Vehicle Description
1971 Plymouth Road Runner
Road runner - a slender fast-running bird of the cuckoo family,
found chiefly in arid country from the southern US to Central
America. Plymouth Road Runner - 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 cheap, 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 as a back-to-basics mid-size performance car.
1971 was a pivotal year for muscle car production, the end of an
era if you will. Between upcoming pollution control and insurance
companies raising rates to be borderline unaffordable for most,
1971 was the last year for truly masculine muscle. Leave it to the
White Hat boys to keep things going strong at the end, not only did
they keep the big muscle car engine options available, the B-body
styling for '71 had gone full sexy and sultry coke bottle. For
consignment, a first year body style and last year true muscle car
in the form of a 1971 Plymouth Road Runner, add in large cubic
inches, a 4-speed manual, a subdued paint scheme with a black vinyl
top and you have eye candy in steel form.
Exterior
In 1971, the bodywork was completely changed to a more rounded
"fuselage" design in keeping with then-current Chrysler styling
trends, including a steeply raked windshield, hidden cowl, and
deeply inset grille and headlights. Laser straight steel panels
with well minded gaps are found all over this fuselage body and are
drenched in a deep smooth Dark Bronze Metallic paint. A shiny
ovalesque chrome front bumper surrounds the quad headlights, grill
assembly and iconic Warner Brothers Road Runner character. Signal
markers are mounted down below on a valance sans twin chin
spoilers. A large flat Bronze hood wears not only hood pins but
call outs denoting the cubic inches in black and white. Smooth
rounded body sides with a small Road Runner decal lead up to the
full black vinyl roof and the flat rectangular trunk lid is devoid
of a spoiler. On the back is a large chrome bumper with combination
tail and reverse lights integrated within. Down below are a pair of
correct turn down exhaust tips. 15-inch highly polished Torque
Thrust wheels on all 4 corners are wrapped in Goodyear raised white
letter rubber with a slight size stagger, 235/60R15 in the front
and 275/60R15's for the rear.
Interior
A swing of the doors and we see very nice black tuck and roll upper
door panels then some molded vinyl below in black. A shiny door
actuating paddle and window crank are also in this differing field
of texture and surfaces. Upfront we note the split front bench in
black vinyl with charcoal gray inserts is in nearly perfect
condition. In back is a pattern matching bench which is also
presenting very nicely and perfectly clean. Some extra wood
applique is on the dash and frames the rounded rally gauges, radio
and black knobs and sliders while down below the AM radio resides
in its factory location. In front of the passenger seat is a large
glove box door and moving slightly left we note a trio of gauges to
monitor engine vitals. On the steering column is the highly sought
after Mopar Tuff Wheel. On the hump and offset toward the driver is
a Hurst Pistol Grip shifter perfectly within the driver's reach.
The is within a field of black carpeting and above is a tight black
headliner and nice B pillar coverings with some embossing in
back.
Drivetrain
Under the long hood resides a non original orange 383ci V8 of 1968
vintage. Topping off this engine are a pair of aluminum Indy
cylinder heads and a Mopar Performance 4bbl intake manifold and
4bbl carburetor. Capping this big block off is a chrome open
element air cleaner assembly and a pair of black crinkle finish
Mopar Performance valve covers. On the back is a numbers matching
A833 4-speed manual transmission that sends power back to a 8 3/4
rear axle assembly. Everything is looking good here with shiny
paint, supple hoses and attention paid to every detail.
Undercarriage
The underside of this car is just as nice as the top. With the
unibody and floor pans done in the black no rust or corrosion is
seen. All suspension parts are either painted black or left in a
natural finish also. Torsion bars are up front while leaf springs
are on the rear. Hooker headers snake their way down from the mill
and connect to dual exhaust that runs the length of the car and has
Flowmaster mufflers mounted before sending spent gasses out of the
turndown tailpipes. Power disc brakes are noted on all four corners
for stopping power.
Drivability
I left my partner in crime and crack decoder to take the wheel for
this test drive. The car started easily and idled with a sound
letting the competition know that this sedate bronze muscle car
means business. Blistering acceleration, tight steering and bias
free braking was noted. He wouldn't, however, fall for my trick
when I asked him to stop in the X I marked off in the parking
lot....I think we watched the same cartoons growing up. A few
functional frowns reared their head while driving, the radio didn't
broadcast the AM band, the heater blower does not function, (the
heater core is bypassed), the turn signals were functional but dim
and the hood mounted signal markers didn't flash, but otherwise the
car is a solid performer.
With the muscle car era dying off due to EPA regulations and rising
insurance rates the powers that be at Plymouth gave one grand
hurrah with a new body design that still had the oomph of a muscle.
A big block engine, 4-speed transmission, and a subtle paint job
will have you the talk of the cruise nights. Hurry on down to the
Classic Auto Mall and take this bird home before that pesky coyote
gets a new contraption from Acme that will put this runner in his
garage.
RM23N1R205355
R-Belvedere/Satellite
M-Medium Price Class
23-2 Door Hardtop
N-383ci V8 4bbl 300hp
1-1971
R-Windsor, Ontario, Canada Assy Plant
205355-Sequential Unit Number
FENDER TAG
RM23:
Plymouth Belvedere,Satellite
Medium, Road Runner
2 Door Hardtop
N1R:383 300HP 1-4BBL 8 CYL
1971
Windsor, ONT, CAN
205355:Sequence number
E65: 383ci 4-barrel V8 300hp
D21:4 Speed Manual Transmission
GK6:Dark Bronze Metallic Exterior Color
M2X9:Trim - Opt. Decor Group, Vinyl Bench Seat, Black
TX9: Black Int. Door Frames
209: Build Date: February 09
188338:Order number
V1X: Full Vinyl Top, Black
U: USA Specifications
26: 26in Radiator
B51: Power Brakes
F11: 46 Amp Alternator (std with AC)
G33: LH Remote Racing Mirror
L31: Hood/Fender Mounted Turn Signals
M21: Roof drip rail moldings
N41: Dual Exhaust
N85: Tachometer
R11: Radio Solid State AM (2 Watts)
END: End of Sales Codes
Classic Auto Mall is a 336,000-square foot classic and special
interest automobile showroom, featuring over 650 vehicles for sale
with showroom space for up to 1,000 vehicles. Also, a 400 vehicle
barn find collection is on display.
This vehicle is located in our showroom in Morgantown,...for more
information please contact the seller.
