Kevin Shaw is a decade-long powersports and automotive journalist whose love for things that go too fast has led him from his earliest days as the associate editor at Mopar Muscle and Corvette Fever, to a senior editor for Power Automedia, helming the digital magazine titles Street Legal TV, LSX TV, Chevy Hardcore, and Rod Authority. Today, he operates his own digital publishing company, Shaw Group Media. Almost always found with stained hands and dirt under his fingernails, Kevin has an eye for the technical while keeping an eye out for beautiful photography and a great story.
Mike Wilkins is a lifelong Mopar owner, restorer, and car enthusiast, as well as a respected judge of original Plymouth and Dodge B-Bodies both nationally and locally. Self-taught from his early teens, Wilkins has spent nearly half a century driving, racing, and restoring some of the finest Mopars in the United States, earning several Antique Automobile of America Grand National Senior awards, Mopar National Best of Show and first place awards, 16 magazine appearances, and a feature in the Chrysler, Dodge, and Plymouth Muscle book. He has dedicated thousands of hours examining original untouched cars, providing and gathering research from many Mopar experts over the years of restoring every nut and bolt of these vehicles.
When the opportunity was first presented to produce a restoration guide for B-Body Mopars, we condensed the model years to 1968–1970 for several reasons: the overall popularity of the models introduced during these short three years of production, the quantity of units sold, and the abundance of aftermarket support for these model years. Although our thinking was sound, the clearer minds at CarTech advised against such a narrow target, citing that many of the popular models we addressed had been introduced prior to 1968, particularly the Dodge Charger, Coronet R/T, and Plymouth GTX.
In delving into the research, we thankfully found a fair amount of crossover between the two groups (1966–1967 and 1968–1970), which eased our process tremendously. Obviously, plenty of “one off” modifications, tweaks, and improvements were made from model year to model year, as Chrysler was embroiled in the height of the muscle car wars against General Motors and Ford. Many bristle at the idea of models changing so rapidly from year to year, but such was the fashion of American automakers during these tentative years. Today, model changes are spaced out over three to five years (if not longer), with minor changes between them.
Nevertheless, with the charge in front of us, we immediately went to our own private libraries for assistance. Undoubtedly, Paul A. Herd’s Charger, Road Runner & Super Bee Restoration Guide was a central resource. And many others have proved to be instrumental in the development of this book as they’ve assisted in the restorations of countless vintage Mopars on the road today living a second life. In essence, this book is a companion to these works; we have striven to provide content not otherwise found or equally organized. In taking the assignment quite literally, we sought not to make this a “here’s what it takes to get your project Mopar out on the street” breeze-through, but a revelatory tutorial in how these machines were assembled from the factory and how that process can be adequately replicated.
Although many guides, technical articles, and books are dedicated to the minutia of assembling B and RB Chrysler engines, 727 and A-833 manual transmission, and 8¾ and Dana 60 rear ends, we do offer details on properly re-creating the assembly of these very important parts. Other instructions that we’ve included, such as replacing floorboards and quarter panels, which might be well outside of the realm of the layman restorer, also show the detail and care necessary to resurrect a car seemingly “too far gone.” Again, we didn’t want to merely skim the surface, but wished instead to truly delve in deep where and when we could (page count and time allowing). We felt that other topics, such as wiring, rebuilding engines/transmissions, and welding, are handily covered in other resources and therefore omitted.
We also strove as diligently as possible to eradicate as much fluff as possible. Often, books such as this are rife with filler pages, offering personal opinion, conjecture, and content simply inapplicable to restoring a car to OEM level.
This was our charge, and we took it seriously. This restoration guide does not contain aftermarket superchargers, 18-inch wheels, or custom flame paint jobs. Although we wish for all readers to get the utmost enjoyment out of their cars, we are not content to offer input that would simply “get her rolling.” Our aim is to elevate your understanding of the true meaning of “restoration.”
Whether you choose to drive or trailer your finished Chrysler B-Body is left entirely up to you.
Although this book focuses on the 1966–1970 Dodge and Plymouth vehicles based upon the Chrysler B platform, the B-Body chassis was the basis for rear-wheel-drive Chrysler cars dating as far back as 1962 and as late as 1979. Interestingly, despite the B-Body chassis debuting in 1962, Chrysler’s practice of naming models by letter did not begin until 1964–1965. Each of the B-Body cars in this period, for either make, was built upon the same chassis. However, the outward appearance varied greatly among makes and models.
From 1966 to 1970, Plymouth used the B-Body chassis for four cars with nearly identical design aesthetics, differing of course, in trim packages, drivetrain options, and accessories: Belvedere, Satellite, GTX, and Road Runner. The Superbird set itself apart from this lineup with its extended nose and a high-mounted rear wing, making it clearly the only Plymouth B-Body to appear radically different from the others.
For Dodge’s B-Bodies, the external design cues varied more. Although Dodge’s Coronet, Coronet R/T, and Super Bee followed Plymouth’s philosophy of mild differentiation through the trim package, the fastback Charger was significantly more stylized in its appearance, particularly after its redesign in 1968. Add to that the Daytona and its extended nose and towering rear wing, and the Dodge lineup looked far more diverse than its Plymouth siblings.
Designed as Chrysler’s “intermediate” platform, the B-Body chassis provided the automaker a versatile chassis from which to build 18 different models. Over the years, the B-Body’s 116-inch wheelbase was shortened and lengthened to accommodate new models and longer wagons. Nevertheless, the platform proved to be a true performer in nearly every imaginable sphere: from street driving to the quarter-mile to the high banks of NASCAR racetracks.
Chrysler debuted a new body style for the B-Body Coronet in 1968. Engine packages ranged from the 225 6-cylinder “slant-6” up to the dual-quad–fueled 426 Hemi.
Debuting halfway through the model year, the “M” code Super Bee featured an inline tri-power setup atop a 440. Common for display at shows, the hood rods supporting the liftoff hood were not offered by Chrysler.
Chrysler B-Body Platform Cars
1962 Dodge Dart
1962–1964 Dodge Polara
1962–1964 Plymouth Fury
1962–1964 Plymouth Savoy
1962–1970 Plymouth Belvedere
1963–1964 Dodge 220 (Canadian)
1963–1964 Dodge 330
1963–1964 Dodge 440
1965–1974