1974 Plymouth Duster

The year was 1974 and artists like Jim Croce, Grand Funk Railroad, and Elton John were riding the radio waves as workers at the St. Louis Chrysler Assembly Plant clocked in for the day. The 1970s is considered the final years where craftsmanship, creativity and horsepower fueled the audience’s desire to get behind the wheel.

Gateway Classic Cars is proud to offer Plymouth’s answer to the Chevrolet Nova, the Plymouth Duster. The Duster is built off Mopar’s A-Body line up and is nearly identical to Dodge’s Demon. It was a lighter bodied muscle car that came with a plethora of combinations. You could order the car with Plymouth’s die-hard economy combination, a slant six 225 CID and A833 manual 4-spd transmission or their powerful 340 CID V8 engine which would chase down heavier bodied cars such as the Dodge Charger or Challenger that were equipped with the same drivetrain. Plymouth even offered such things as a Space Duster or a Feather Duster. The Space Duster was equipped with fold-down rear seats and a space saver trunk. The Feather Duster was equipped with various aluminum body panels which Chrysler claimed 36 MPG highway!

What we offer however was never mass produced by the Mopar line up, but we feel as if it most definitely should! This fully restored Plymouth Duster, originally built in St. louis, is powered by a 500HP 451 CID V8 engine and backed by a bulletproof 727, manual valve body, TorqueFlite transmission. Both the engine and transmission were professionally built with performance in mind. What is a 451 V8 engine you ask? The 451 engine consists of a Chrysler 400 CID big block with a 440 CID engine crankshaft. What this does is utilizes Chrysler’s largest bore engine but with the stroke of a 440 engine without sacrificing cylinder wall thickness. The 400 was an excellent choice for this build as it is shorter than a 440 which means it fits nicely in the engine bay without any gaudy hood modifications.

The Engine: There are roughly 3500 miles on the build. AMT Performance Engines out of Missouri blueprinted and balanced this engine for precision and reliable horsepower. AMT goes to the extreme for precision. Heck, they temperature control their shop so metal doesn’t expand or contract to throw off their measurements! Components include: 1978 Chrysler 400 block(hot tanked, decked, aligned honed, and sonic tested), forged Eagle crankshaft, H-Beam Eagle connecting rods, Edelbrock Performer RPM aluminum cylinder heads, aircraft grade aluminum roller rocker arms, high flow oil pump, polished oil passages, aluminum Edelbrock dual plane intake, deep sump oil pan, Ross pistons, oil windage tray, Competition Engineering camshaft with a .575 lift, 750 Holley 4BBL carburetor w/ electric choke, oversized 2-core aluminum radiator with thermostatic 180 degree electric fan switch and transmission cooler, 6A MSD electric ignition, high flow water pump, 3/8 aluminum hard fuel lines, new hiring harness and fuse panel, black iodized valve covers, TTI ceramic coater headers, 3” dual aluminized steel exhaust, turbo mufflers, and a 11:1 compression ratio which loves 93 octane!

The Transmission: There are roughly 150 miles on the rebuilt 1968 727 TorqueFlite 3-spd transmission which was assembled by a senior tech at AAMCO. This 727 utilizes a truck tail-shaft and a 24-spline input shaft which Chrysler used specifically for heavy-duty usage. It also has a Trans Go shift kit installed with a manual valve body which means you can choose to shift the car like a manual transmission without the annoying and sluggish clutch work. The performance torque converter has a 2500 stall which is perfect for driving when paired with the rear-end gear ratio of 3.23:1 sure grip gears(posi) found in the 8 ¾ rear-end. Additional components include a Lokar kickdown cable, B&M shifter with reverse safety, and a shortened, balanced driveshaft.

The Body and Suspension: Painted in 2011 this PPG “Garnet Fire Red” Duster is sure to turn heads. This PPG color offers gold metallic flake which glistens in the sun. Weight reduction was found without sacrificing structural integrity by the use of fiberglass bumpers. Subframe connectors are welded in place while traction bars are there to help ensure a solid grip. A front sway bar, new polygraphite bushings, tubular A-arms, Torque Thrust aluminum wheels, ceramic front disc brakes, new windshield, wiper motor, Legendary black vinyl upholstery, AutoMeter gauges, adjustable bucket seats, 40 amp 3 duct electric heater/defroster, stainless steel gas tank, Boston Acoustic speakers, MP3/CD/AM/FM, and 3-way adjustable Performance Engineering shocks are some of the high-end parts used during the restoration. Rocker panels, floor pans, trunk section and lower quarter panels were addressed during the restoration which were welded in and 3M seam sealed. 3M undercoating was used to protect from corrosion. Dynamat heat and sound insulation was used on the firewall, floor pans, rear speaker tray, rear wheel wells, and roof to help reduce road noise and heat. New black looped carpet sits nicely over the Dynamat.

Simply put, if you are looking to acquire a classic muscle car with much time and money invested, here is your chance to reap the benefits. Don’t be the guy who spends long nights on the phone with customer service because parts don’t fit as they should. Or, invests $37,000+ on a build that takes 7 years and about 46 busted knuckles to complete. Be the guy who saves his time and money and takes his friends for a ride same day! Where will you drive it first? From the deep exhaust note to the high-gloss Garnet Fire Red paint you’ll be smiling ear to ear with a pleasant sense of nostalgia. No matter the day, getting glued to the back of your seat will command a smile. To view this 1974 Plymouth Duster in greater detail, including an HD video and 100+ HD pictures, please visit www.gatewayclassiccars.com or our St. Louis showroom. Call 618-271-3000 for more details!