Plymouth Belvedere Altered Wheelbase – Price: $300,000+
Since the Hemi was basically a racing engine, it was always very present in several forms of motorsport. From NASCAR ovals to road racing and drag strips, you needed the Hemi under your hood if you wanted to win. Chrysler didn’t offer the Race Hemi lightweight models for 1965 but instead went a step further and produced a handful of altered wheelbase Plymouths and Dodges for professional racers and the newly-founded FX class (via How Stuff Works).
The FX (Factory Experimental) class in NHRA championship was a predecessor to today’s Funny Car class. It was a place where factory-supported teams could race cars that only resembled stock vehicles and were equipped with engines, drivetrains, or body modifications that would never be able on a street car. They simply moved the whole floor pan 15 inches forward, moving the rear axle just behind the driver. This helped the weight distribution and traction off the line. Those altered wheelbase cars were never street legal and featured numerous interesting combinations such as fuel-injected, supercharged, or turbocharged engines. Today, real altered wheelbase cars are extremely rare and present a valuable piece of muscle car history.