Top 4 Muscle Cars
1. 1970 AMC Rebel Machine
The Machine was a muscle car version of the AMC Rebel. The Machine featured a 390 cubic inch V8 engine with 340 horsepower and 430 lb-ft of torque. It came with special heads, valve train, cam, as well as a redesigned intake and exhaust. This was the most powerful in any AMC vehicle while retaining features required for normal street operations, as well as components to assure outstanding performance characteristics without incurring high-unit cost penalties. The engine is fed by a 690-cfm Motorcraft 4-barrel carburetor, and pumped up a 10.0:1 compression requiring high-octane gasoline. A number of paint options were available for the Rebel Machine, but the most flamboyant option was a patriotic trim. This trim had the Machine painted white with red, white, and blue reflective strips.
2. 1970 Plymouth GTX 440 Six Pack
When introduced, the flashy GTX was the James Bond of the Plymouth line, meant to be a “gentleman’s” muscle car. It had the square-jawed looks of the Belvedere/Satellite line, but was dangerous when confronted, thanks to its standard 440 cubic inch V8 with 375 hp. Even with a minor redesign, the GTX had sales problems due to sharing many features with the Plymouth Roadrunner. Stylists made the lines smoother, and a “power bulge” hood was introduced, as well as non-functional rear brake air scoops. The convertible model was dropped in 1970. The Air Grabber hood was brought back, but instead of having two narrow openings running lengthwise as in 1969, it had one opening scoop located on the power bulge.
3. 1970 Plymouth Roadrunner 426 Hemi
The 1970 Plymouth Roadrunner featured updated front and rear end looks compared to the 1968 model. Updates included a new grille, a cloth & vinyl bench seat, hood, front fenders, quarter panels, single-piston Kelsey-Hayes disc brakes, and even non-functional scoops in the rear quarters. The air grabber option on the front scoop featured a switch that would cause a vacuum servo to slowly raise the scoop to expose shark-like teeth on either side. Due to insurance companies adding surcharges to muscle car policies, sales for the Roadrunner dropped by more than 50 percent. A very rare version of the Roadrunner, a convertible equipped with the 426 Hemi was sold. Only three of these were sold in America and 1 in Canada.
4. 1971 Ford Mustang 428 Super Cobra Jet
1971 marked the last year of the big block mustang with the 429 Super Cobra Jet. Due to ever increasing emissions control regulations and high insurance premiums, Ford began using smaller engines in their Mustang Mach 1 models. The basic strength of the Super Cobra Jet engine is in a more durable reciprocating assembly (crank, rods, pistons, wrist pins, flywheel/flexplate, and harmonic balancer) that was designed to withstand the higher RPM requirements of drag racing coupled with 780cfm Holley 4-Barrel carburetors. The total power output of the 428 Super Cobra Jet was 375 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque. One of the most recognizable features of the ‘71 Mustang was the NACA hood with dual scoops. While they served no performance increase, a Ram Air option could be ordered to make them functional.
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