As the demand for muscle cars increased in the late 1960’s many manufacturers began to tack on extra features in an effort to increase prices and as the muscle car market moved away from its beginnings as relatively inexpensive, no-frills, go fast cars, Plymouth responded with the release of the Roadrunner to get back to those roots. Based on the Plymouth Belvedere, the new for ’68 Roadrunner was designed as a no-frills mid-size performance car available with limited options to keep the price tag low but still offer high performance and in the first year of production, Plymouth sold more than double the amount of Roadrunners they anticipated, with 45,000 rolling off the production line making the Roadrunner a huge hit with the public. Sporting a redesign in 1970, the new Plymouth Roadrunner updates included a new grille, hood, front fenders and quarter panels, as well as a new cloth and vinyl bench seat, improved optional front disc brakes, and even non-functional scoops in the rear quarters. This 1970 Plymouth Roadrunner represents the last year of the first generation bodystyle and has been fully restored with roughly 4,000 miles on it since completion. Built September 3rd, 1969 at the St. Louis Assembly plant, this Roadrunner began life as a Jamaica Blue Metallic 383 car but has since undergone a complete transformation during restoration. Under the hood now lives a fire-breathing 440ci V8 that has been balanced and blueprinted with a forged crank and rods, Mopar solid lifter cam, Edelbrock Performer RPM aluminum cylinder heads and intake, T&D Machine stainless steel roller rockers, Holley 870CFM Street Avenger 4-barrel carburetor, TTI ceramic coated headers with 2-inch primaries, and a complete MSD ignition with billet distributor, Blaster coil, tach adapter, and rev-limiting ignition module. Other features under the hood include a Be Cool aluminum radiator with a Derale dual electric fan setup with controller, Butler radiator overflow tank, oil cooler, an adjustable fuel pressure regulator with gauge, billet drive pulleys, and Mopar Performance finned valve covers. Dyno-tuned and tested, this 440 made over 500 horsepower and puts it to the ground through a heavy-duty A727 Torqueflite 3-speed automatic transmission with a 2500RPM stall converter and mild shift kit with a 3.91 positraction rear end out back. To stop this beast, the factory optional power drum brakes were swapped over to a manual factory single-piston disc brake setup up front with stock drums in the rear. In keeping with the black on black theme, the exterior has been repainted black and shows well with a few minor imperfections while other exterior features include accessory Roadrunner stripes, factory optional hoodpins original to the car, and with the exception of the windshield and driver rear quarter window, all the glass is dated 1969 while inside, the all black interior has been completely redone with new carpet, headliner, and upholstery, with the original bench seat swapped out in favor of bucket seats. In the dash, the gauge cluster features a speedometer and an accessory Rallye tachometer with clock, along with gauges for fuel, water temperature, oil pressure, and amps, while under the dash there are accessory gauges for temperature, oil pressure, and battery voltage to give more precise readings. The Roadrunner rides on a set of Firestone Firehawk Indy 500 tires mounted on a set of Mopar Rallye wheels with 275/60R15’s out back with 235’s up front that look great and give the car an aggressive look to match whats under the hood. Overall, this Roadrunner is a great example of what Plymouth intended in the late 1960’s and early 70’s, a bare-bones muscle car whose main focus is performance and this Roadrunner surely lives up to its name with over 500 horsepower on tap and although it looks as great as it drives and would be right at home at any car show or meet, it was built to drive and belongs out on the road eating up the streets.
