What's So Good About the '68 Dodge Charger?

The 1968 Dodge Charger featured an iconic B-design and coke-bottle style. This muscle car had good performance and set the stage for sports cars of the future.
Written by Hannah DeWitt
Reviewed by Kathleen Flear
Car makers in the late 1950s and ‘60s were looking for new ways to serve the luxury and specialty car segments. Chrysler decided to enter the market via its
Dodge
line, intending to make a mid-sized sports car that fits between the Ford Mustang and Thunderbird.
The '68 Dodge Charger was the second generation of the mid-sized B-body personal luxury muscle cars. Here's a quick look at the amazing classic and why its design has remained on the market for decades.

The exciting history that led to the 1968 Dodge Charger

The Dodge Charger made its debut in 1966. It had a chassis and a front-end sheet that were similar to those of the Coronet. At the time, the Dodge Charger was taking on the Rambler Marlin from AMC. The 1966 model revolutionized the market with its all-bucket seating and an interior space that could be accessed from the rear hatch when the rear seats were folded.
A year later, the Dodge Charger made changes to its original design by adding a vinyl roof and removing the full-length console on the inside, as it was said to prevent entry and exit from the back seats. However, the model got about half of the sales volume made by the flagship brand, as most of the target market was looking for a compact pony car. Therefore, the design of the '68 Charger was to satisfy this new muscle car demand, and Chrysler did a good job.
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‘68 Charger engine and design

The 1968 Dodge Charger was differentiated from the Coronet, unlike the earlier models. It was also less upscale than the first model year. One of the unique features was the coke bottle styling, which created curves around the rear quarter panels and front fenders.
According to
Car and Driver
, the 1968 Dodge also had an aerodynamic wedge theme, something that later defined the line of cars. It also looked similar to a new breed of racing cars that had debuted in the Can-Am series a year before. The closest vehicle that looked like the Charger was the 1968 Corvette, although it lacked the straight "B" appearance. 
The performance of the '68 Dodge Charger was above average for the time, running a water-cooled V8 engine that produced a decent 425 hp and 490 lb-ft of torque for the Hemi trim. A three-speed automatic transmission was standard, but later models came with an option for a four-speed manual.
MORE: A Muscle Car Classic: The 1968 Dodge Charger

How did the 1968 Dodge Charger design survive the decades?

According to
Car Buzz
, the 1968 redesign was the greatest idea ever. Although no one expected it to become an icon in the American muscle car industry, the ‘69 Charger had an incredibly cool style. The Plymouth Barracuda had the mantle at the moment, but the iconic design of the Charger took over the top spot among the sports cars of the ‘70s.
Some of the reasons for the enthusiasm in the market were better aerodynamics that enabled the car to gain higher speeds almost effortlessly. Second, the curves created the muscle car image that appealed to young car enthusiasts over the years. There was also more cabin space, since the car had a tapered front and could be opened up.

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