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Junkyard Gem: 1981 Dodge Challenger

The first Dodge Challenger was an E-Body sibling to the 1970-1974 Plymouth Barracuda, and it was a pure Chrysler product with either Slant-6 or V8 power. Then stuff happened and the Challenger name went away for a while, returning in 1978 on a rebadged Mitsubishi Galant Lambda. For 1981, the Challenger got an updated body, and that's what we've got here in a Denver-area self-service wrecking yard. Chrysler was selling lots of Mitsubishis by the early 1980s, including the Colt econobox, the Dodge Ram 50 pickup, and the Plymouth Arrow truck. The Challenger's Plymouth-badged sibling was the Sapporo. This one had a bunch of late-1990s receipts from Los Angeles-area shops, and a check of the VIN on the California smog-check database shows that it last passed the Golden State's emissions test in 1997. Did it drive to Colorado 20 years ago and then sit until a few months ago? There is no easy way to know. Early Mitsubishi-built Challengers could be had with a 1.6-liter four-cylinder engine, but in 1981 the only engine choice was the Astron 2.6 four-banger, rated at 105 horsepower. Members of the Astron 2.6 family powered everything from Dodge Aries-Ks to Mitsubishi Starions in North America, and production continued nearly into our current century for Chinese-market trucks. Not many miles on this car, and no rust. The Index of Effluency-winning team at the recent Colorado 24 Hours of Lemons race grabbed a few bits from this car for their somewhat related 1976 Plymouth Arrow, but otherwise it appears that this rare classic may go to the crusher more or less intact. It's a lightweight, rear-wheel-drive coupe with decent power (for its era) and a 5-speed manual transmission, but there's just not much of a following in Colorado for these cars. I see the occasional Sapporo or Challenger during my junkyard travels, but the numbers have declined in recent years. Soon they will all be gone. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. Related Video: Featured Gallery Junked 1981 Dodge Challenger View 26 Photos Auto News Dodge Automotive History Coupe Performance

Junkyard Gem: 1977 Dodge Colt Mileage Maker Coupe

While Ford and GM each had the resources to develop their own Michigan-designed subcompacts for the dawn of the 1970s— the Pinto and Vega, respectively— Chrysler couldn't afford the huge price tag for such a project. Instead, Chrysler's European operations were tapped for a couple of models that sold well enough on the other side of the Atlantic, giving us the Plymouth Cricket (known as the Hillman Avenger in the UK) and the Simca 1204 (aka the Simca 1100 in France). American car shoppers gave those two models the cold shoulder, but then Chrysler found genuine sales success by making a deal with Mitsubishi to sell the Colt Galant with left-hand drive. This became the Dodge Colt, with sales beginning in the 1971 model year. Though the 1971-1978 rear-wheel-drive Colts were once as commonplace as Corollas or B210s on American roads, they have all but disappeared today. That makes today's Junkyard Find, discovered in a Denver-area yard last week, particularly interesting. This car shows signs of having been in the hands of a speed-crazed enthusiast owner, including an aftermarket steering wheel and one-piece racing seats with slots for five-point harnesses. The primer-gray paint is another clue. The rear-wheel-drive Colts were reasonably quick for their time, and they could be made genuinely quick with basic engine upgrades. This Mitsubishi Saturn four-banger has a tube header, hot-rod ignition system, and a two-barrel (Mikuni-made) Solex carburetor. We can assume there's probably some kind of cam upgrade under the valve cover, too. The shifter is gone, but the original transmission in this car was either the base four-speed or optional five-speed manual. A three-speed automatic was available for $270 (about $1,275 today). Later on, front-wheel-drive Colts (and Mitsubishi Mirages) could be bought with the Twin-Stick overdrive rig, which gave drivers eight forward speeds and the opportunity to make Twin-Stick beer taps. The 1977-1978 Dodge Colt two- and four-door sedans were based on the Mitsubishi Lancer and were a bit smaller than the 1971-1977 cars, while the wagon version moved to the Galant Sigma platform. The build tag shows that this car started life as the cheapest 1977 Colt model, the "Mileage Maker" two-door sedan (Dodge dealers called it a coupe, so that's what I'm calling it in the title).

Ron Burgundy calls Durango a 'terrible car,' yet his ads help sales climb by 59% [w/videos]

Ron Burgundy was put on this planet to do one thing: to read the news. If that ever falls through, though, the womanizing, scotch-drinking anchorman could have a great career just as a Dodge salesman. Bloomberg points out that sales of the 2014 Dodge Durango have rocketed up 59 percent in the first month of Chrysler's funny new ad campaign (which began in early October). But then again, the entire year has been strong for the big SUV, with year-over-year sales increases in the double and even triple digit percentages - including an increase of 117 percent in August.
Of course, the Durango has also received a wealth of new content and a freshened look for 2014 in addition to the Burgundy campaign, and that has to be helping close sales, too. Whether or not the spots themselves are leading to more sales may be a moot point, since they are definitely getting plenty of attention. Almost two months into the marketing tie-up between Dodge and the movie Anchorman 2, Dodge's YouTube videos have received well over seven million views. More than just YouTube shorts and television commercials, the Durango has even received late-night attention, including when Will Ferrell showed up in character as Ron Burgundy on Conan earlier this week.
In the interview, he calls the Durango a "terrible car" that "cracked in half," a joke that probably had Dodge ad execs squirming uncomfortably in their Barcaloungers. Scroll down to watch the Conan interview as well as some of our favorite Burgundy-pitched Durango ads. And there's still plenty of time to "touch" Ron to win a new Durango.