Think what you will of Chrysler Corporation’s decent towards insolvency in the late 1970s, but somewhere in Highland Park existed at least a few people who remembered what made them great just a decade prior: performance. Not stickers, not gaudy add-ons but the best engine, transmission, axle, suspension and brakes jammed into a car that could be bought at a reasonable price by Joe Whoever. The Plymouth Road Runner had been that car when it debuted in 1968, but by 1978 it was a graphics package on a Volaré. The Dodge Charger had bloated up into the 1977 Charger SE, and had been replaced in 1978 by the Magnum, another heavy B-body. The Lil’ Red Express and Warlock pickups could still come out stomping with a big block, and the cop cars were in their last year of 440 power as well, but where was the serious, sincere performance? The Dodge Aspen and Plymouth Volaré Kit Cars.
The cars were the same, except for paint colors (two-tone blue for Plymouth, two-tone red for Dodge) and had “43” decals shipped in the trunk from the factory, a nod to Richard Petty. This would be a bad move, because Petty would jump ship to Oldsmobile in 1978 after fighting with his Dodge Magnum race car. The rest of it was stout: the E58 four-barrel 360 was the top-tier F-body engine, and for the Kit Cars it was mandatory to have the 727 automatic transmission. Power went out to a 3.23 Sure Grip-equipped rear end, and the entire handling options book was thrown at the car. Visually, they looked downright mean, with bolt-on style fender flares, spoilers front and rear, hood pins, window louvers, cap-less Super Coupe wheels, and window retainer bars on the rear glass. Only 392 Street Kit Cars were moved, with 145 of those being Dodges.
This knockout example is up for sale on eBay and yes, it’s giving me fits like none other. The “43” decals are in the trunk, and the car is complete and low-mileage. There’s a little bit of wear if you really look, and that 125 MPH cop speedometer is probably not stock, but overall this is one Aspen that is just begging for the E58 to undergo the 408ci stroker treatment if there ever was one.
eBay Link: 1978 Dodge Aspen Street Kit Car
It’s amazing this car has not returned to the earth as a pile of rust! I remember seeing these cars in magazine ads back in the 70’s and always liked them.
Curious what the reserve is on the Aspen.
Look mean? They look like some hippie on a bad acid trip designed them. Were they mean? Maybe for the day, but they needed a lot of help. They didn’t even get close to the 13 second cars just a few years earlier. These were the early years of the performance drought.
It is interesting, but I would go for a bare bones grampa model with go fast bits.
Cool stuff! Learned to drive in an Aspen wagon.
According to the article Dodge made a big block Little Red Express??? Never saw or heard of one. I thought every LRE was 360 powered…..
I bought this car from the 24 year 2nd owner just 2 weeks ago. Great car!