Why did Mopar make so many green cars?
A troll who constantly bashes Mopars on another site asked this question. We know Earth-tones were popular around 1970 with all of the Big 3 because of the "save the Earth" mood. But why was green seen on so many Mopars? Anyone here have special knowledge of this?
No special knowledge other than I am old enough to have been there, Goldfish.
Has nothing to do with the present 'greenie religion' and their self aggrandizing 'save the planet' mantra. As if mankind had the power to either destroy
or to 'save' the planet. That nonsense wasn't even in the public forum back then.
Fast cars sell. Flashy cars sell. And fast cars painted flashy colours sell even better. That's the way it was in the late '60s and early '70s and that's the way it is now. Simple as that.
When I returned Stateside and mustered out of the Marine Corps in late '67, I bought a new Rally Green '68 Camaro. The following year, as my family began growing and I needed a functional rear seat and more trunk space, I special ordered a Rally Green '69 Nova SS with the L-78 375 HP 396 engine and solid lifter cam. That thing ate 429 Boss Mustangs for dinner.
Big block wedge and hemi MOPARs earned my respect, though. So the next year, I bought a new Limelight Green 1970 Roadrunner with the 440 6-pack engine. Changed out the carbs for the dealer-only over the counter high performance upgrades with mechanical secondaries and there wasn't much that would touch it. All were 4-speed cars.
When my Brother-in-Law mustered out of the Army in 1970, he bought a new Challenger painted bright orange. Not a racer (had a 318 and automatic), but it was a sharp looking car, nonetheless. Rode and handled better than the Mustangs and Camaros of the time.
Truth is...... Some people just like the colour green. Personally, I think MOPAR Sublime Green and the newer Camaro Synergy Green are both pretty good looking colours on the right car.
Happy Motoring,
Harry
