Plymouth merchandise planners were given $ 15 million to freshen up the dowdy little Valiant for 1970 . Nobody told them they could expend the money to create a slick , new fastback coupe . Then again , nobody said they could n’t . And so set about the floor of the 1970 - 1976 Plymouth Duster .
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accrue 1959 . Dateline : Detroit . New cable car buyers eagerly anticipate the bright new compacts promise by the major American manufacturers . Designed to do engagement with the the likes of of Volkswagen ’s Beetle while answering social critic who say that the standard Chevrolet , Ford , and Plymouth , have produce too large and big , the Big Three bring forth an eclectic raiment of smaller railcar .
General Motors takes on the Beetle forthwith with the rear - engine Chevy Corvair , while Ford ’s conventional Falcon is a scale - down edition of the gravid Ford . Chrysler ’s Valiant goes its own way with Virgil Exner - conduct European air that grant Valiant to boast " It ’s nobody ’s kid brother . “Fall 1969 . Dateline , Detroit . The VW Beetle is still around , but the Corvair faded off in the leaping , a victim of the histrionics of safety crusader Ralph Nader and the raise of sporty summary " pony cars . " And while it was the most successful of the new entry , the Falcon , too , is nearly gone , a victim of Ford ’s voguish game of " disposable nameplates . "
The saucy Maverick is destined to be Falcon ’s replacement . Of the trio of newfangled compact introduced with such Bob Hope and assure a decade originally , only Valiant remain , with its skillful 24-hour interval still onwards of it . And all because of a cute two - doorway fastback with the unbelievable name of Duster . rather or afterward , almost everyone owned a Plymouth Duster or knew someone who did . They were everywhere , as omnipresent as pledge . And the crazy thing is the Duster was never suppose to happen .
proceed to the next page to study more about Chrysler ’s 1970 thickset machine models . For more information on cars , see :
1970 Chrysler Compact Cars
By the latter 1960s , Chrysler Corporation had successfully established itself as the major player in the compact - car segment of the American mart . This page insert the 1970 Chrysler compact cars .
With its one - two punch of the Plymouth Valiant and the slightly larger Dodge Dart , the Chrysler products on a regular basis took 30 percent or more of stocky sales , a pct far in surfeit of its approximately 16 - percent share of the overall mart .
Since its introduction . Valiant had been restyled twice ; once in 1963 , and again in 1967 , when its wheelbase was stretched out to 108 inches . But with the 1967 rework . Valiant was pared to just two- and four - doorway sedans , surrender its notchback two - doorway hardtop and transformable to its sexier sibling , the Barracuda . After subsist on grille and taillight tweaks for 1968 and 1969 , Chrysler product planners budget $ 30 million – split evenly between Plymouth and Dodge – for facelifting the Valiant and Dart ( designated internally within Chrysler as the A - bodies ) for the 1970 model year . Dodge dutifully spent its allowance on ingraft young fronts and ass for the Dart ’s four - room access sedan chair and two - door hardtop bodies . This was the make that fanned the flames of " Dodge Rebellion " in its advertising , but a more real rising was raised by Plymouth ’s intersection planners .
rather of spending their money bear upon up the Valiant sedans , former Plymouth compact - car planning executive Gene Weiss said they decided to spend " nothing – energy , zero , nada " on the carryover railway car . Instead , the deviser clandestinely conspired with Plymouth stylists to wager the full $ 15 million on a longshot outside the pot ’s sacrosanct merchandise design . Why rock candy the boat ? One reason was the all - new Barracuda and Dodge Challenger " pony cars " that Chrysler was machinate up for 1970 . The 1967 Barracuda , while handsome enough , was still a disguised Valiant that really could not contend with its lustier Ford and GM rivals .
And the Dodge Boys want a piece of that market , too . So the Barracuda and new Challenger were given their own unequalled vitamin E - body shell . And to check that you could stuff every one of the corporation ’s hottest locomotive underhood , the two also were give most of the heftier figure component from the Plymouth and Dodge intermediates . But this mental process , while beneficial , also had unintended consequences . With their beefy chassic parts , the new Barracuda and Challenger were more costly to produce , a factor that contributed to their skilful - die - vernal demise in April , 1974 . Worse yet , they were n’t quite tight enough . “At the time the east - eubstance were being planned , the comparatively cheap 327 belittled - blockage Chevy Nova was the flying car [ in the quarter Admiralty mile ] right off the haulaway , " recalls Weiss .
" And we have it off that unless a hombre prefer for the big - bucks Hemi engine or got a really dependable 440 , the sonorous E - body Barracuda just could n’t do the job . We felt we could n’t be really successful with a Barracuda that did n’t beat the competition without a Hemi engine . What we needed was a light - weight car we could drop our novel 340 - cubic column inch V-8 into to match the quarter - mile time of that 327 Nova . That mean using our [ compact torso ] . "
To learn more about the design of the 1970 Plymouth Duster , continue on to the next page . For more information on cars , see :
Designing the 1970 Plymouth Duster
Before the 1970 Plymouth Duster was introduced to the market , Plymouth had a lighter - weight , compact railcar that could bear a 340 in 1968 and 1969 – in the departing Barracuda .
And Dodge , which had gormandise a 340 into the Dart , still had the Swinger 340 hardtop . Weiss said nobody expected a square - rigged Valiant 340 two - door saloon to deal , but something with racier looks might . Thus , every last penny of the tooling budget function into the newfangled car . That ’s not to say it would be easy . For one thing , a new compact coupe was n’t in Chrysler ’s Long Range Plan ( LRP ) . " But fortuitously , " enunciate Weiss , " the young E - bodies were concern most of the corporation ’s attention , particularly at the upper levels .
The Duster program did n’t pull much scrutiny because compared with the E - body program , the Duster was small modification . So we could pretty well control under everyone ’s microwave radar cover . “Still , it was an extraordinarily tough tooling budget . All of the package had to be carryover , including the wheelbase , together with carryover front - destruction sheet - metal , bonnet , front and rear bumper , door lower , quarter - panel inner structure , etc . The Plymouth stylist could do anything they wanted as long as they held these hardpoints . Their chore was to come up with a close - coupled looking at coupe while stick with a carryover floor - genus Pan on a 108 - in wheelbase with immense rear overhang . Even the overall length – 188.4 in – had to exactly match the four - threshold sedan . ' Junkyard styling ' I called it : induce do by creating something of value mostly out of what ’s useable . Milt Antonick excelled at it . “Antonick was the supervisor responsible for compacts and pony cars in the Plymouth Exterior Studio . work under Milt was Neil Walling , who would become Chrysler ’s Director of Advanced and Exterior Large Car , Small Car , and Minivan Design but then was a next-to-last styler . He had been work on full - size of it Plymouth before being pulled in to work on what became the Duster . “I was asked to do some sketches , " Walling recalls . " It was what I call a ' quick - hitter ' project . We did n’t have much lead time . Since the pilot and doorway lower were carryover Valiant , we had to come up with a design that occur off all those existing crease lines – five of them , no less . We did tape recording drawings attempt to get a better flow ; sporting and more creative . "
Continue to the next page to learn more about the inside of the 1970 Plymouth Duster . For more entropy on machine , see :
Inside the 1970 Plymouth Duster
Designer Neil Walling succeeded in designing the 1970 Plymouth Duster so that its five survive crease lines worked well for the car by intumesce the after part panel about the center line of the rearward wheel and having the lower of the two top crease lines angle up sharp , then throw toward the backside .
Similarly , the lower pair of creases angled down off of the door , then prove up aft of the steering wheel opening . The resulting wedge configuration tot up drama while softening the look of the car , a neat accomplishment .
The center crease continue straight through , and all five lines resolved themselves at the end of the quarter control panel by terminating in a peaked " V " in side prospect .
Since Walling was lodge with the Valiant ’s exist rear track dimensions ( 55.6 inch , compared to the front ’s 58.2 inch ) , the new quarters did n’t swell in plan view , as did those of some GM cars . That would have made the rear wheels look even more tucked under . “I always wish the railcar had a wider track , " he recalls . " When I receive a sirocco on the company ’s lease plan , I buy two - inch - wide spacers for each rear wheel just to make the car wait right . “If the more spectacular rearward quarters were a big part of the successful make - over , the new roof was the cardinal ingredient . “A fastback is a ' 25 - percenter , ' " explain Weiss . " No matter how well it is style , when the customer is pass on a choice between a fastback and a snick - back , 75 percent will be notchbacks . “Yet the Duster was a fastback . For one grounds , its splash roofline made it apparently different from the two - door Valiant ’s nerdy notchback . For another , it was the skilful solution to the styling problem . “The slop Duster cap looked lower than the Valiant notchback because it refer down ( to the decklid ) higher , " sound out Walling . " To get a unexampled look , I wanted to get the groundwork of the backlight up as high as I could . “Toward that ending , the stylist create a steeply slosh backlight mated to a wedge - mold C - pillar that angle sharply ahead , reducing the manifest length of the roof to come at the desired close - coupled coupe looking .
They were also able to snip an column inch and a half off the overall height compared with the sedan chair . to boot , in side view , the beltline was angled up sharp behind the front room access , then turned and angled forward around the rear - twenty-five percent window .
The leave little tail window , together with the arced dripping track and the use of frameless glass in the front door , created the look of a smallish swill roof perched atop hunched stern . Though it look like a true hardtop , the Duster ’s snotty-nosed - open rearward - quarter windows were non - retractable .
Although the 1970 Plymouth Duster was an attractive , sporty automobile , it was n’t utter . Continue to the next page to learn more about the design flaws of the 1970 Plymouth Duster . For more information on cars , see :
Design Flaws of the 1970 Plymouth Duster
Along with the non - retractable flip - open rear - after part window , the side Methedrine itself was another designing flaw for the 1970 Plymouth Duster .
A decade earlier , Chrysler , bring hand - in - bridge player with Pittsburgh Plate Glass , gave the 1957 Imperial the first arc side crank used in an American motorcar . The unwashed Valiants and Darts finally got curved glass in 1967.“But that was 90 - inch - spoke field glass , " recalls Weiss . " for get a libertine looking at above the bash for the new coupe , the stylists and studio railroad engineer proposed using 45 - inch - r field glass for the Duster . Now , it ’s a fact of life that nobody [ in the fellowship ] quite believe a styling studio apartment engineer , but when a car engineer says something can be done , he ’s believe . John Worthy of Advanced Engineering – who accidentally was mad at us for not following the okay LRP – get the project of support that we actually could take a carryover threshold whose inner and outer panels had been originally designed to accommodate the flatter , less - radically curved 90 - in - radius glass and stuff the 45 - inch - spoke glass down into it , get it to fit , and then move up and down . Though it was an inordinately unmanageable designation , he did it . It was the turning detail in the course of study . “The rounder glass dramatically increased the Duster ’s " tumblehome " above the belt . ( " Too much , " opines Antonick , who always felt the threshold glass was too close to the gadget driver ’s head . ) But by imparting a rounder contour above the beltline , the stylists made the consistence below the belt look libertine , too , even though the door was a carryover Valiant component . Out back , the rear light , project by Tom Hale , sum up to the sportier looking at . intentionally horizontal ( as fight down to the vertical lamps on the Valiant ) , the twin - slot lamps were placed inboard and recess into first step in the sheetmetal without the habitual bright bezel . The new look , while attractive , came at a price . For one thing , the want of outer bezels contributed to a likely rust fungus trouble . For another , the position of the lamps resulted in a high liftover , requiring owners to plagiarise luggage up and over to get it or out of the automobile trunk . And , after a twelvemonth of production , the slosh decklid itself became a problem . lack a handle , owners shut the decklid by set their hands straight on the sheetmetal . If done incorrectly , the result was often an unintended vertical crimp ( or worsened , a series of creases ) in the lid ’s shallow lip .
Engineers do-or-die to solve the trouble proposed bring a erect windsplit down the nitty-gritty of the decklid , hoping this would tone the sheetmetal . The revise decklids were cannonball along into production in the summertime of 1971 as a running change to that year ’s cars .
The next Thomas Nelson Page name the features of the 1970 Plymouth Duster . Continue reading to see more about this sporty machine . For more information on cars , see :
1970 Plymouth Duster Features
Plymouth give a large amount of money to the design and development of the 1970 Plymouth Duster , and the railcar ’s abundant features reflected this attention .
There was enough money left for Plymouth stylists to bestow an attractive new grille of closely spaced , recessed , melanize - out horizontal streak , with the center section brought forward flush with the grille frame and capped by Plymouth ’s " frog - leg " allegory .
Rectangular green and turn lamps molded into the recess sections added something of a " poor man ’s Grand Prix " flavor . ( The new grille was also fitted to the sole 1970 Valiant , the four - door sedan.)Interiors used the Valiant instrument control board with a new duplicate - circle caliber cluster with full orchestration and way for an optional tach between the two big independent dials . Seating pick included a received vinyl front judiciary seat and four options : fabric - and - vinyl judiciary , all - vinyl split bench , vinyl group split work bench with fold - down armrest , and all - vinyl front buckets with or without center console table . “The whole Duster program – cartoon and mold – took six workweek , " recall Antonick , " and while that move Chrysler officials , I think to myself , ' Hell , when I was at Studebaker , we did a whole car [ the Avanti ] in six weeks . “Now , what to call the new car ? " The Duster name came out of the [ advertising ] federal agency , " recalls Weiss . " It was a comparatively aggressive name , like Judge , Boss , all of that . “During the first few years , the Duster name was accompany by a cute turn of flightiness , a squat whirl of dust with angry eyes . Though the toon looked slightly sinister , everyone knew instinctively that it was a favorable little rubble devil who just wanted to toy . “The Duster ' swirl ' is really the Tasmanian Devil [ sketch lineament ] , " express joy Antonick . " We wanted to use it straight off , but could n’t get the right from Warner Brothers . They wanted perchance 10 times as much money [ as they charged to habituate the Road Runner name ] because the Road Runner name had been undervalued by Warner . So we did our own ' deuce . ‘“Dusters enjoyed the full panoply of Chrysler engineering features of the era : Unibody construction , front torsion bars , TorqueFlite transmitting , etc .
railway locomotive choices admit two versions of the " bulletproof " Slant Six introduced on the original Valiant – a stroked 198 - cubic inch interlingual rendition offering 125 horsepower ( up from 170 cubic inches and 115 H.P. the year before ) , and the larger 145 - HP , 225 - block variant . For those preferring baron over economy , there was Chrysler ’s workhorse 230 - HP , 318 - three-dimensional column inch V-8 .
The 1970 Plymouth Duster 340 coupe was soon introduced in the marketplace . uphold on to the next page to learn more about this exciting automobile . For more entropy on car , see :
1970 Plymouth Duster 340
Fulfilling the dustrag ’s raison d’etre was the 275 - horsepower 1970 Plymouth Duster 340 , originally conceive as the CK – for Clark Kent .
away identification was discreet : dual bleak side stripes mid - soundbox that thicken slenderly to mimic the swelled quarters , and two full black stripes connecting the tail - lights .
Stuffing the 340 - cubic inch , minuscule - block V-8 underhood was the Duster ’s slate to ride in Plymouth ’s elect Rapid Transit System .
The package included all the expect goodies , like high - flow cylinder heads with 10.5:1 compaction ; high - face lifting , overlap , long - duration camshaft ; a individual Carter four - cask carb ; gamey - pace .87 - column inch - diameter front torsion bars ; .88 - inch front anti - sway barroom ; heavy responsibility shock absorber ; sonorous duty , six - leaf rear springs ; front disk brake ; and E70X14 elevate white - letter of the alphabet tires mounted on 5.5 - in Rallye road wheels with trim mob . Transmission choices included floor - put on three- and four - speed manuals plus Torque - Flite , all heavy - duty . In its March 1970 egress , Car and Driverput the coupe through its paces , compactly characterise the Duster 340 as a " reroofed Valiant with a performance engine , priced to sell ( $ 2,547).“C / Dclocked 0 - to-60 - miles per hour clip of 6.2 seconds , with top speed peg at 120 .
Regarding the standing fourth part - mile , it cover , " A 14.72 - mo ET is better than any stock ' Cuda we ’ve hear and a swarm of big - in - monetary value car . " But the tester were less impressed with the handling , reporting knockout understeer that lead to plowing in turns . " With all that rear overhang and the narrow-minded rear runway , we were favourable it handled at all , " pronounce Weiss .
The 1970 model - class production tot 24,817 Duster 340s compared with 19,515 ' Cudas . In fact , the Duster 340 outsold the ' Cuda 340/383 in each subsequent role model year , and by healthy margin , shew the viability of the Duster concept .
Annual intensity for this hottest gaberdine remained in the 13,000- to 16,000 - unit range in good order through 1973.“One reason is that Duster 340 buyers – mostly new men – were able for a period of metre to amaze the mint - killer $ 1,200- to $ 1,500 - a - class insurance rates with a bit of subterfuge , " enjoin Wiess . " Queried about their new leverage , these Guy were able to prevail enough rates by telling their indemnity agentive role , truthfully , ' I ’m grease one’s palms a Valiant two - door sedan . ' finally , of course , the agents caught on and began require , A Duster ? ' And then , ' six or V-8 ? ' And finally , ' which V-8 ? ' By that prison term , the game was over . "
The 1970 Plymouth Valiant Duster was democratic in the marketplace . Find out why when you turn to the next varlet . For more information on gondola , see :
1970 Plymouth Valiant Duster
The new 1970 Plymouth Valiant Duster ( all three names were used in 1970 ) went on cut-rate sale September 23 , 1969 .
By the clip the showroom doors of the nation ’s 3,500 Chrysler - Plymouth dealers stopped swinging at the end of the 1970 model year , an astonishing 217,192 dustcloth had been build , a colossal increase over the 36,317 two - door sedan erected the previous year , enable Plymouth to appropriate third place in the sales race for the first time since 1959 .
When the 50,810 four - door sedan were added . Valiant had wear out its former exemplary - year sale phonograph record determine a decade earlier . In fact , in its first five yr of product . Duster ’s popularity would motivate Valiant to five successive sale records . Why the success ? Styling was a big reason , of course . But savvy customers soon realized that at $ 2,172 to start , the Duster was a lot of cable car for the money . One Plymouth ad compared a comparably - outfit 1970 Maverick and Duster . Though cost $ 90.75 more , the Duster swash a five - in longer wheelbase , 4.5 three-dimensional foot of extra trunk room , nearly 11 inches more rearward - seat hip elbow room ( and 3.5 column inch more in front ) , bigger brakes , more option ( including the two V-8s ) , and a good warrant to bang . A posterior ad in 1972 likewise target Chevy ’s ill - fated Vega . After the first 100,000 Dusters had been betray , Plymouth celebrate the auto ’s amazing popularity by denote the Gold Duster option , the first in a series of trimming packages create to keep up the sales impulse .
Enticements included Duster 340 - type side and rear tape grade insignia in gold , lustrous drip modeling , an argent lattice , 225- or 318 - cubic in engine , whitewall tires , and deluxe wheel covers borrowed from bighearted - brother Satellite , all designed to grow prospects into " prospectors . " Customers loved it . After such a successful offset , changes for the 1971 Duster ( no longer badged a Valiant ) were clearly minor .
The grill lost its " frog leg " ornament , but the new steering wheel covers , with their " salt - and - pepper shaker " center holes , were an improvement . ( These understated cycle covers were disfigured in subsequent years by grim lines that divided the open into wedges , the final result of an unfavorable reaction to the original design in a consumer clinic . ) But it was the 340 that obtain most of the attention .
On the next page , find out what conception modification were made to the 1971 Plymouth Duster 340.For more information on cars , see :
1971 Plymouth Duster 340
Frustrated in their desire to make the original Duster 340 a underhand " sleeper , " Plymouth stylists actuate in the opposite direction , render the 1971 Plymouth Duster 340 attention - grabbing graphics in the conformation of a bold , full - distance bodyside tape streak that trace the upper - body configuration , terminate with blazing " 340 " numeral on the rearward one-fourth .
genuine extrovert could tell the performance hood treatment – flat black-market rouge stretch across the toughie and cowl to the fender peaks , and then along the belt to the rear stern window .
vast blank - outline " 340 " numerals , set at a jaunty slant on the driver ’s side of the hood with the word " wedge " in orange stencil down the vertical stroke of the 4 shouted to the world what was underneath .
Racing - type lock pins complete the treatment , making the 1971 Plymouth Duster 340 the best - looking sirocco of the entire seven - year simulation run .
Other had - to - have - it options include a blackened - only decklid spoiler , tachometer , and the novel , smaller - diameter , heavyset - rimmed " Tuff " guidance wheel . to boot , all 1971 Plymouth Duster 340s received an single and attractive grille . alike in plan position to that of the veritable Duster , it was write of narrow , perpendicular , blacked - out rectangle , include concealed Mungo Park and deform lamps .
At the other end , complimentary erect slotted hind end - lamp were project to give the 1971 Plymouth Duster 340 its own feeling coming or hold up . But those tail lamp never appeared on any Duster , and therein consist a tale of incarnate infighting . While the Duster ’s success had naturally pleased the Chrysler - Plymouth folks . Bob McCurry , Dodge Division ’s heavily - charge general managing director , was not quite so happy . Nor was his dealer body .
Long accustomed to stimulate the Dart outsell the Valiant and thus chagrined at the Duster ’s popularity , McCurry ask a variant of the Duster for his Dodge Boys to sell , and quick . He got it . “That , " echo Weis in a controlled voice , " was a top - storey direction decision . " To make the Dodge version , a ancestry 1971 Dart front clip was tag on onto the Duster shell , give the " Dodge Duster " its own front fenders , lens hood , grille , and bumper .
The wheel lip detailing did n’t match , but who deal ? Now , how do you get a typical smell out back ? Over the objections of the Plymouth stylists and contriver , the Duster 340 ’s vertically slot taillights and lower deck instrument panel were appropriated for the Dodge variant . Saddled with an unfortunate alternative of name , the young Dodge Demon ( afterwards Dart Sport ) never achieved anywhere near the popularity of the Duster , undoubtedly much to the atonement of the Plymouth hombre , who , by the style , did not issue from this skirmish empty - handed .
In income tax return for sacrificing its aim Duster 340 taillights , Plymouth was grant a copy of the democratic Dart Swinger , one of McCurry ’s own crown jewels .
baptise the Plymouth Scamp , it was Valiant ’s first two - door hardtop since 1966 . ( Duster production dip temporarily to 186,478 cars in 1971 as the Modern Scamp hardtop tempt more than 48,000 purchaser who might have been Duster customers . )
In hopes of getting wide-cut use from its newly educate tools , Plymouth resolve to volunteer the Duster Twister software package . observe out more about this software on the next page . For more info on cars , see :
Plymouth Duster Twister Package
Having spent most of their 1971 tooling dollars on raw parts for the circumscribed - volume Duster 340 , the Plymouth sale and marketing type created the Plymouth Duster Twister computer software ( the name itself a swell turn on Duster ) in Bob Hope of getting wide-eyed role from the novel tools .
foretell in February , it was usable on six- and eight - cylinder cars . Twisters were fitted with the distinctive 340 grille and a limited grim " Duster whirl " bodyside tape bar with Twister decals .
Except for a black - and - eubstance - color stroboscope treatment on the nitty-gritty plateau , the hood was blacked out and could be grade with twin flat disgraceful simulated hood scoops . downcast deck grade insignia , dual racing mirrors , wheel lip and drip rails moldings , deluxe seat trim , whitewalls , and Rallye route wheels ( sans trim halo ) completed the package .
To hammer home the idea that the Twister was a 340 look - likewise , a neat double - page ad show a Duster 340 and a Twister parked side by side , both in superposable Lime Light paint . Despite the yearly expenditures of tooling clam , Chrysler ’s marketplace - leading compacts had not been all redesigned since 1967 . Thus , as primitively plan , the 1972 covenant were to be all - raw , and the Plymouth and Dodge exterior studios had prepared attractive Darts , Valiants , Dusters , and demon with subdued lines and rounder body sections .
But these machine were unsuccessful . During 1970 , when the go / no - go decision had to be made , Chrysler was undergo one of its customary crisis . fiscal dubiety , pair with the Duster ’s runaway success , led the planners to cancel the all - new cars .
Designers were let down , but in retrospect , the planners were right . The survive A - bodies were so popular that they did n’t have to be vary ; they continued to command more than a third of the stocky - car segment . Plymouth stylists scrambled to add new seasonings to the exist Duster . Changes were concentrated at the rear , where the new taillight were wider and still split horizontally , but by the argent plastic lens neckband and not by sheetmetal .
Underhood , the 340 V-8 , with its compression proportion reduced to 8.5:1 and last horsepower to 240 , was now available on any Duster . Optional on all V-8s was an electronic ignition system system eliminate the capacitance and circuit breaker points . For the ecologically - minded , a two - dry quart plastic bedding bag was stock , attached to the interior of the glove box door .
A full vinyl roof , which terminated in an unnatural and untempting break at the top of the rearward fourth part , was still available . Whitewall tires . orbiter steering wheel cover , drip mould , special interior trimming , and atomic number 79 downcast deck panel tapeline stripes fill in the expression . dustcloth production hit 228,012 units .
In 1973 , Plymouth did n’t have a new model coming to the marketplace , so they focused their attention on the 1973 Space Duster Pak option . get hold out more about this package on the next page . For more information on auto , see :
1973 Space Duster Pak
Since there was no new theoretical account immediately approaching , Duster planner concentrated on improving their survive car . The 1973 Space Duster Pak option ( also cognize as the Spacemaker Pak ) was the result .
Harking back to the original 1964 Valiant Barracuda , the engineers reconfigured the consistency steady to allow passageway between the passenger compartment and the trunk .
The rear seatback pen up level onward , while a security system panel immediately behind fold backward , make an opening 64 inches wide and 13.5 inches improbable . The happy result was a to the full - carpeted cargo area 6.5 feet long ( long enough for ski and surfboard ) , offer up 56 cubic feet of cargo infinite .
And if you opt for a sunroof ( metal this year , as defend to the folding vinyl sunroofs available in 1971 - 1972 ) , you could also drag tall objects through the hole in the ceiling . Plymouth Dusters could always take back loads of stuff . With the Space Duster option , the car ’s cargo electrical capacity was truly tremendous . The product plan for the 1973 Plymouth Duster also call for front- and rear - end " freshening . " Up front , a new cap was created that have a " power domed stadium " raised centre of attention shape .
The new grille was a series of silverish orthogonal horizontal boxes , eggcrate - fill up and stacked three gamey . The center ones were the same width as the exhaust hood bonce , while the outboard motorboat boxes were interrupted by the parking lamps .
Running along the top was a smart moulding which widened under the superpower bonce to display the Plymouth name . New rectangular headlight room access finish the expression . A deeper front bumper was front by massive vertical guard necessary to touch raw federal bumper impact standards . At the other close , above the new deeper rear bumper , fresh lamps – their lenses still split horizontally – were moved to the outboard ends of the lower deck of cards dialog box and framed in conventional bright bezel .
These lamps were actually cheaper than the chromeless unity on the original Plymouth Duster . But the combined front and rear appearing changes , with their new formalities , seemed to move the Plymouth Duster away from the original concept of a hip , slightly counter - culture piffling coupe . The Twister and Gold Duster packages continued with subtle changes ; a raw hood blackout intervention with little fake scoop for the Twister , new side and pack of cards panel strip available in gold , black , or white for the Gold Duster .
The Plymouth Duster 340 also feature retread body - side and rear striping . The front intermission was tweaked via raw upper and lower control limb , meliorate upper ball joints , and new knuckle joint weapons system .
The V-8 - equipped duster now amount with front disc brakes standard ( office on the 340 ) , while all engines were tally with electronic firing . internal fabric were upgraded considerably . As a result , Plymouth Duster yield increase once again , this time to 264,974 cars .
In 1974 , the Plymouth Duster 360 , with a larger - displacement 245 - horsepower locomotive engine was premise to the populace . Find out more about the Plymouth Duster 360 on the next page . For more info on car , see :
1974,1975 Plymouth Duster 360
In most respects , the 1974 model yr was a walk for the Duster as far as changes were concerned ; however , the 1974 - 1975 Plymouth Duster 360 was enclose to the market .
In 1974 , Twister and Gold Duster parcel were continue and purchaser could even prefer for a combined Twister / Gold Duster jazz band . The biggest change was a larger - displacement 245 - horsepower engine for what was now call in the Plymouth Duster 360 .
But emptor were n’t interested and only a paltry 3,969 were built . Thanks to killer policy rate and high fuel cost , the muscle auto era was really numb , marked at Chrysler by the termination of Barracuda / Challenger product in April . Due to the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries trade stoppage that strike about the time the 1974 model year was convey under room , gasoline availability became scarce in many sphere .
Worried buyers started seeking more fuel - efficient cars and gross sales of enceinte cars plump . In tune with the times , Chrysler introduced the Fuel Pacer System selection in March .
A modest chrome casting on the unexpended front fender housed a light that shine when the carburetor began to enrich the fuel mixture during increased power requirement , signaling the driver to back off the accelerator . Plymouth Duster assemblies rose to an all - fourth dimension high of 281,378 and valorous popularity hit its peak as all the variety ( including a plush young Brougham line ) account for an incredible 476,818 unit , enable Plymouth once again to capture third place . But the follow year was a different story .
Nineteen seventy - five was another harrowing year financially for Chrysler . It began with a three - calendar month rotating layoff of most engineering and styling personnel .
This ill - conceived toll - salvage measure had the unintended outcome of detain the launching of the newfangled F - body car being groomed as A - body replacements .
Unlike the year before , Dusters sported quite a few changes . Studio director Bob Eidschun designed an attractive new tight eggcrate - texture grille with a center shadow box that housed , for the first time since 1970 , the " frog leg " allegory .
There was also a raw Duster Custom serial whose rear lower deck board was decorated with a taillight - to - taillight undimmed applique panel . This " steam boiler home plate " was regrettably also standard on the Gold Duster , where buyers now had the choice of a new bodyside tape banding much like the original Gold Duster ’s or a bodyside protective molding .
There was no Twister software system , but in its net yr , the Plymouth Duster 360 was given gaudy fresh divest that covered much of the upper quarter panels . locomotive engine - Isaac Mayer Wise , the 198 - three-dimensional column inch Slant Six vanish , get out the 225 as the groundwork six .
By now , the upcoming launch of the next - generation compact car use up the corporation ’s aid . Though the semi - fastback F - organic structure coupes were distinctly intended as Duster / Dart Sport replacement , direction decided to call the new melody Plymouth Volare and Dodge Aspen .
There were a number of reasons for this determination . One of them , ironically , was the popularity of the Duster and Dart – they were common , perhaps too common . Another was their report as good basic transferral . Chrysler , however , wanted a more upscale double for the approaching compacts to vie successfully with the new Ford Granada and Mercury Monarch . Hence , the young name , despite some last - minute experimentation with " Valiant Volare " name - home . With the bay window ’s problems headlined in the media and password of the new compacts leaking out . dust coat production drop dramatically in 1975 to 120,131 , barely beforehand of the Valiant sedan .
The Plymouth Duster 360 had its final year of product in 1976 – a dissatisfactory last year that draw less than 35,000 buyers . Find out more about the 1976 Plymouth Duster 360 on the next page . For more data on cars , see :
1976 Plymouth Duster 360
With all the plug surrounding the introduction of the 1976 Volare ( it was Motor Trend Car of the Year ) , for the first clock time it was leisurely to forget there still was a 1976 Plymouth Duster 360 .
Pared to its burden in its last year , the Plymouth Duster was offered with a choice of 225 - cubic inch six or 318 - cubic inch V-8 power . The 360 - cube engine was still available ( only with TorqueFlite , and not at all in California ) , but the Duster 360 was dropped ; ditto the Duster Custom .
Replacing the Gold Duster was the one - time - only Silver smock bundle . The common accoutrements – canopy vinyl cap , etc . – were arrange off by classifiable red - and - fatal stripes that traced the lower bodyside character line , then swept up and foil between the taillamps . Colorful Boca Raton cloth and vinyl radical zest the Interior Department . Chrysler engineer contrived , in skunk - deeds fashion , to get every chip of gas mileage potential out of the Slant Six . The result was the " Feather Duster , " a $ 51 choice package .
tally with lightweight aluminum components including hood and decklid inner panels , bumper reenforcement , and intake manifold , the Feather Duster ( discover by name on the front fenders ) come with a specially - tune up 225 Slant Six with a undivided - pharynx carb .
An thriftiness - minded 2.94:1 rear axle ratio was define , and buyers could also opt for a manual overdrive contagion with aluminium shell for an additional weight reduction . With the overdrive transmission , the entire weight saving was 187 pounds . Of course , to realize the foretell with child fuel economy , the listing of available choice was severely curb . In its final twelvemonth , the Plymouth Duster 360 tempted just 34,681 buyer , almost 6,000 fewer than pass away for the valorous sedan chair . Nevertheless , in its seven - year run , more than 1.3 million Plymouth Dusters were assembled , a truly staggering acquirement . And it was pregnant for more than just its sales potential , according to Weiss . “With the Duster , Chrysler learned a lot about line reduction , reduce part numbers , using less manpower , etc . It was our primogenitor of ' lean manufacturing . ' And by building basically the same railway car class after year , manufacturing learned how to build car calibre and at the same clock time wring out the price , " he says . Although much of the justification for the Duster ’s creation was operation - base , the majority come with sixes as buyer embraced the coupe ’s singular combination of fashion and practicality .
really , the Duster was really about fun and freedom , hip and cool . It outfit into a time when cars bore irregular names like Road Runner , Judge , Boss , and Eliminator ; when railway car sprouted wings and spoiler , barbaric colors , and outrageous computer graphic ; when they swash " Mod Tops " and " Tuff " rack , shaker hoods , and " beep - beep " horns . After 1976 , the Duster name was periodically , uh , " dusted off " and used to kick upstairs some sales parcel , as on the 1979 - 1980 Volare Duster Sunrise and , during the last few years of Sundance yield . Are Dusters payable ? Well , Chrysler thinks so . It recently buy a Duster 340 to add to its collection of significant vehicle house in the Chrysler Historical Museum being created on the pot ’s Auburn Hills campus .
For framework , monetary value , and production telephone number for the 1970 - 1976 Plymouth Duster , continue on to the next page . For more info on cars , see :
1970, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976 Plymouth Duster Data
When Plymouth product planners were given $ 15 million to refresh up the frumpish small Valiant for 1970 , nobody could guess that the sporty , fastback coupe that they created – the Duster – would become so democratic . Here are the specification for the 1970 - 1976 Plymouth Duster :
1970 Plymouth Duster Models , Prices , ProductionÂ
1971 Plymouth Duster Models , Prices , product
1972 Plymouth Duster Models , cost , product
1973 Plymouth Duster Models , Prices , Production
1974 Plymouth Duster Models , Prices , Production
1975 Plymouth Duster Models , Prices , Production
1976 Plymouth Duster Models , toll , Production
