Dodge Charger 500
Most muscle car fans know the Charger lineup well, including the wild Charger Daytona from 1969. But Daytona’s predecessor, the Charger 500, was far less known and not as successful. In the late ’60s, Dodge was desperate to go racing in NASCAR, and the Charger was the perfect candidate. However, since NASCAR cars already approached high speeds of almost 200 mph on newly constructed superspeedway tracks, aerodynamics played a key role in a car’s performance and results (via Road and Track).
The standard Charger could have been more aerodynamic with a deep grille and concave rear glass. But despite powerful engines and good drivers, it just couldn’t achieve the speeds required for winning. Dodge decided to introduce a limited-edition Charger 500 (named 500 because Chrysler made that many examples). With a flushed grille, fixed headlights, and regular rear glass to improve the aerodynamics of the car. The 500 was somewhat better but not quite as good, so Dodge decided to go even further and present the Daytona. The Charger 500 had two engines, a standard 440 and an optional 426 Hemi. Since the Daytona was much more successful and exciting, the Charger 500 was soon forgotten by everyone except for hardcore Mopar muscle guys.