{"id":49669,"date":"2021-04-12T09:00:56","date_gmt":"2021-04-12T13:00:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dodgegarage.com\/news-api\/?p=49669"},"modified":"2024-03-25T11:21:31","modified_gmt":"2024-03-25T15:21:31","slug":"not-a-beeper-1967-dodge-coronet-r-t","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/heritage\/2021\/04\/not-a-beeper-1967-dodge-coronet-r-t.html","title":{"rendered":"Not a Beeper: 1967 Dodge Coronet R\/T"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"1967<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

This vintage magazine ad is truly a puzzler. Everybody knows Plymouth introduced the Road Runner in 1968, right? So why, oh why does this ad for the 1967 Dodge <\/em>Coronet R\/T have the word \u201croad runner\u201d plastered atop the picture boxes? If we had a time machine, we\u2019d simply place a call to Dodge\u2019s advertising agency at the time – Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn (BBD&O) – and ask to speak with the creative director.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We\u2019d ask: \u201cHaven\u2019t you heard? The people over at Young & Rubicam (Plymouth\u2019s advertising agency) are talking with Warner Brothers about using the Road Runner theme on an upcoming Plymouth model?\u201d Then we\u2019d listen\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"1967<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

But we don\u2019t have a time machine, so we can only assume that the Dodge ad team assumed the word \u201croad runner\u201d was part of the popular vocabulary and innocently stuck it into this ad. But here\u2019s the rub. As far as we can determine, this is the single, solitary time the phrase \u201croad runner\u201d appeared in any Dodge advertising material. There was no further effort to utilize or expand on the phrase in subsequent Coronet R\/T or Dodge vehicle publicity of any other kind.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So months later, when Plymouth sought a name for their innovative budget muscle car, it came up with an association with the energetic Saturday morning cartoon bird; and the rest is history. The story of how Plymouth licensed the Road Runner name from entertainment icon Warner Brothers is well known. For the record, it has been reported that another name under consideration was La Mancha. Can you imagine a world of HEMI\u00ae<\/sup> La Manchas or Six Pack La Manchas? We can\u2019t.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"1967<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Another curious phrase on this advertisement appears just under the picture box and reads; \u201cthe newest hot one from Dodge\u201d. Again, students of automotive advertising \u2013 and astute consumers alike \u2013 would likely have recalled when \u2013 just 11 years earlier \u2013 a certain American automaker associated with bow-shaped neckties ran an ad in 1956 claiming; \u201cThe Hot One is even hotter.\u201d At the time, that specific carmaker was awakening to the fact that high performance helped sell new cars, and heartily embraced boasting about horsepower.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Again, because the time machine is broken, we can only wonder why the BBD&O copywriters used a phrase so blatantly associated with a chief competitor. Perhaps the creative team was young \u2013 like maybe 22- or 23-year-olds. If so, then they\u2019d have been only 11 or 12 when the original 1956 Hot One magazine ad ran, and probably had no idea of its existence in 1967. Or maybe they did know, and wisely chose not to use capital letters (\u201chot one\u201d instead of \u201cHot One\u201d) to dodge (pun intended) a legal shout from the folks in Warren, Michigan, to find another name \u2013 pronto.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We may never know. What we do know is the 1967 Coronet R\/T was Dodge\u2019s first true answer to the 1964 Pontiac GTO. Launched in 1964 to much fanfare, the 335-horsepower GTO is generally said to be the industry\u2019s first muscle car. Though Dodge offered much more potent machinery starting with the 1962 410-horsepower 413 Ramcharger (also remembered as the Max Wedge), the GTO stood apart for its self-aware image and added \u201cplumage\u201d. While the 413 and 426 Ramchargers were incredibly fast \u2013 and mechanically far more outrageous than the GTO (which was little more than a mid-size car with a full-size station wagon V8), the GTO\u2019s savvy use of flashy \u201cmag wheels and racing stripes\u201d attracted buyers in huge quantities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

By contrast, Dodge\u2019s hottest offerings (1962-64 Ramchargers, 1964-65 Race HEMI sedans) were usually stripped down for reduced weight with zero <\/em>external plumage to visually separate them from Grandpa\u2019s Slant Six economy model. But to Dodge\u2019s credit, you got steak, not sizzle \u2013 reverse of the GTO\u2019s game plan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"1967<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The \u201967 Coronet R\/T fixed all that. Sure, some may say Dodge played a little \u201cfollow the leader\u201d by adding items like the R\/T\u2019s non-functional hood louver plate and the horizontal rocker panel stripes shown in this ad (more on this in a moment). But in the spirit of the 1962-65 factory Max Wedge and Race HEMI package cars, Dodge over-delivered with the mechanical aspects of the R\/T.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"1967<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

First off, unlike the GTO\u2019s microscopic 9.5-inch diameter drum brakes (the same brakes used on base six-cylinder Tempests) and 3-speed manual transmission (in 1967, you paid $188 extra for a 4-speed or $226 for an automatic in GTO), Dodge equipped every R\/T with huge 11-inch drum brakes, extra heavy-duty police car suspension, specially calibrated high-upshift 727 Torqueflite\u00ae<\/sup> automatic transmission (the 18-spline A833 HEMI 4-speed was a no-cost alternative \u2013 which included the massive Dana 60 rear axle), special die-cast metal R\/T nameplates on the grille, trunk panel, interior door panels and glove box and, most importantly, the largest muscle car engine of the sixties, the 440 Magnum with 375 horsepower and 480 ft\/lb of torque. And if that wasn\u2019t enough, the 426 Street HEMI was on tap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Coronet R\/T was a reasonable success, selling 10,181 units in its first year. What\u2019s more, it launched the fabled R\/T muscle car sub-series, later used famously on Chargers and Challengers (but curiously never on Darts or full-size models). Getting back to the horizontal rocker panel stripe seen on this magazine show pony, the written copy says the lower-body paint stripe is \u201cavailable through your Dealer.\u201d This tells us that Dodge had no interest in applying these rather finicky stripes in the fast-paced maelstrom of the regular assembly line. And again, note that the stripe is described as being \u201cpaint\u201d, not an adhesive-backed vinyl applique.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like any special paint-on graphic treatment, application requires precision masking to avoid rough edges, overspray and other unsightly blemishes that would trigger a second attempt \u2013 or customer complaints if it got past the factory\u2019s quality control inspector. While there undoubtedly exists a dealer bulletin describing the availability of this optional paint stripe, in our four decades of visiting Mopar shows across the country, we cannot remember seeing a single example of this optional stripe treatment. And that\u2019s a good thing. To our eyes, the stripe adds an unnecessary \u201cboy racer\u201d aspect to the otherwise sinister and very grown up \u201967 Coronet R\/T.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But was Dodge finished with stripes? No way. The next year, the Coronet (and Charger) line got a complete restyle \u2013 and ushered in the glorious Scat Pack era. While the dealer-added 1967 horizontal rocker stripe is best forgotten, Dodge stylists hit a home run by relocating the stripe element to the rear of the body, and rotating it into a vertical orientation. The Bumble Bee Stripe was born! And it was applied right on the assembly line thanks to a switch from paint to more forgiving vinyl.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As for the stylish \u201cmag-type wheel covers\u201d, sold as option code 583 for $38.95, if they look familiar to owners of Chevelles, 4-4-2\u2019s, Shelby Mustangs and Jeep\u00ae<\/sub> Super Wagoneers of the mid-sixties, that\u2019s because they were supplied to these carmakers by Garwood Industries, a popular auto industry sub-contractor. But they weren\u2019t identical. Subtle changes were made to the shapes of the spokes and the trim rings to avoid excessive familiarity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A similar scenario played out with the optional 14-inch x 5.5-inch chrome plated Road Wheels, a $97.30 upgrade. These beautiful wheels \u2013 with their glistening chrome hoops, five spokes and matte black highlights \u2013 were manufactured by Motor Wheel, a Lansing, Michigan-based maker of \u2013 you guessed it \u2013 wheels. But like the aforementioned wheel covers, Motor Wheel also supplied these rims to numerous other carmakers, again with subtle variations to contours and specific bolt patterns. Incidentally, 1967 was the first year for these all-chrome Road Wheels on mid- and full-size Dodge models, adding another \u201cmuscle car\u201d goodie to the option sheet.      <\/p>\n\n\n\n

With its mechanically identical corporate cousin, the Plymouth GTX (whose name implied it was a GTO-exterminator), the 1967 Dodge Coronet R\/T gave Chrysler Corporation its first generation of weapons to fight the muscle car image battle. But we still have to wonder at this somewhat confused magazine advertisement. Anybody got a time machine we can borrow? <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This vintage magazine ad is truly a puzzler. Everybody knows Plymouth introduced the Road Runner in 1968, right? So why, oh why does this ad for the 1967 Dodge Coronet R\/T have the word \u201croad runner\u201d plastered atop the picture boxes? If we had a time machine, we\u2019d simply place a call to Dodge\u2019s advertising agency at the time – Batten, Barton, Durstine & Osborn (BBD&O) – and ask to speak with the creative director. We\u2019d ask: \u201cHaven\u2019t you heard? The people over at Young & Rubicam (Plymouth\u2019s advertising agency) […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":49677,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2622],"tags":[2948],"class_list":["post-49669","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-heritage","tag-dodge-classics"],"acf":[],"custom_fields":{"post_thumbnail_image":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/pagesfromthepast1967coronet.png","icon_selection":"article","external_link":"","featured_article":[],"upload_background_image":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49669"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=49669"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49669\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":49908,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/49669\/revisions\/49908"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/49677"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=49669"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=49669"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=49669"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}