Just as it had with theRoad Runnerin 1968,Plymouthhit a肌肉车home run in 1970 with the budget-priced Duster 340. The formula for the 1970 Plymouth Duster 340 was familiar. Take a cheap-to-produce platform, in this case a Valiant wearing a new fastback body, and treat it to a hotengine, here Mopar's respected 340-cid four-barrel V-8.
The determined little Duster was lighter, roomier, and faster than the 340 'Cuda. With a base price of just $2,547, it was the lowest-priced car in Plymouth's Rapid Transit System. And it was the only one with frontdisc brakesstandard.
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The 340 V-8 had proven itself over preceding years, propelling a series of giant-killerDartsand earlier-generationBarracudasto mid-14-second ETs at near 100 mph. It used a Carter AVS four-barrel andcamshafttiming only slightly less radical than that of the mighty440 Six Pack. It was rated at 275 bhp, but practiced observers insisted it actually made closer to 325 bhp.
In the Duster, the engine came with a heavy-duty three-speedmanualor a choice of optional four-speed or TorqueFlite. A 3.23:1 axle was standard; 3.55:1 and 3.91:1gears, plus a Sure-Griplimited-slip diff, were available at extra cost.
Since it was a member of the Rapid Transit System, the Duster 340 was treated to an array of performance enhancers, including heavy-duty underpinnings, frontstabilizer bar, six-leaf rear springs. Standardtireswere E70xl4s on 5.5-inch rally wheels. It borrowed the instrument panel from the earlier-series Barracuda, and bucket seats and a center console with floor shift could be ordered in place of the front bench.
A pistol-grip for the four-speed, an 8000-rpm tach, and powersteeringwere attractive extra-cost items. No scoops were offered, and the only hot-car cues were dual exhausts and modest decals.
The stiff, slightly loweredsuspensionmade for a punishing ride and didn't prevent the car's nose from plowing through fast corners. And with the cut-rate price came some obviously low-budget trim. But the Duster 340 was a reasonably fast muscle car, it was utilitarian, it was a bit of a sleeper, and it had character. Sounds like a home run!
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