In 1968, Chrysler Corporation relented and let Jack Smith's project car become a reality. Inspired by fantastic 1967 muscle car sales, the Plymouth Road Runner was born. Warner Brothers was paid $50,000 for the rights to the name and images, and a legend hit the road.

The 1968 Road Runner was a no nonsense, stripped down 2 door bench seat sedan designed strictly for performance. It had no carpets, no radio, and few options. Later in the year, a 2 door hardtop was added. No convertibles, if you see one it's a fake.

Under the hood was a new version of the 383, also known as the 383 Magnum. It shared cylinder heads, camshaft, valve gear, exhaust manifolds, and oil pan with the 440 Magnum. It produced 335 horsepower. Optional was the 426 street hem at a price of $714.00. No other engines were offered. About 1,000 hemi Road Runners were ordered. A 4 speed manual transmission was standard, Torqueflite automatic optional. The decals were in black and white. About 44,000 Road Runners were sold in 1968, more than ten times what Chrysler had expected.

For 1969, the Road Runner hit its peak with a slight redesign, optional bucket seats, a convertible, and new color decals. The best thing was under the hood though, as the insane 440 six pack (called 6 barrel in Road Runners) was offered mid year. It produced a highly underrrated 390 horsepower and featured a different cam, higher compression, and 3 two barrel Holley carburetors. A car magazine of the day tested a dead stock Road Runner with this engine, a 4 speed, and 4.10 axle. It turned 12.9 at 111 mph in the quarter mile. This is the 5th fastest muscle car ever made. No hemi made the cut, best they could do was 10th with a Barracuda. Over 80,000 Road Runners were sold for 1969.

The Road Runner received fresh new front and rear styling for 1970. The detachable "Six Pack" hood was dropped, (mistake) but all Road Runners were now available with the optional "Air Grabber" hood. This consisted of an under dash switch which would open a power operated trap door on the hood, revealing a shark cartoon with the words "Air Grabber." Tacky and ineffective, as the best place for an air scoop is backwards facing the windshield plenum.  The "Air Grabber" would automatically close when the engine was turned off. A rallye dash and 150 mph speedometer were added.

Somebody at Chrysler apparently thought crazy paint colors would sell cars, and for 1970 the MoPar muscle cars could be had in such garish tones as Vitamin C Orange, Lemon Twist, In Violet (aka Plum Crazy), Lime Light Poly, Tor-Red, Sassy Grass Green, and Moulin Rouge. The names varied from year to year and by model, but I'm sure you've seen some of them and get the point. More striped were added across the board as well, and a lot of fake scoops and decals that failed to spark sales.

Another addition was the Superbird, a Nascar inspired mess with a tapered nose and a huge laundry rack spoiler on the trunk featuring a large Road Runner decal. This thing was offered to the public as a Road Runner (or Charger Daytona)  just to make it legal for the big circuit. (The Charger version had been introduced in 1969)  Ever see one on the road? Me neither. 

The engine choices added the 440-4, although the Hemi went from solid to hydraulic lifters for improved durability. Not that it mattered, the word was out on the big boat anchor motor and Road Runner customers ordered a mere 302 of them, 136 of which were in Superbirds.  The standard four speed manual became an option as a strengthened three speed manual was made standard. Again, a mistake; don't downgrade a car when the sales are up. Sales dropped back to about 41,000.

1971 saw the dawn of the end of the muscle car. Emissions, unleaded gas, air pumps, catalytic converters, and all sorts of other government imposed  junk killed sales. The car makers hung on though, and tried to milk the names for all they were worth.  In just its fourth year, the Road Runner saw its standard 383 engine  drop to 300 bhp while the 440 engines each  lost 5 bhp. The 426 Hemi stayed fast at 425 bhp. This would be the last year for the Hemi. Just as well, only 59 Road Runners came through with the big engine. Both the 2 door post sedan and the convertible  were dropped, leaving  the 2 door coupe as the sole offering. Sales predictably dropped to about 14,000.rpm.

The 1972 Road Runner shouldn't even have been built. It had the 340 engine as standard equipment with an anemic 255 horsepower 400 optional. No more 440 or hemi. About 7500 were ordered. The Road Runner name continued to be used through 1980, but not one of the cars produced in that time frame deserved the name.

As with any collector car, look for originality. Make sure the engine is the right one and has the correct block number for the car. Don't buy clones unless all you want is a driver, they have no collector value. Do a little research first, and have fun!