Seeing Norm's '68 Road Runner...
Seeing Norm's '68 Road Runner going down the strip was like a trip back in time. We can only imagine the days when a scene like this happened at local tracks around the country every weekend.
Blue Beeper
In 1968, the Plymouth Road Runner was introduced and took the musclecar market by storm. These cars were lightweight, bare bones, and economically priced machines with great power from the factory. By adding a few hundred bucks to the purchase price, the Road Runner could be had with the potent 426 Hemi engine, making the combination virtually unbeatable at the track. When Norm Barringer decided to restore his Hemi Road Runner, he wanted a combination of show and go. Staying with the factory look was important, but Norm also wanted his car to stand out, so brilliant Viper blue paint was applied. The engine in Norm's Plymouth was rebuilt to factory standards and mated to the original A-833 crash box. Out back, highway friendly 3.54 gears transfer the power to the period-correct Keystone classic wheels and street tires. Driving such a beast on the track can be difficult, and traction was limited by the small tires out back, but Norm still managed some respectable 14-second e.t.'s in the quarter-mile.
 The first year for the Plymouth...  The first year for the Plymouth Road Runner was 1968, and Norm Barringer's is a beautiful example. An original Hemi car, Norm performed an immaculate restoration to make this a car we'd love to own. |  Nothing looks better than...  Nothing looks better than a dual-quad Hemi under the hood of an extremely nice '68 Road Runner. These cars put Plymouth on the musclecar map, and Norm Barringer's is a fine example. |  When restoring the interior...  When restoring the interior of his car, Norm chose to stay with the spartan look that the Road Runners were known for. An aftermarket tachometer, oil pressure, and water temperature gauges are the only additions to this great-looking cockpit. |
A bench seat and a four-speed shifter is the way most Road Runners came, and this car is no exception. The factory inland-style shifter can create a problem when attempting full bore runs down the quarter-mile, but Norm rowed through the gears with ease, netting mid-14-second timeslips. The only add-ons in this Road Runner's interior were aftermarket gauges to keep track of the vital signs.