I can attest to the same. In the mid 80's I snagged a 69 swinger 340 from the original elderly owner. Build date was 12/___/68 and it's original 340 was red. Never say never when it comes to Mopars!
I owned an original 1969 Dart Swinger 340. It was an early-build car and the engine was painted red from the factory. I was told that some of the early 1969's had red engines, and the car I owned confirms this fact. I'm just saying...