Why Mopar?

[Bruzilla]

My parents were shopping for cars in Monroeville, PA back in 1973, and they stopped at the Chrysler Plymouth dealership on Rt 22, right across from Monroeville Mall. On the front of the dealership was a huge sign that spanned several windows, that had a lifesized 1973 Roadrunner and the cartoon bird on it. It was love at first sight for me. Later, in 1976, I was on St. Croix in the Virgin Islands at the airport, and I heard a rumbling sound behind me. There was a 73 Roadrunner, black with white stripes, sitting there and I was totally hooked.

I bought my first 73 RR/GTX in 1980, for $500, and pretty much drove it into the ground. My next car was a 1976 Starsky and Hutch package Gran Torino, with a factory-installed 460, and I won a lot of street races in Jacksonville and Orange Park, FL with that car. Then one night I'm headed home and a guy in a 69 RT Charger rolls up next to me. You could hear his exhaust for miles, and I thought "yeah, this guy has leaky headers and thinks he's a bad ***." So we raced through three lights and I got to rediscover why the 440 is the best street engine ever.

The next day I started shopping for another 73 Roadrunner and they've been my favorite car ever since.

 

[iraqivet01]

Because dodge did it right back then.
Body lines were a work of art, and made some really bad boy engines.

You tell someone you have a Camaro with a 350. You get "Ok".
You tell someone you have a (any MOPAR) with a 440. You get "REALLY!!!!"

 

[anmracing]

Think everyone can give lots of reasons why but I think the real question is "why not Mopar?"

:headbang:

 

[HEMI-ITIS]

Let me 'splain:confused2:When I went to the Nationals at National Speedway on Long Island at the opened eyed age of 13,ALL the fast cars were mopars,,,,,,,,,,with hemi's.Stacks,dual quads or blowers,thet kicked ALL ***.The looks of the AWD's and tweens{tween an AWD & funny cars}were still door cars and they RULED.Right there that day is where a was infected with the HEMI-ITIS disease.My 1st car that I bought was a 65 plymouth,440 stick.I was 14yo in JR HIGH and had the fastest car in high school and I was still in Jr high.The '62 was so fugly is was cool,but the '63 was the one I wanted and this vision started at 13yo.
I now have what I had a vision of and have owned it for over 25 years.I have had more MOPARS than I can remember,but I sure remember the ones I NEVER should have sold.The 2 at the top of that list is the 71 440 6 pack plum crazy stick challenger with a white stripe.The other was the '63 Max Wedge Polara:confused2:

 

[440ricertamerRR]

For me it's that fact that they are more rare that Ford's and Chevy's. Not as many people in my town own Mopar's either. Most are Chevy's. And that fact that my Dad tell's me stories of him and his 68 Roadrunner 383 4 speed, his cousin Mike with his blown 440 70 Charger, and his close friend with his blown 44 68 GTX. That fact that they had so much power, how fun they where, and all the races they did in them made me want one sooooooo bad!

 

[Richard Cranium]

Why Mopar? That's easy to answer; I'm just a glutton for punishment.

 

[biginch=bigfun]

The mopar bug bit when I was very young...I have an uncle that always had wicked cool Mopars! On sunday mornings when my uncle was sleeping off his night of misadventure Grandpa & I would liberate his ride to go watch the "old farts" play cards.
The best memory I cherish was us leaving town in my uncle's 383 dart gts, Grandpa said lets see what this baby can do. He laid into the loud pedal hard & stayed into it after we made the crest of the hill! We were airbourne for what seemed like forever! I was scarred shitless but hearing grandpa woop it up & say "if this thing had wings we'd still be fly'n"... I knew i needed to be into this!

That is the exact moment I became a Mopar guy. Its a huge plus for me that grandpa always loved to recount that experience till he passed away.

 

[rp23g7]

Why Mopar? That's easy to answer; I'm just a glutton for punishment.

HAHA, so true, but why take the easy way out.

Born into Mopar really, but, you gotta admit they had the styling and mechanicals down.

Ford and Chevy got rid of their factory race teams, Chrysler used the Ramchargers as test mechanics on their own time.

Ease of maintenance, hey Chevy and Ford guy, how long does it take to lower your car? How about your big block oil pump? Take your distributer out to change your intake, bummer, what? you say you cant see your points to adjust them on your 454?

Styling, what Ford of Chevy of the same year. 66-67 Chargers, the 68 Charger, the early Chrysler and Desoto's, tell me, which 69-70 Ford or Chevy looks meaner than a 69-70 Coronet?

Mechanicals, Slant 6's and 318's, i have seen them go over 300,000 miles, Hemi's? Need i say more? 340's, has to be the most brutal small block ever, kicking big blocks butts all over. Sure Chevy had a 350hp 327, but wasnt it only available in a Corvette? 727's, i have never broken one, or had one die on me, same with the 8 3/4, i have never broken one before.

I just dont understand why Chevy designed their cars mechanicals they seem so backwards from the way Ford and Chrysler are put together, i hate working on my sons 79 Monte Carlo.

but i too am a glutton for punishment, you get what you pay for, why take the easy way out and get a cookie cutter????

 

[rooster1911]

Wait a Minute!!!!! Wait a Minute!!!!! You mean to tell me that there is other car makers out there? HOGWASH I say!

Seriously all you have to do is listen to a Mopar - Look and feel the smooth lines of a Cuda,Challenger Roadruner - sit behind the drivers seat and you magically feel the awesomeness and power it's like it's meant to be. I have sat behind the steering wheel of a Firebird, Camaro, Chevelle. Mustang etc...and Nothing and I mean Nothing felt like a Mopar.

 

[70rr-brian]

I have owned the following non-mopars in my years:

66 Tempest
71 Cutlass
69 Torino
72 Nova
71 Firebird

All decent running cars. With some mopars scattered in between. Then about the age of 30 it occurred to me when looking back. My fondest memories of all the cars I had ever owned were all Mopars. In particular 68-70 style b-bodies.

Simply put.... they have more character.

 

[djais1801]

For me...I have never been brand specific..I have had many Fords, Chevies, Buicks, Pontiacs
1956 Chevy P/UP 1964 Buick Skylark Vert
1965 Buick Skylark Vert 1966 Ford Mustang GT350H clone
1967 Camaro RS 1971 Pontiac Gran Prix 400
1971 Mustang Vert 1977 Chevy Malibu
1981 Jeep CJ5 1986 Mustang GT Vert
1989 Mustang GT
I always wanted a Mopar...but never had the finances/opportunity at the same time. I never had a big block, and never a Mopar...which is why I ended up with her now. I have to say, there are very few that I have seen around where I live...Looking forward to hitting up cruise nights/car shows with my 71...don't think I will see too many others..