Vehicle Description
Before the arrival of flip-top Funny Cars in 1966, A/FX drag racers
built altered-wheelbase match racers out of steel-body Super Stock
sedans. This 1963 Dart was built by Steve Magnante in 2008 as a
totally streetable tribute to Jack Sharkey's Chicago-based
"Rampage" Dart match racer. The complete construction of this car
is featured in Magnante's book "How-To Build Altered Wheelbase
Cars," and also is the subject of his 90-minute DVD, "How to Build
Your Own Altered Wheelbase Funny Car." The buyer will get copies of
these items as well as issues of Car Craft, Hot Rod Deluxe and
Hemmings Muscle Machines, each of which ran feature articles on
this car. Over the past 10 years of Magnante's ownership, he's
driven the Rampage Dart over 8,000 street miles. The Rampage has
become a popular attendee at many East Coast car shows, including
the Hemmings Musclepalooza at Lebanon Valley Raceway and the NHRA
Hot Rod Reunion at New England Dragway. Magnante drove the Rampage
to these events, a 180-mile round trip from his Massachusetts home.
The all-steel California body is California-sourced with just the
right amount of real patina and a Mazzolini Racing fiberglass Max
Wedge hood scoop. The painted body graphics were hand-applied by
Southern California go-to graphics man Bob Thompson. The narrowed
8-3/4" rear axle has 10" drum brakes, and a clutch-type 3.91 Sure
Grip with Super Stock leaf springs and shocks. The rear suspension
has been altered forward 12" to deliver 48/52 (front/rear) static
weight distribution. Up front, a Dodge A100 van straight axle and
leaf springs with 11" HEMI Charger-sized drum brakes offer
excellent stopping power. A heavy-duty 4-row radiator looks stock
and keeps engine temperature below 200 degrees under all
conditions. The engine is a 512ci Dodge big block with an
all-forged 440 Source stroker kit making about 550 horsepower. The
compression ratio is 9.8:1 and it runs great on 92 octane unleaded
gas. It has an automatic transmission, 440 Source aluminum heads
with stainless valves, an A&A 440-port-size Max Wedge Cross-Ram
intake manifold with two Edelbrock 600 cfm 4-barrel carburetors.
The camshaft is an Isky Mega 290 hydraulic flat-tappet with H.D.
Mopar Performance rocker arms and 3/8" chromoly push rods. The
construction of the fender wall headers was featured in the May
2008 issue of Hot Rod Deluxe (a copy comes with the car). Inside
the simple interior, a full-manual push-button 727 TorqueFlite
controls shifts. Other era-correct interior details are an 8-point
roll bar, fiberglass buckets, radio and heater delete plates and a
retro Sun tach. This car is a nostalgic drag racing hero - but for
the street.
