Busted knuckles, sore knees, and terminally greasy fingers are just some of the hallmarks of true Mopar enthusiasts. Sometimes, however, we consider how wonderful it would be to do the cash-for-keys thing and head straight to the dragstrip. It's an uncommon scenario, but every once in a while it happens. Joe Luis of Roselle Park, New Jersey, knows it all too well.
Joe was perusing eBay one day when he came across this '68 Dart for sale. It was a Georgia car, originally sporting a 273 small-block, but had been recently fitted with a '99 360 Magnum crate engine. The 360 was outfitted with an M1 dual-plane intake, a 750-cfm vacuum secondary Holley 3310 carb, Orange Box Mopar electronic ignition, and Hedman headers. The Dart was free of rust and in excellent condition.
To Joe's surprise, only one bid had been placed on the car-from a guy in Canada. As the bidding window closed, the Canadian backed out due to emissions concerns in his province, and for a relative steal, Joe won the bid.
The car was in Atlanta, where Joe quickly flew to claim his prize.
"I could not believe how clean this car was for just one repaint," says Joe. After bringing the Dart home via U-Haul, all Joe had to do was wet-sand it and buff out the rough clearcoat to present the luster you see here.
The car was a winner in Joe's eyes, and with less than 2,000 miles on the crate 360, he had the pleasure of giving the V8 its first oil change. Of course, that little plus was eclipsed by the fact that the car was immediately ready for action, and Joe didn't waste any time pointing his new ride towards the Englishtown dragstrip. Unfortunately, only a week later the 904 tranny took a nose dive.
To cure this problem, Joe sent the slush box to his Mopar buddy, "Hemi Dave," to give the 904 a complete rework. This included the installation of a B&M shift-improver kit, an 11-inch TCI converter, and a Hurst valvebody. At the same time, Joe decided to upgrade the drivetrain by swapping an 831/44 rear for the original 711/44 unit. He fetched a set of 3.55 gears for around-town and quarter-mile duties (he kept the 2.76 ring and pinion set for long hauls).
Joe defines himself as a big-block kind of guy, yet the Dart's 360 impressed him as well as his fellow Englishtown competitors. The Ford and Chevy drivers lined up against him at the staging lanes didn't give him much consideration at first. A few months later, that changed. After seeing his sub-13 e.t. runs, it wasn't long before the Mustangs and Firebirds began jockeying for positions that put plenty of distance between themselves and the Dart. Joe's best e.t. was a respectable 12.66 at 108 mph.
Interestingly, Joe's association with the spicy crate-engined Dart came to an end last year. A New England gentleman caught Joe in the pits and asked how much he would sell the car for. Joe said it wasn't for sale, but when pressed for a hypothetical number, Joe obliged. Then, when the inquirer cut that price by nearly two grand, Joe told him that if he had ten minutes he should go to the stands and watch his next quarter-mile pass. He did, and Joe belted out a whopper. A short time later, the man came back and pressed an envelope full of cash into Joe's hand. It contained the pie-in-the-sky figure he had originally asked for.
And that, as they say, was that for Joe and his sizzling Dart. It is, however, just the beginning of another tale of a Mopar enthusiast hopping into a turnkey cruiser.