Chryslers by the Bay highlight – 1973 Dodge Charger

Chryslers by the Bay is an annual two-day event, hosted by the Bay City Chrysler Car Club of Geelong, that welcomes all members of the Mopar family. With a cruise on Day 1 and a show ‘n’ shine on Day 2, Chryslers by the Bay draws Mopar owners and enthusiasts from all over Victoria, as well as interstate.

This year’s 26th edition of the all-Chrysler event had to contend with very high temperatures, but still attracted around 100 cars to the show ‘n’ shine, with good attendance for the cruise, too.

There were plenty of highlights from the extended Chrysler family to be seen, including a Dodge Charger from the “post-fame” era of this iconic American muscle car.

Thanks to Bullitt, The Dukes of Hazzard and The Fast and the Furious, pretty much everyone knows the Dodge Charger, but the car from those Hollywood productions represents only a portion of the Charger story. The original Charger, launched during the 1966 model year, has been mistakenly regarded as a Mustang competitor. Being larger and heavier, the Charger was less of a Pony Car and considered a “sports luxury” or “personal” car at the time. As such, it wasn’t a direct rival to the Mustang, like the Camaro, Firebird, Barracuda and Javelin were.

For 1968, the Charger was completely restyled and it’s this second-generation that’s gone on to achieve Hollywood fame, in turn becoming a favourite with collectors and enthusiasts. Starting the trend was Bullitt, which premiered when the restyled Charger was still new.

The redesign for 1968 worked for buyers, who snapped up the new-look Charger at almost three times the rate of the original, despite the underlying components being mostly the same.

Dodge also entered the Charger in NASCAR, creating two variants specifically for racing; the Charger 500 and Charger Daytona. The former featured changes to the grille and rear window to make the car more aerodynamic, while the latter went even further, adding a nose cone and big rear wing to keep the car stable on NASCAR’s high-speed oval courses.

The second-generation Charger lasted through to late 1970, when a restyle for the 1971 model year heralded the third generation, as shown here. With its tapered nose and long front/rear overhangs, the third-generation Charger appeared bigger, but was actually shorter than the previous Charger and rolled on a 2-inch shorter wheelbase, too.

When the third-generation Charger launched, muscle cars were coming under threat from ever-increasing insurance premiums, as well as emissions regulations that strangled performance. By 1973, the glory days of just a few years earlier were gone. The Charger R/T variant and 426 Hemi V8 had both been discontinued after 1971, with a 225ci six or 318 V8 now the base engine, but 340, 400 and 440 V8s remained optional. Callouts on the bonnet of the car shown here indicate it’s powered by the 400ci V8.

Adding some element of past glory to the Charger range was the ‘Rallye’ option. Introduced on the 1972 model and continued in 1973, the Rallye was primarily a cosmetic package, adding a blackout grille, bonnet and tail light panel, plus faux woodgrain trim inside. More tangible improvements included additional gauges, wider (14 x 6) tyres and sway bars front and rear to improve handling.

For 1973, the Rallye package could be added to any Charger coupe or hardtop with a V8 engine. It included the sway bars, wider wheels (now with white letter tyres) and ‘Rallye Instrument Cluster’ from the previous year, as well as a ‘power bulge’ bonnet, bonnet tie-down pins and bodyside decals in either black or gradated red to yellow. Curiously, Rallye wheels, as shown on this car, were available but not included as part of the Rallye package.

The car featured was identified as a ’73 Charger Rallye and carried most of the features that identified the package that year, minus the bodyside decals. This car’s Plum Crazy paint is a later addition, as purple wasn’t a factory option by 1973. Of the ‘High Impact’ colour range from a few years prior that included Hemi Orange, Green Go and Citron Yella, as well as Plum Crazy, only Top Banana (yellow) was available in 1973. The rest of the palette was heavy with browns, greens and blues.

Other features on this car include R/T-style red accents on the grille and a ‘halo’ factory vinyl roof. Inside, this Charger appeared mostly stock, with the only notable addition being a modern Pioneer sound system.

For JUST CARS’ report from the 2024 Chryslers by the Bay, click HERE.