Would you care to drive a (restomodded) classic and put up with its inherent limitations? Or would you rather go for a modern muscle car that only partially matches the analog experience of the former but skips the said drawbacks? This is a conundrum many fans of the genre have to deal with. However, there’s a trending customization style that promises to offer the best of both worlds. Enter retromodding, which sees contemporary muscle being gifted with old-school looks. Case in point with this modern-day Plymouth Duster, which has been imagined on the bones of the Dodge Challenger SRT Super Stock.
When most classic lovers think of a 1970 Plymouth, the third-generation Barracuda is the one that comes to mind. However, not everybody could afford one of these back in the day. And, if we are to look at the other end of the Plymouth muscle range, we find the 1970 Duster being digitally revived here.
Heck, the gap between the two classics is even larger nowadays (by the way, have you seen the 1971 Plymouth Cuda starting in the upcoming John Wick 4?), but this is another story for another time. And while we’ll zoom in on this Mopar-friendly rendering in a moment, allow us to remind you what the classic Duster was all about.
The 1970-1976 Plymouth Duster nailed it from day one
Back in the early 1960s, U.S. carmakers were rushing to capitalize on the post-war enthusiasm, turning some of their economy models into hot shots. And, two weeks before Ford did that with the Falcon-based Mustang, Chrysler achieved via the first-gen Plymouth Barracuda. However, while the ‘Stang took a visual departure from its humble mechanical roots, the original Barracuda did resemble the Valliant economy car it relied on. So, the compact Mopar coupe wasn’t nearly as successful as the Mustang, even with its 1967-1969 second generation partially distancing itself from the Valliant.
In fact, it wasn’t until the Barracuda fully ditched its A-body economy roots for the said 1970 Gen III—sharing the E-Body with the OG Challenger— that the machine became a true icon. Of course, Plymouth did have to fill in the gap created by the Barracuda’s departure for the said model year. And this is where the 1970 Plymouth Duster stepped onto the scene. Retaining the Valliant front end, the Duster paraded a sportier design from the cowl back, while its more muscular engine range backed that up. And you can check out such a ’70 example in the BAT photos below.
In fact, the reception of the ’70 Duster was warm enough for Dodge to borrow the semi-fastback body for the 1971 (Dart) Demon. Speaking of which, the modern Demon, a 2017-released drag racing record setter based on the modern Challenger, served as a base for creating the 2020 Challenger SRT Super Stock that kindly donated its body for the rendering of this fresh Duster—don’t you love it when things come full circle?
The modern Challenger body was digitally extended for this Plymouth stunt
For this transformation, graphic designer Jim (aka jlord8) couldn’t change a few trim pieces on the Dodge Challenger and call it a day. As such, the digital artist did a bit of work on the posterior of the SRT Super Stock, bringing this closer to the said semi-fastback rear end of the original.
Other updates include the mandatory front fascia redesign, complete with a horizontal bar in the lower air intake, as well as bringing back the legendary Rallye wheels. And yes, there are some “decals” that sustain the whole thing.
Note that the dual snorkel hood of the Challenger has been retained—even though it’s put on a dark attire. And this reminds us of a real-world restomod 1970 Plymouth Duster we covered back in March, which was rendered with this sort of hood.
Prepared by an Illinois-based specialist dubbed Ready Chassis, the proposal introduces a modern chassis (duh!) and even an optional Hellcat Redeye crate engine, while having the old-school body covered in the kind of shades it used to display back in the day. And yes, there’s also something in the mix to reassure those worried about these builds ruining classic icons like the Duster 340.
If, however, you’re looking for a real-life retromod, the ExoMod 68, which we called a carbon-bodied Dodge Challenger Hellcat in 1968 Charger’s clothing, might just float your boat.
