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Your 1st Mopar

Welcome to the boards to both of you.
 
First was a 72 Dart with a slant. The 6 came out and in went a 71 360, and an 8 3/4 with 3.91. Fun car..ran a 13.01 @ 108

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my "first" mopar i guess would be my 81 Jeep CJ5..a money pit..
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but i consider my 71 Satty to be my 1st mopar..
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My first true mopar was a 64 Ply.Sport Fury M/W! Bought it in the summer of 1970 for $675.00 I still have it! In the process of restoring it!
 
1968 GTX in '69, used, ??mi, Auto, $2300...Mom liked it for the color (yellow) and size (lifesaver). I knew it was the Boss. Dealer showed us a Dart first, but it was too small for her.

Greg
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My GTX was my first mopar, just got it last year. Wanted a mopar since HS but all i could afford were chebbies. Finally decided couldn't wait till maybe next year any longer.
 
first Mopar.......

My first was this 1962 Fury.... 318 poly & 4bbl. Red in and out. I fell in love with a 61 Fury convertible but dad said NO..... it's a convertible, if it rolls over you'll die....... That was the end of that. It was 1965 and I was 17. ( I only ever saw one other 1961 Fury convertible and I got that one).

- - - Updated - - -

I posted this story about a year and a half ago in the A12 thread, but it's a good story and some here may not have seen it.
I apoligize for the length but it is a true story.




My summer, fall and winter of 1968 and into the spring of 1969 was spent keeping my head below the sandbags in South Viet Nam. I was able to convince my brother to send a car magazine now and then and dreamed about the Hemi GTX that was destined to be mine upon return to the world, (that means home to a GI). Well, I survived all the bad moons and returned home to Lincoln Park, (a downriver sub of Detroit) in March of 1969 where I was glad to be reunited with my trusty 1966 triple black Plymouth Satellite 383 4speed. My brother was in charge of it during my absence and had let his girl friend drive it who then rear ended another car. It was fixed when I got home except the front bumper, which was gone. Oh, well.
After a couple days of "hi... how are ya's" I headed to Downriver Chrysler/Plymouth in nearby Southgate Michigan. My dad had bought several Chryslers and Imperials there and I had always kept my eye on the car lot as many interesting machines would turn up on the lot.
I was excited at the thought of ordering the Hemi GTX and got hooked up with
ed Rushlow, a salesman who was more than happy to talk about it. I was working my way down the option list and the GTX was taking shape on the order pad. We were discussing tire size options when he located a memo in his in box on his desk. It was a one page sheet, new product bulletin and it outlined the A12 option on the Road Runner. He showed it to me and the list of equipment was impressive! Basicly a hemi car but with a 440 and three two bbl carbs. AND a NASCAR style lift off fiberglass hood with a scoop....... Whats THAT all about...? He didn't know either.
Just for curiosity we spec'ed one out and he quoted me a price. It came in around $1500.00 less then the Hemi GTX we had on paper!!! HUMMMmmmmmmmm..... now I had something to think about. A 440 with three 2BBLs in a Road Runner sounded like one bad *** car to me.
Asside from being my primary car I had visions of some racing at Detroit dragway and some street racing on Telegraph rd. and Woodward ave. (Although I think it was illegal to do that). I was familure with the high maintance the Hemi engine required to stay running well and so the multi carb 440 was sounding pretty good.
I left the order in limbo, told the salesman I had to think about it, and left. There was another Chrysler/Plymouth dealer, (Buckingham CP), not far away so I thought...... compare pricing.... I walked in, found a salesman, which is not that hard to do, and asked for a price quote on a Road Runner with a 440 3 2BBL engine. He looked at me like I was a Chevy guy and said..."you can't get a 440 in a Road Runner" It's a 383 or Hemi. He had not heard about the A12 package.
I was convinced, that got me fired up and I returned to the first dealership, found Ed and said, "sign me up"!
I ordered a 69 Road Runner coupe with the A12, automatic, all tinted glass in T5 bronze fire metallic with black interior.
There was a new fm radio station in Detroit at the time that played only rock music.... WABX..... the "Air Aces". I got to thinking and called the salesman later that evening and added a am/fm radio.
Then it began.... the wait. This was to be my first new car, ever! And I had no idea what I had ordered. There were no A12's at the dealership, no one I knew had seen, or even heard of one. The salesman didn't even have a picture. Nothing was ever said about the cars being built on only two dates and my car was scheduled for 4/26.... this was early March! It was agonizing...!
I did receive a call from the salesman at the second dealership I visited, (He had taken my contact info), sometime in late March. He had one on the showroom floor. I headed straight over there and WOW!!!!! It was awesome. My first incounter. It was a Ralley Green hardtop with a 4 speed and black vinyl top. It looked menicing with the black hood and huge scoop, redlines and no hub caps. He offered it to me and it was tempting but I decided to wait for the one I had ordered.
I got the call sometime in early May..... my Runner was here! I will never forget walking into the service area and seeing it just as it had been unloaded off the truck. It was to be prepped and I could get it the next day.
I got off work and went by the house. My dad and brother went with me to the dealership and as soon as we turned into the drive.... there it was, parked directly in front of the entrance to the showroom. BUT wait...... It has a set of Dodge dog dish hubcaps on it.... whats up with that....? Apparently the prep guys didn't know about the hubcap delete thing. They thought the factory had forgotten to put the caps in the car and so got a set of Dodge caps from the parts dept and put them on. I may have taken delivery of the only A12 to come with hub caps.... LOL.
The saga continues from there with many great and memoral times crusing the streets, Woodward ave, drive-ins, girls. It was a magic time and I wished I had been more aware of that then. It was a machine in a time that will never be duplicated.
Enjoy your A12's guys.... If ya have em...smoke em...!
 

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At 32yo bought a used 2000 Dodge Dakota, Club Cab, white sport model. 4.7v8, 5speed manual, 3.73 lsd. Put JBA headers, flowmaster dual exhaust, HO cams, air intake, centerforce clutch. The syncro's in the POS NV3500 tranny started to let go and I had to sell it. Big mistake, I miss that truck.
 
What was your 1st Mopar/what turned you into a Moparhead.
70 Runner 383 4 speed ... and I still have it / my Dad bought two new 69's and I wanted one when i grew up. He had the first one 4 months and totaled it on the way to work (hit dry patch on icy road) then used insurance money to buy another. 1st one my mom always called "brown" or sometimes "bronze" second one was A4. Both were 4 speed 383s.
 
My first was in 1979 high school bought my 70 GTX and still have it today, but loved them long before that.
This is what it looked like the day I brought it home.
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This 1968 Charger was my first musclecar and I do miss it!
 

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Here is my first car.a68 dart 2 door post,slant six with 3 on the tree.I had the chance to buy my neighbors 69 road runner with a built 440 for $200.00 but mom said it would use to much gas ,so I settled for the dart,had bought a 340 block but never built it or installed it,had that car 13 years and sold it when I got married,got my road runner in Oct 2010 and will never sell it.dart 002.jpg
 
download.jpg1968 Coronet 500.. ( not this one but almost identical.)
As a 15 year old boy, my Dad bought his very 1st new car, a 1967 Polara. He was so proud of it and we would wash it together and go for drives in it together. I will always remember the power from the 383 pulling that huge boat. His previous car was a 1957 Rambler with a 6 that had no chance with this heavy 4 dr. and over heated on almost every summer vacation we took. But the Polara was so nice compared to that. They liked the Polara so much that mom got herself a '70 Dart Swinger. To this day she says that was her favourite car ever. This was the beginning of my love for mopars. The next event was the new 1968 Charger, the most beautiful styling in history to that point. I was hooked. So in 1970 after getting my first job, with Dad's help we found a really nice 1968 coronet 500, 318 with bucket seats and column shift automatic. An 18 yearolds dream and all the buddies were jealous and all the girls wanted a ride. Dealer demo with 1800 miles, we paid $2200.00. I loved that car but of course I piled it up within 2 years.
I've had many Dodge products since and 40 years later i'm still driving a Dodge pickup my 3rd, and of course my GTX, which is my first Plymouth. I've had a Camaro, a Mustang, Pontiac Grand Prix and a Buick LeSabre, but I'll always be a Mopar guy first.
 
As I grew up my mom had a 72 rally charger when I was we little and dad had a b5 440 4 speed gtx moms car rotted to bad dad replaced it with a 73 charger se 440 speed with r/t hood still has it today then he built a 63 power wagon with a 440 dart 4 speed and true Dana lockers front and rear manuel stearing in 4x4 couldn't turn wheels but could pull anything includeing a 40 foot tall pine tree ripped out by the roots with a tow chain at 20 feet up the tree have pics in a box some were with the first snap back lifting whole truck off ground second pulled brought it down hooked ever since bought first car as a 74 dodge dart sport 6 banger for $100 bucks from boneyard replaced engine with 318 at 15 brother totalled it before I got to drive so I bought a 73 charger coupe 318 auto for$300 at 16 put 6 pack scoop on it painted it white drove for years when redoing it brother totalled it since stayed away till now haveing gotten back to roots and have 2 s71 super bees working on getting 2 more love those 3rd gen chargers someday will have my vert 69 coronet or satellite
 
013_13.jpgPair of 73 Chargers . Paid $100 for both . White top was a P code 400 , other was a 383 4 speed . No mercy went to either one .
 
I can't say I'm a Moparhead but I had a 34 Plymouth rumble seat Coupe 50 years ago. It came to me fenderless and with a small Plymouth V8. I upgraded first to a 331 Hemi and later to a 365 Caddy, Lasale floorshift trany and a Dodge truck rear. Ran 11 inch slicks, painted it gold with a gold and white roll and pleat interior. Made the scene on Ft Lauderdale Beach --Spring Break Week in her for several years--what a time. No slouch either, it could pull the fronts off going to 2nd.
 
1972 340 Challenger I bought for $1200 in 1982 when I was 17.

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A few years later I swapped in a rering and bearing rebuilt 426 Street Wedge with 906 heads, Torker intake, 750 Holley 3310, Hooker headers, 3800 stall Turbo Action, 3.91 gears, SS springs and ran 12.81 @ 107.52, not knowing what I was doing or how to tune.

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66 Belvedere II in 69...318 poly but it wasn't long before it got a 383 in early 71. Drove the car in 67 (bought new by my sister) to driver's ed :D The cops mostly knew me from getting stopped on go-carts etc but they seemed to ignore me when I was going for my driver's license and never got a ticket until a few years ago and that was from a wet behind the ears rookie. I now drive through town doing 20 under. The rookie hates me lol
 
here's mine... '69 Formula "S" Fastback. Couple weeks after I bought it, 1979. The extra shots are of Lana (High School GF) and the car in the background. bought the '64 New Yorker in Silverton, OR. (1983) and it made the trip with me to California. That's where she stayed...
 

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