Collectible Comments

摘要

The excellent article on the 1967-1976 Dodge Darts (CA, August 2018) brought back mixed memories.When my wife and I met in college, she owned a bright red 1964 Dart 170 she fondly called "Rudolph." Rudolph took us about halfway through graduate school, when he was traded for a leftover 1969 Dart Custom. The newer Dart served us during commutes to my field work in another town. One day I pulled into my boss's driveway and switched off the engine. The entire ignition switch came out of the dash, dangling from the key. Baffled, I tried putting it back. It worked for the next several years.A major weakness of the Dart was the lack of available factory air conditioning-Indiana summers, the dark blue paint and vinyl seats made it almost unbearable to ride in the car. When we traded for a 1975 Custom, we purposely chose a light-gold paint job and interior, and we had aftermarket a/c added. The air had a tendency to ice up, and it placed such a drag on the engine that hesitation and low power made it dangerous to drive in city traffic. This was especially worrisome, as we often had two small children in the back seat.