1968 Dodge Superbee

1968 Dodge Superbee

1968 DODGE SUPER BEE BACKGROUND
Chrysler was doing a pretty good job of mining the muscle car boom for all it was worth. Dropping big block 383s, 440s and the 426 Hemi monster motor into Dodge and Plymouth midsize cars had proven a successful formula. Across the hall, Plymouth was cleaning up with their Road Runner, based on the B-bodied Belvedere. Dodge wanted something like it for themselves. For the 1968 model year, they upped their game by tarting up the Coronet, dropping in a big block and giving it a new name. But what? The Coronet was based on Chrysler’s B-Body platform and this was meant to be one super B-body, so why not call it a “Super-B”, or better yet, in keeping with Mopar’s cartoon character-bent (ie: Road Runner and Duster to name a few. So, why not create a new comic character…how about a crazy Hot Rod Bee? As crazy as it sounds, it worked, and the first of them, the 1968 Dodge Super Bee became a very popular nameplate, because of all the stuff that made Mopars so popular in the classic muscle car era, boatloads of torque from massive big blocks, bullet-proof drivetrains, and lots of character.

1968 Dodge Super Bee INTERIORS

1968 DODGE SUPER BEE ENGINE OPTIONS
The Super Bee, being an upgrade from the standard Coronet, did not offer any of the plebeian engines that you could get on a Coronet, slant-sixes, and small block V8s. The base engine for the 1968 Dodge Super Bee was the big block 383 Magnum with 4-barrel carb and 4-speed manual, with floor-shift and Mopar’s legendary pistol-grip shifter. This 383 was modified with 440 heads and a hotter cam than standard. Starting mid-year of the 1969 model year, you could opt up to the 440 Magnum Six-Pack (three 2-barrels) making 390 horsepower and 480 pound-feet of torque. But for now, the only two engine options available for the 1968 Dodge Super Bee were the 383 Magnum and the 426 Hemi. Oh, and that Hemi…the 426 Hemi with two 4-barrels, conservatively rated at 425 horses and 490 pound-feet. Most people ‘in the know’ rated the Hemi at somewhere north of 500 horses. If you’ve ever driven one, it sure feels like more. The engines were torque-monsters. However the 426 Hemi was a very expensive option at the time (increasing the price of the car by one-third!), so only 125 were ordered this way.

1968 Dodge Super Bee SPECIFICATIONS

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