Featured is a Custom 1972 Plymouth Duster 340. The Plymouth Duster was produced for a relatively short time from 1970 through the 1976 model year. The Plymouth Duster debuted for 1970 as a performance version of the Plymouth Valiant.
While the Duster was a muscle car, the years it was produced ended up being problematic. Why doesn’t the Plymouth Duster have the same name recognition as other Chrysler Corporation muscle cars such as the Plymouth Barracuda or the Dodge Charger? Coming out as late as it did, the new federal emission regulations kind of curbed the Duster’s chance for muscle car stardom although the car was a solid performer.
Duster Comes Out in 1970
The Plymouth Duster debuted in 1970 and a great deal of money went into it’s design. , At the same time automakers were starting to feel the smothering effects of federal emissions controls not to mention sky high insurance rates for muscle car owners. The new federal emission controls and safety regulations put a damper over the entire muscle car market in 1971 and in many ways put an end to the horsepower wars of the latter part of the 1960’s.
Regarding insurance rates for those Plymouth Duster muscle cars and muscle cars in general, the close to $1,000 a year insurance rates were a major problem for many potential buyers. It’s said that in many cases these Plymouth Duster owners would tell their insurance agents that they were buying a Valiant two door coupe. The result of course was that the rates would decrease.
The Plymouth Valiant and the Plymouth Duster
The Plymouth Duster started with the Plymouth Valiant. In fact, for the 1970 model year the model was named the Plymouth Valiant Duster. After that first year the Valiant name would be removed.
The Duster was designed to be a sporty and affordable small car with plenty of power. For a bit over $2,200 new, the Plymouth Duster was a lot of car for the money. The Duster turned out to be Chrysler’s sporty competitor for the Chevy Nova and Ford Maverick. This was the reason that the restyling money for the 1970 Valiant was used to design a more exciting and more competitive small car than the Valiant and thus the Duster was born. Over the course of the seven year Duster production run the new car prices for the models ranged from about $2,200 to $4,000.
Going into the 1971 model year the most significant change made to the 1971 Plymouth Duster was that the Valiant fender badges were removed. That was when the Duster had come of its own and was recognizable as a standalone car.
The 1972 model was essentially similar to the 71 models. Horsepower did drop only because of a new way of measurement. Dodge re-rated all of its engines to the new SAE Net standard. In actuality power remained the same.The 340 V-8, and it’s 240 HP was now available on any Duster.
1972 Plymouth Duster 340 Specifications
1972’s Plymouth Duster biggest engine was a 340 cubic inch V8 that put out 275 HP. There was a 318 cubic inch V8 with 225 HP. A 225 cubic inch straight six delivered 145 HP. When you consider those two V-8’s available, the smaller Plymouth Duster was really packing a lot of power.
Transmissions available were a three speed manual and a TorqueFlite three speed automatic.
Brakes were four wheel hydraulic drums.
Dimensions included a 108.0 inch wheelbase, overall length of 188.4 inches, width 71.6 inches, height 52.7 inches. Curb weight came in at about 2,870 lbs.
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Reference material for this article includes…The Complete Book of Dodge and Plymouth Muscle by Mike Mueller…Dodge and Plymouth Muscle Car 1964-2000 by Peter Sessler…musclecarclub.com
Plymouth Duster Collector Popularity
As we have mentioned, the Plymouth Duster was introduced as the performance version of the Plymouth Valiant. After the 1970 introductory year the Valiant badges, etc were removed from the Duster. As muscle cars go the price tag for a new Plymouth Duster was a bargain considering the power you could obtain.
Automobilemag.com pretty much sums up the reasons why you might want to add the Plymouth Duster to your classic car collection.. “Dusters offer attractive styling, a comfortable ride, a large trunk, and spacious rear seats. V-8-powered cars are most desirable, but six-cylinder models are appealing, too, thanks to the slant six’s run-forever reputation”. .
Currently the 1971 and 1972 Plymouth Dusters in excellent, highly original and restored condition appear to be priced in a range of about $35,000 to $48,000. Starting in 1972 with the effect of the federal emission and safety regulations, those models are seen in about the $30,000 to $40,000 range. There of course are exceptions out there at both the high and low ends.
(Article and photos copyright Auto Museum Online)