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In this weeks RodsandWheels e-magazine, we continue cruisin' through our muscle car series with the 1970 Buick GSX: pure muscle. We follow-up with a profile of the 1963 Dodge 880. More Mopar is discussed with an article about the Plymouth Duster: 1970 to 1976. And lastly, we finish up with a profile of the Dodge Daytona. Until next week,

See Ya Under the Hood,

Paul H. Green
Founder
RodsandWheels.com

1970 Buick GSX: pure muscle

The Buick GS (Gran Sport) dates all the way back to 1965 when intermediate muscle cars were being released by many auto makers. It started with a 1965 Buick Skylark GS and ended with the Buick GS name being moved to Century models in 1975. Somewhere in between a “grand” muscle, GS was born. It was the Buick GSX of 1970 - a sports package that all race and hot rod fans can appreciate. Let’s travel back to early sports car days and see what the 1970 Buick GSX had to offer.

Profile of the 1963 Dodge 880

In 1963, an amazing Dodge car came on the scene - the Dodge 880. It was a large car that offered plenty of value for buyers at a modest price. It was both luxurious and practical for all purposes. There were two elegant series offered for this year, the Dodge 880 and the Dodge Custom 880, which were practically identical in mechanical equipment and size. The two series were, however, different in their interior trim design. Here’s a detailed profile of the 1963 Dodge 880 models.

The Plymouth Duster: 1970 to 1976

Plymouth designers and engineers produced a sporty close-coupled coupe that broke the mold of the usual two- and four- door Plymouth models. Plymouth needed a youth-oriented affordable car, and the Duster filled the order.

The Plymouth Duster made its debut as a sporty performance version of the Plymouth Valiant in late 1969. This little muscle car provided a big bang for the buck because of its raw power at such an affordable price. The Duster gave many of the larger muscle cars a run for their money.

Profile of the Dodge Daytona

Dodge wanted to create an aerodynamic high-speed race car to compete on the NASCAR tracks. They took the successful Dodge Charger, added some aerodynamic parts, and introduced the Charger 500 on the showroom floor as well as the NASCAR tracks. This release was disappointingly inferior to Ford’s Torino Talladega and Mercury’s Cyclone Spoiler.

Dodge quickly sent the engineers back to work and the result was the 1969 Dodge Daytona. Their expectations were to bring glory back to Dodge on the NASCAR tracks. It proved to exceed expectations and was unstoppable. The Daytona featured an 18-inch pointed fiberglass nose extension designed to reduce drag and enhance down force, front fender scoops for tire clearance, and a two-foot high rear spoiler.

That year, the Dodge Daytona not only set a world closed-course speed record of 201.104, but also an unlimited class speed record of 217 mph. At the Daytona race, the Dodge Daytona took all four top positions.

In 1969, the consumer could choose from two engine options: a 426-cubic-inch V-8 Hemi engine with 425 horsepower at 5,000 rpm or a 440-cubic-inch V-8 engine with 375 horsepower at 4,600 rpm. The 426 engine could go from 0 to 60 mph in only 6.6 seconds and ¼ mile in 13.92 seconds at 104.1 mph. Of the 503 Dodge Daytona models produced this year, 433 of them had the 440 engine and 70 of them had a Hemi engine.

The Daytona’s street performance was not as great as its racing performance on the track due to weight. The year 1969 was the only year the Dodge Daytona was available and wouldn’t resurface again until 1984.