- Photographed at the Valley Hot Rodders street show, Tanunda, South Australia in January 2019

1968 Dodge Dart

A rare Hemi Dart! Maybe.

2y ago
1.2K

Available only in 1968 as a limited option, the Hemi Dart was tweaked by Hurst and featured the legendary 426 Hemi engine.

Only 80 of these special models were made, designed strictly for drag racing, and hence came with a non-warranty disclaimer.

Available from Dodge dealerships across the country, the new Hemi Dart was claimed to reach speeds of 130 mph in less than 11 seconds and 1⁄4 mile times in the 10-11 second range, although times were reported in the 9-10 second range.

To save weight, fiberglass hoods and fenders were standard, with the hood having a fully functional intake scoop and four hood pins to allow for easy full removal of the hood.

The steel doors were acid dipped with thin side window glass to save more weight. As the doors had no window mechanism, a strap was bolted to the bottom of the glass on the interior door-panel. To keep the glass up, the strap simply latched to the inside of the door.

The interior featured (only) two bucket seats from a Dodge van.

To save further weight no center console, heater, sound deadeners, side view mirrors, radio, carpeting, or even armrests were eliminated.

The engine was a race-spec Hemi 426 cubic inch, with a compression ratio of 10.25:1.

Intake was via a 2X4-barrel Holley carburetors on top of a lightweight crossram aluminum intake manifold.

The battery was moved to the boot to improve weight distribution.

You could order your Hemi Dart with a four-speed manual or three-speed automatic transmission.

A Hurst floor mounted shifter came standard.

I have no idea if this is an original Hemi Dart!

Photographed at the Valley Hot Rodders street show, Tanunda South Australia 2019

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Comments (2)

  • If it's not an original, they made an excellent clone! Great looking car!

      2 years ago
    • I thought the whole concept of a factory drag car was really interesting, as it contributes some DNA into the Dodge Demons they are producing today..

        2 years ago
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