There's a lot of debate as to when the muscle car was born, but we do know for a fact that the golden era came to an end in 1971. That's when increased government regulations and rising insurance rates forced U.S. automakers to put an end to high-performance V8 engines.
The list of mills that were dropped after the 1971 model year includes some of the greatest V8s ever built. Chevrolet discontinued the LS6, while Ford dropped the Cobra and Super Cobra Jet. Chrysler not only discontinued the HEMI but also axed the 3x2-barrel version of the 440-cubic-inch (7.2-liter) RB.
However, it seems that Chrysler actually built and sold a handful of cars equipped with the 440-6 engine for 1972. Two of them were Plymouth Road Runners fitted with the GTX package, while two were Dodge Chargers. They were built very early in the model year and Mopar execs denied their existence for years.
Why? Well, since the 440-6 didn't pass the then-new emission regulations, cars equipped with this V8 were pretty much illegal. Selling them to the public could have gotten Chrysler in a lot of trouble.
Come 2022 and four such cars are known to exist, but very few people have seen them. The 1972 Road Runner you're looking at here is one of those cars. It was recently displayed at a car show and the story goes that it was "stored for many years" before an "extensive restoration was recently completed."
The muscle car now looks just as it did when it left the factory some 50 years ago and it's downright impressive inside and out. And it's not just the 3x2-barrel 440 V8 that makes it special. This Plymouth is also one of only a few cars that got a factory sunroof that year.
It's also a highly-optioned muscle car fitted with a center console, an in-dash tachometer, air induction hood, AM-FM stereo, and a cassette player. And of course, it's equipped with the GTX package, which was the only way to have a 440 V8 on a Road Runner in 1972.
Discontinued after 1971, the GTX became the "high-performance" package for the Road Runner in 1972. However, the 440 that came with the bundle was a more mundane and detuned engine rated at 225 net horsepower. The 440-6, on the other hand, delivered 390 horses on paper.
One of only two Road Runners that got the 440-6 for the 1972 model year, this muscle is also the only one with the factory sunroof. Yup, it's an authentic one-of-one gem and it's absolutely fantastic that someone decided to restore it and put it on display after so many years. Check it out in the video below.
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. Full profile
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