basic 1968 body, and it would prove to be another success. Updates
included a new grille, a cloth & vinyl bench seat, hood, front
fenders, quarter panels, single-piston Kelsey-Hayes disc brakes
(improved from the rather small-rotor Bendix 4 piston calipers of
'68 - '69 ), and even non-functional scoops in the rear
quarters.
The design and functionality of the Air Grabber option was changed.
A switch below the dash actuated a vacuum servo to slowly raise the
forward-facing scoop, exposing shark-like teeth on either side.
"High Impact" colors, with names like In-Violet, Moulin Rouge, and
Vitamin C, were options available for that year. The engine lineup
was left unchanged although a heavy-duty three-speed manual became
the standard transmission, relegating the four-speed to the option
list along with the TorqueFlite automatic. This was to be the
second and last year of the Road Runner convertible, with only 834
made. The new high-back bucket seats shared with other Chrysler
products which featured built-in headrests.
The 440 Six Barrel remained an option for 1970. The 1969 "M" Code
Edelbrock aluminum intake was replaced by a factory-produced cast
iron piece; however there were some early cars built prior to
January 1, 1970 that were equipped with the left over aluminum
Edelbrock intake from the year prior.
With freshened styling, the 1970 Plymouth Road Runner Hemi was an
integral part of Plymouth's "Rapid Transit System" - the
advertising tagline it applied to its bawdiest muscle cars. The
redesigned 'Cuda, the new Duster 340, and the restyled GTX were
also charter members. Rapid Transit ads were rife with op-art
graphics, flower-power imagery, and brilliant colors. They were an
unabashed reflection of the times.
In one ad, the 1970 Plymouth Road Runner Hemi was introduced with a
photo showing a giant, three-dimensional sculpture of its goofy
cartoon namesake emerging from a trap door on the hood. The tag
line, "The loved bird," was both a wry play on words and an
accurate reflection of the car's popularity. The photo also
illustrated a functional new feature, the Air Grabber hood.
The Air Grabber hood was standard on 1970 Plymouth Road Runners
with the 426-cid Hemi engine and available with either 440. The
driver would trip an under dash switch, causing the power-operated
trap door to rise slowly, revealing a planed-off scoop with a
snarling shark cartoon painted on its side - just the thing for
psyching out the opposition at stoplights.
The source of the car's whimsical "beep-beep" horn sound was a
purple under-hood module.
Externally, the 1970 Plymouth Road Runner Hemi was restyled with
handsome loop-motif front and rear ends and dummy rear-fender
scoops. Under the hood, powertrains were basically unchanged,
though the 426 Hemi engine went from solid to hydraulic lifters in
the interest of greater durability and cleaner emissions, and the
Road Runner's standard four-speed manual moved to the options list,
replaced by a heavy-duty three-speed. Plymouth Road Runner sales
slipped from 43,400 to about 39,600 units for '70, of which 75
hardtops, 74 pillared coupes, and three convertibles got the
optional 426 Hemi engine.
Of course, performance wasn't compromised. A Hemi-equipped 1970
Plymouth Road Runner could accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 5.6
seconds and blaze the quarter mile in 13.49 seconds at 106 mph.
Specifications
Wheelbase, inches: 116.0
Weight, lbs: 4,000
Number built: 152
Base price: $5,000
Top Available Engine
Type: ohv V-8
Displacement, cid: 426
Fuel system: 2 x 4 bbl.
Compression ratio: 10.25:1
Horsepower @ rpm: 425 @ 5000
Torque @ rpm: 490 @ 4000
Representative Performance
0-60 mph, sec: 5.6
1/4 mile, sec @ mph: 13.49 @ 106
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this car in the photos. Includes Fender Tag, Broadcast Sheets, and
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