1970 Dodge Muscle Cars and 2010 Muscle Car War
When Dodge finally got a legitimate pony car to race in the Sports Car
Club of America's Trans American Sedan Championship in 1970, it built a
muscle car version for the street that was even wilder than the
competition model. We're talking about the 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A.
The 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A actually had a bigger
engine than its racing counterpart. See more muscle car pictures.
SCCA rules required Dodge to sell production editions of the track car,
and Dodge responded with the Challenger T/A. The race cars ran a
destroked 305-cid version of Mopar's fine 340-cid V-8. It had a
four-barrel carb and some 440 bhp. Street T/As stayed with the 340, but
upped the ante with a trio of two-barrel Holleys atop an Edelbrock
aluminum intake manifold.
Dodge rated the T/A's engine at 290 horsepower, but with Six
Pack carburetion the output was probably around 350.
Despite the "Six Pak" carburetion and a host of internal
reinforcements, the T/A's mill carried the same 290 bhp rating as
regular four-barrel 340s, though true output was near 350 bhp. Feeding
it air was a suitcase-sized scoop molded into the pinned-down
matte-black fiberglass hood. Low-restriction dual exhausts ran to the
stock muffler location under the trunk, then reversed direction to exit
in chrome-tipped "megaphone" outlets in front of the rear wheels.
The cabin was standard fare for a Dodge Challenger.
TorqueFlite automatic or Hurst-shifted four-speed, 3.55:1 or 3.90:1
gears, manual or power steering were available. Front discs were
standard. The special Rallye suspension used heavy-duty everything and
increased the camber of the rear springs. The T/A was among the first
production cars with different sized tires front and rear: E60x15s up
front, G60x15s in back.
The modified camber elevated the tail enough to clear the rear
rubber and the exhaust outlets, giving the T/A a real street-punk's
stance. Thick side stripes, bold ID graphics, and a black ducktail
spoiler joined the visual assault, though the cabin was standard
Challenger R/T.
An elevated tail, spoiler, and thick black stripes
gave the 1970 Dodge Challenger T/A credibility on the street.
As it turned out, the T/A wasn't a consistent SCCA winner, and its
street sibling didn't act much like a road racer, succumbing to
debilitating understeer in fast corners. But the intensified 340 and
meaty rear tires helped production versions claw through the quarter in
the mid 14s, a showing that would do any small-block proud.
Modern Muscle Cars Taking The Roads Back
* Third: 2009 Dodge Challenger R/T * Modern Muscle Car Battle
Antelope Valley Auto.com has a knack for research on cars and anything
and everything about them. And a love for American muscle cars. We work hard to find Automotive information
that our readers want and enjoy.
