Without being there,one can't appreciate how fast the cars appeared to be. My 340 Dart at 70 MPH seems like it is going 90 compared to my daily driver, a 2016 V6 challenger.Those old cars on bias plys give you the sensation that you are going balls to the wall!
Now the big C bodies did not feel that way. Not to mention, my V6 is faster in the quarter than my Dart.But, 48 years is a long time. I run around in a 71' Demon slant six, and at 70 that car lets you know you are doing 70, and it is in perfect shape!
The news frequently was of dead drag racers back then, a common occurrence.
So Fast is a matter of perspective. In 1971 I owned a 68' Valiant slant six, and with 13 inch tires, that car was a handful above 65. I bought a 66' Polara 500 in November of 1971, and thought I had died and gone to Heaven, travelling as much as I did being in the USAF. In 1971 my Buddy had a new 71' GTX 440 six Barrel four speed. He was crazy, and I was in that car above 130 MPH. only once, and I told him: never again!
In North Dakota it was easy to go for miles with nobody, Including cops. But even then, they drove 440 Mopar police cars, and you could not escape them should you come across one.
My room mate had a new 71' Demon 318 stick, green in color, which is why I have one of those today.
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