340 V8 Clone Project: 1972 Dodge Dart Swinger
Intending to make the Dart more attractive to youthful buyers, Dodge introduced the Dart Swinger in 1969 as a 2-door hardtop to replace the somewhat stodgy-looking 2-door sedan. You could get a Swinger from mild to wild (sort of), with 225, 318, and 340 cubic inch engines. The seller (or someone prior) swapped the original 318 cubic-incher in this ’72 Swinger for a 340 which – from the factory – was rated at 275 hp. This may be a solid car although the paint job is past its prime. Located near Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, this compact Mopar is available here on craigslist for $13,000. Here’s a tip from Mitchell G.!
The Swinger joined the Dart lineup two years after the last redesign of 1967. It would be accompanied by a Plymouth-badged version in 1971 called the Scamp and both would soldier on through Dart/Valiant’s end of production in 1976. The Swinger 340 would become quite popular (along with the fastback Demon 340/Dart Sport 340) with buyers because you got a lot of performance punch without setting your insurance underwriter’s hair on fire. The seller’s car began life as a more sedate hardtop but is now something of a Swinger 340 clone.
We don’t know how or when the mechanical transformation of this 1972 Swinger took place. The car itself has seen at least 124,000 miles, but there is no mention of how much of that applies to the 340 V8 or the TorqueFlite 727 automatic transmission. This was a factory A/C car to begin with and all that hardware seems to have been moved over to the 340 set-up. To add some extra horses, this Dodge received headers and also has an 8 ¾ rear-end with Suregrip. Though an automatic, the shifter is from Hurst and has a reverse lockout.
The photos provided leave a lot to be desired. It’s always best to photograph cars with the cell phone in the landscape position to include the entire automobile. The paint is old, there appears to be some grey primer on the passenger side rear quarter, and a vinyl top is present whose condition isn’t mentioned. For the buyer to complete the 340-cloning process, a new rear bumper comes with the deal (in the box) along with a set of Swinger emblems.
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Comments
Nah, that’s pig in a poke stuff.
But even from the pictures, this is a fright pig in that poke. Both rockers look kinda rough, and Pennsylvania road salt isn’t good on the delicate underside of ’60s and ’70s Mopars. The interior is rough, and a lot of the upgrades got the vibe of more bolted on than well thought out.
No way I’d go half of $13K for this.
Anti-spin axle w 3.91s combined w 727 Torq-flite is golden.
I was sold on 340 with A/C! Those are words rarely mentioned together & down south to the right of the USA needed now days or am i just getting old?
Can anyone say “Thunder Chicken”? Throw on some cheap speed shop tires some air shocks and cherry bombs! Do the crooked hoodscoops make it go faster?
👍🤣….