In the early 2000s, Subaru and Mitsubishi set off a horsepower war with the STi and the EVO. Both cars were high-horsepower econoboxes that offered cheap thrills and fairly reasonable accommodation.
They allowed owners to modify them and get even more power and speed for next to nothing. They weren't the first to offer such a car though, all the way back in 1968 Plymouth recognized the same gap in the market.
As the '60s had progressed, muscle cars had gone from cheaper fast cars to more expensive, luxury laden land-barges. The Roadrunner was the answer in many ways. It was more affordable than most muscle cars and offered the same tunability mentioned above with regard to those Japanese cars. The Roadrunner had one major advantage, a bevy of large engines that could handle far more power than any four-cylinder.
15 Black Tie Affair
The Roadrunner seen here is set to do anything you could need it to. They say that black goes with everything and it's clearly correct about this car. Not only could you take this on a quaint date night but also to the drag strip. You'd look great doing either.
14 Going To Work
Speaking of the drag strip here's a great example of how comfortable these cars are in such a setting. What a magnificent looking blower this particular car has going for it as well. Really the Roadrunner is a favorite at many tracks thanks to its cost and capability.
13 Popeye
This is a historic car. Clearly one driven by the amazing racing driver Richard Petty, this car helped him become the first NASCAR driver to earn over a million dollars in one season. It was also one of only two factory-backed cars that year in the racing series.
12 Lighting Them Up
The Roadrunner wasn't always a small and nimble muscle car. Originally it was a bit bigger and heavier and that's what we're looking at above. The amazing thing Plymouth did was remove as much weight as they could to give it a little more capability.
11 Aggressive
This Roadrunner was part of Plymouths "Rapid Transit" roadshow. A traveling auto-show that featured four of the hottest cars they could make with a bunch of special features that showed what owners could do with these when they let their imaginations run wild.
10 Jagged Bird
An often missed feature of the Roadrunner was how jagged those front headlights truly are. The angles that Plymouth sculpted into the body are hard to see when you're looking at the car from the front or sides. Over the top though we can see the W formed between those headlights, a feature that is unique to the Roadrunner.
9 Roadrunner Red
The Roadrunner is such an infamous cartoon character that there was no way Plymouth could sell the car without using its signature red color. That black cowl on the hood sets it off even more. It has such a presence everywhere it goes on the road.
8 Fully Restored
It may seem like an odd color but these days the rarer colors are worth quite a bit of money. This car has had a full restoration. The engine looks like it's never been run. The paint is perfect and the value has more than tripled since the day it came off the line.
7 Topdown Style
Topless birds from this time period are actually fairly rare too. As one of the less expensive options, adding pricey features like a convertible top wasn't the norm. The yellow and black are well matched and there are few cars that have all the abilities this one does.
6 A Nice 69
In '69, there were very few examples of the Roadrunner sold with the 440 motor this one has. The old saying is that there's no replacement for displacement and this car certainly makes a case for that being true.
5 A Rare Paintjob
Another rarity in the Roadrunner family is this pseudo-two-tone paint job. While we're used to seeing it on the Superbird and a version of it on the Hemi Cuda, to see it on the Roadrunner demonstrates where it came from.
4 Two-Tone Down To The Headlights
The two-tone paint continues on here with this particular bird. The mustard yellow even makes its way onto the headlamps you see here. At the time there were lots of cars that would have two different colored lenses at the front. The black shaker hood scoop is a great way to set it off. It's actually for sale right now if you're interested...
3 1 Of 137
This Plymouth was also a rare bird. Not only were few sold in this golden color but this was one of only 137 ever sold in 71 that came with the 440 engine and the six-barrel carburetor.
2 AirGrabber
Another convertible, this was fully restored so much so that the engine bay looks clean enough to eat off of. This angle shows that subtle but important "AirGrabber" hood scoop found only on the Roadrunner.
1 For Sale
This Roadrunner was a car featured on Counts Customs and recently sold from there as well. The paint, wheels and hood scoop are all bits that weren't found on the original cars making this bird truly one of a kind. There's even a video all about it.