Joined: Mon Oct 31 2005, 12:48PM
Location: Bakersfield, California
Posts: 1755
Amen Bob! I have a '93 B250 Conversion Van that has been in every state in the union except for Hawaii. It's been a great vehicle.
That brings up another very debatable Mopar - the A 200 through 500 Motorhome chassis. Up through 1978, 93% of all motorhomes in this country were built on Mopar Chasiss and frames. The death of the 440 killed that monopoly. Still, up through 1985 more than half of the MH production was still Mopar.
Joined: Sun Feb 05 2006, 11:51PM
Location: Pa
Posts: 3064
I knew there were a lot of Mopar motor homes, but every time I saw one it was a #*&@% GMC chassis! hopefully all those high nickle content 440's go into our project cars someday.....
Well, Chrysler also was in the aerospace industry quite heavily in the sixties. How about the Saturn V series boosters . . . Or, Chrysler Marine division from 1965 to 1981 ( sold division to Bayliner ) Or, Chrysler's foray into winter fun with the " Sno-Runner" of 1979 to 1981.
Joined: Tue Oct 11 2005, 04:38PM
Location: Grandville,MI
Posts: 957
Yeah not only did the dreded K car save the bacon for Ma Mopar but they were the FIRST ones to wear a HEMI badge since the 70's before the big HEMI revival of now a days!!!!!!!!!!! One of my friends Mom had one that said 2.2 HEMI on both front fenders!!!!
'63 or '64 Newport with bolt-action 383. Run forever, roots back to the beginnings of cars, the modern suspension and V8, good economy, great sized package with plenty of interior room. Easy to drive, to park, to commute, to travel cross-country with family. No slouch, and could be had with AC.
The '63 300 letter wasn't a best (high operating cost as were all 300's) but some of the goodies could have made their way over to the lesser car.
It'de be the most fun to make into an all around driver with some Lotto money, IMO.
Re-hash of an OLD thread, but I've always had a very strong opinion on this topic.
I know it is basically unanswerable; there really were so many great candidates. Here's my pic.
My parents bought a 65 Dodge Coronet 500 coupe with the 318/torqueflite. It had AM radio, heater and p/s.
Our whole family feel in LOVE with this car the first time we sat in it at the dealership! There was so much more; it was a revelation compared to any car my father owned before. He had a Chevy Bel Aire 6 cylinder 3 on the tree before. The Dodge was MUCH more comfortable more powerful, handled better and was way more reliable and dependable than the Chevy ever was.
SO, I nominate the early Mopar B bodies. I'll go so far as to say they were the best cars in the WORLD for their time. They had everthing, power, handling, roominess and reliability all in one package. There was nothing else to compare with them at the time. The could have benefited from better quality control at the factory and a better and more competent dealer network.
That Dodge OUTlasted FIVE other cars my dad had! And, it was never taken care of properly; sat out on the street summer and winter....hot sun and road salt....dog tore up the interior...two teenage boys learned to drive and raced it....