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Digital 1964 Plymouth Scamp Is a Belvedere Truck Out for Chevy El Camino Blood

Back in 1957, Ford put a bed on a full-size car and created the Ranchero and the coupe utility segment. Chevrolet did the same in 1959 and spawned the iconic El Camino. Mopar, on the other hand, didn't jump on the car-based pickup bandwagon until the late 1970s.
1964 Plymouth Scamp rendering 6 photos
Photo: jlord8/Instagram
1964 Plymouth Scamp rendering1964 Plymouth Scamp rendering1964 Plymouth Scamp rendering1983 Plymouth Scamp1979 Plymouth Arrow Pickup
But what if the Chrysler Corporation had joined in on the fun much earlier than that? Well, this new rendering by Instagram's "jlord8" provides the answer with a pickup based on the 1964 Plymouth Belvedere. It's called the Scamp, after a short-lived compact pickup from 1983, and shows that Plymouth could've built one hot truck in the 1960s.

Not only does it look gorgeous with a bed, but the 1964 Belvedere was also available with a couple of high-performance V8 engines. I'm talking about the 383-cubic-inch (6.3-liter) V8 rated at 330 horsepower, as well as the 426-cubic-inch (7.0-liter) Max Wedge.

Granted, the latter was only available in Super Stock versions of the two-door sedan, but it could have easily trickled into a pickup version. Now picture a coupe utility with up to 425 horsepower on tap.

It would have been notably more powerful than the Ranchero, which Ford had moved from the full-size to the compact platform in 1960 (before switching to midsize underpinnings in 1966). The El Camino, on the other hand, returned in 1964 as a Chevelle-based pickup after a four-year hiatus.

Needless to say, it would have been an interesting battle. One that could have also included a Dodge version based on the Polara (perhaps called the Rampage?).

We'll never know if a 1960s Scamp would have been successful, but I can tell you that the 1983 version wasn't. Introduced as Plymouth's version of the Dodge Rampage, the Omni-based compact was discontinued after only one model year and disappointing sales of 3,564 units.

But the Scamp wasn't Plymouth's first pickup. The division also produced the Arrow Pickup from 1979 to 1982. Based on the Mitsubishi Forte, it shared its looks and underpinnings with the Dodge D-50, which was renamed the Ram 50 in 1981. Needless to say, this digital 1960s version looks much better from just about every angle.
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Editor's note: For illustrative purposes, the photo gallery also includes images of the 1979 Plymouth Arrow Pickup and the 1983 Plymouth Scamp.

About the author: Ciprian Florea
Ciprian Florea profile photo

Ask Ciprian about cars and he'll reveal an obsession with classics and an annoyance with modern design cues. Read his articles and you'll understand why his ideal SUV is the 1969 Chevrolet K5 Blazer.
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