1956 DeSoto Adventurer

• Price new: $3,678
• Average value today: $29,000
• Collectability: Four stars

When the Chrysler Corporation began mass production of its industry-leading hemispherical-head engine design for 1951, the engineers weren’t stingy. Following Chrysler’s high-performance FirePower V-8 into buyers’ hands was De Soto’s FireDome V-8. The mid-market division went way upmarket for 1956 with its hemi-powered Adventurer, the new flagship model. This stylish hardtop coupe, based on the Fireflite and featuring anodized gold trim, sported a 320-hp, dual-four-barrel-carbureted 341-cu.in. V-8 that made it capable of an astonishing 144 mph. Fewer than 1,000 were built that year, but the Adventurer would live on as a low-volume model with additional body styles available through 1960. First-year examples are still coveted by the Mopar cognoscenti. Book values for 1956 Adventurers are comparably low, yet classic.com recorded six sales of restored-to-stock examples at public auction between 2015 and 2020 that averaged $52,450.

— Mark J. McCourt

1957 Plymouth Fury

• Price new: $2,324
• Average value today: $45,000
• Collectibility: Four stars

Plymouths were always defined by a bottom-level price and Westclox reliability, so imagine the stir that resulted when Plymouth transformed its Fury hardtop for 1957 with towering Virgil Exner tailfins. We know more than one person who considers the 1957 Fury one of the most visually appealing cars of the 1950s. The public responded enthusiastically, as 67,268 examples were produced in 1957. The standard Fury engine was the two-barrel version of the 299.6-cu.in. OHV V-8 that produced 235 horsepower. Optional, however, was the Mopar A OHV V-8, displacing 318 cubic inches, which was fed by a pair of Carter four-barrel carburetors and was rated at 290 horsepower. The Fury was made even more exclusive by its standard color, Sandstone White with spectacular gold-anodized side trim. A TorqueFlite three-speed automatic transmission was optional. The Plymouth slogan for the 1957 model year was “Suddenly it’s 1960,” but aficionados know that a 1957 Fury represents the epitome of 1950s Plymouth style and performance.

— Jim Donnelly

1964 Plymouth Savoy

• Price new: $2,848
• Average value today: $21,500
• Collectibility: Three stars

Dodge's magazine ads in the early 1960s bragged about the division's exploits on the drag strip. Cars like Color Me Gone, The Lawman, and California Flash were just about unbeatable, thanks to Max Wedge V-8 power. But those engines weren't suited to the street, and they were expensive to build. For the civilian motorist, the Chrysler Corporation in 1964 introduced a high-performance 426 that became known as the Street Wedge. Rated at a conservative 365 hp, the 426 was available for the Plymouth Savoy, Belvedere, Fury, and Sport Fury in 1964, and the Plymouth Belvedere I and II, and Satellite, and Dodge Coronet and Coronet Deluxe, 440, and 500 the following year. Combined with a four-speed transmission, 3.23 gears, and heavy-duty suspension and brakes, the Street Wedge offered a comprehensive muscle-car package in a plain brown wrapper.

— David LaChance

1967-’69 Plymouth Barracuda

• Price new: $2,449-$3,082 (1967 I-6 coupe-1969 V-8 convertible)
• Average value today: $16,500-$30,000
• Collectability: Three stars

The second generation of Plymouth’s pony car came into its own as a solid competitor for the bestselling Ford that dominated their segment of the market. The Barracuda was now available in notchback hardtop coupe, fastback, and convertible forms, all wearing lithe new styling. Like the Mustang, this Mopar could be powered by six cylinders (the famous 225-cu.in. Slant Six) or eight (multiple V-8s were offered), the beefiest displacing 383-cu.in. and making 280-330 hp. The Formula S and ’Cuda packages blended sports car and muscle car traits with their heavy-duty suspensions and brake parts, not to mention trendy styling spiffs, and the most expressive buyers could even order a floral-print Mod Top in ’69. These Barracudas have long lived in the shadow of their first- and third-gen counterparts, and while a Mod Top Formula S brought an unbelievable $440,000 via Mecum in 2019, classic.com indicates second-gen sales currently average $48,000.

— Mark J. McCourt

1970 Chrysler 300 Hurst

• Price new: $5,842
• Average value today: $24,500
• Collectability: Two stars

Performance was a Mopar mainstay by 1970, when even the executive-express Chrysler 300 got a flashy, low-production (believed around 500 built) variant. This full-size hardtop received the Hurst Performance Corporation treatment: two-tone Spinnaker White and Satin Tan paint, a bulging, fiberglass-skinned hood with standard rotary tie-down pins, a fiberglass trunk lid with integral spoiler, and saddle-colored leather-upholstered seating. Surprisingly, a Hurst shifter didn’t actuate the TorqueFlite automatic that backed the 375-hp, 440-cubic-inch “TNT” V-8. Still, the two-ton-plus, “fuselage”-styled 300 could reportedly reach 60 mph in 7.1 seconds, an impressive feat by any measure. Classic.com has tracked five completed ’70 300 Hurst sales over the past five years, and the website places this car’s average price at $38,380; its experts consider this model an appreciating Market Benchmark and assign it an even stouter value figure of $42,980.

— Mark J. McCourt

1978-'79 Dodge Li’l Red Express Truck

• Price new: $7,400
• Average value today: $35,600
• Collectibility: Four stars

In the late 1970s, when disco was thumping and CHiPS was sweeping the airwaves, the quickest American car in the quarter-mile was actually a truck, specifically the short-bed, half-ton Dodge Li’l Red Express Truck that was produced in 1978 and 1979. The mavens at Dodge slammed their crimson hauler straight through the EPA emissions rules, which allowed that trucks with a gross vehicle weight exceeding 6,000 pounds did not require catalytic converters. The result was a thoroughly power-tuned version of the Chrysler’s police-package, 360-cu.in. LA small-block V-8 that generated 225 net horsepower. That was enough to make the Express, with its GVW of 6,100 pounds, the quickest U.S. vehicle to reach 100 mph, with quarter miles generally in the 15s on street rubber. With its bright paint, Wild West graphics, wooden bed trim and Kenworth-ish exhaust stacks, the Li’l Red—an $1,131 option in 1978—cut an unforgettable figure that matched its surprising brawn. As to production, 2,188 copies were built in 1978, climbing to 5,118 units the following year. The Li’l Red Express Truck has survived in sizable numbers and enjoys a robust enthusiast following to this day.

— Jim Donnelly

1984-'86 Dodge Daytona Turbo Z

• Price new: $10,227
• Average value today: $9,490
• Collectibility: Three stars

As it turned out, there really was a replacement for displacement, and that was turbocharging. No one embraced forced induction more zealously than Chrysler in the 1980s, which leaned heavily on turbos to add some excitement across its sons-of-K-car lineups. The Dodge Daytona Turbo Z was one of the most refined of these efforts, a high-performance, new-wave pony car that had auto writers drawing comparisons with the Porsche 944. Car and Driver went so far as to call it "the first bona-fide All-American front-wheel-drive muscle car," and a worthy challenger for the V-8-powered Chevrolet Camaro Z28 and Ford Mustang GT. A Garrett AiResearch turbo helped the multiport fuel-injected 2.2-liter inline-four churn out 142 hp, enough to haul the 2,650-pound coupe from 0-60 in 8.2 seconds on its way to a top speed of 128 mph. Exclusive front and rear fascias, wind-cheating body add-ons, seats with inflatable lumbar and thigh supports, and suspension upgrades completed the package.

— David LaChance

1989 Dodge Shelby Dakota

• Price new: $15,813
• Average value today: $14,000
• Collectibility: Three stars

It just figures that the first vehicle Shelby produced with V-8 power in some 20 years was a midsize pickup, and a one-year-only model to boot. The half-ton Dodge Shelby Dakota was the beefy transformation of a low-end truck. While less well known than the Dodge Li’l Red Express Truck that preceded them by a decade, the Shelby Dakota still offers real performance at an attainable price today. The package, which cost $4,000 more than a typical Dakota Sport, started out when Dodge squeezed its 318-cu.in. LA V-8 into the Dakota, whose biggest engine was ordinarily a 3.9 V-6—the 318, in other words, with two fewer cylinders. A four-speed automatic with lock-up torque converter was the only available transmission. The flying buttresses and striping on the bed led an appearance upgrade that also included Shelby-branded upholstery and a dash plaque. With 175 horsepower on tap, the Shelby Dakota was nonetheless a slow seller; 1,500 total units. Well-kept examples—watch for engine transplants—remain a reasonably priced way to enjoy Mopar muscle.

— Jim Donnelly

1991-’96 Dodge Stealth R/T Turbo

• Price new: $29,595
• Average value today: $7,250
• Collectability: Two stars

Dodge’s Stealth R/T Turbo is a hot performer that’s largely forgotten today, but was controversial when new. This high-tech sports car featured arresting styling inspired by the 1988 Dodge Intrepid concept and featured a twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6 engine, all-wheel drive, four-wheel steering, computer-controlled suspension, and more. Sharing its platform and drivetrain with the Mitsubishi 3000GT VR-4, the 300-hp (later, 320-hp) Stealth R/T Turbo promised 0.87-g on the skidpad, 0-60 mph in 4.89 seconds, and 155-mph capability. A 1994 facelift replaced pop-up headlamps with fixed projectors, and it’s believed fewer than 9,700 R/T Turbos were built in total. Book values lag next to competitors like Nissan’s 300ZX Twin Turbo, but according to classic.com, the average of three real auction sales of this model was nearly $18,000. If you want to stand out with a modern-classic Mopar, the Stealth R/T Turbo is a winner.

— Mark J. McCourt

1992-2002 Dodge Viper

• Price new: $55,000
• Average value today: $49,500
• Collectibility: Four stars

You can almost catch a whiff of Bob Lutz's Havana cigar as you gaze upon the Dodge Viper. Chrysler's vice chairman is responsible for making the Viper happen, convincing management that an old-school, bare-bones roadster was just what the Dodge lineup needed. Everything deemed unnecessary was stripped away: side windows, roof, exterior door handles, ABS, air conditioning. What you got were two seats, mounted behind an all-aluminum, 8-liter V-10 engine rated at 400 hp, later raised to 415, 450, and finally a full 500 hp. A coupe version of the Viper, the GTS, rumbled onto the scene in 1996, shortly after the launch of the model's second generation. Everything about the Viper was over the top, including its 4.5-second 0-60 time and ability to devour a quarter mile in 12.9 seconds. It was, and is, an unapologetic brute of a machine, one of a type that we're unlikely to see ever again. It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is impossible to ignore, just as "Maximum" Bob intended.

— David LaChance

2005-'10 Chrysler 300C SRT8

• Price new: $42,095
• Average value today: $3,100
• Collectibility: Three stars

Here's a joke that began circulating after Daimler-Benz bought Chrysler Corporation in 1998: How do you pronounce DaimlerChrysler? "Daimler." The "Chrysler" is silent. This might not have been the happiest of unions, but it did give us some cars worth celebrating, and the 2005 Chrysler 300C SRT8 is one of those cars. Good old Hemi power, in the form of a 425-hp, 6.1-liter V-8, was coupled with a chassis that used the best suspension bits from Mercedes: E-Class up front, S-Class in the rear. Its handsome styling, helped with a lowered stance, was reminiscent of upmarket brands from Europe. A sticker price of $42,095 meant that those who longed for a refined, high-performance family sedan could stop drooling over their Mercedes-Benz E55 AMG brochures. Chrysler left the competition empty-handed when the awards were given out, but buyers' appetite for an autobahn-worthy four-door wearing an American badge was limited. Just 12,783 first-generation SRT8s were sold in the U.S.

— David LaChance