1963 Dodge Polara 426 Ramcharger 

The 1963 Dodge 426 Ramcharger was billed as the hottest performing power plant to come off a production line. Its Max Wedge design was the next step up from the 413 V-8 of 1962. Chrysler’s lust for brute horsepower brought more changes than just a displacement boost. Dodge’s 426 Ramcharger was a 413 V-8, bored from 4.19 to 4.25 inches . Except for a color change from Turquoise paint on the 413 to Race Hemi Orange on the 426, both engines looked identical.

The 1963 DodgePolara had taken on a new shape that year , with elongated front fenders, twin-set headlamps, and sculptured rear quarter panels. It was very similar to the new, smaller compact Dart. The 1963 Polara had a rounded dashboard with pod-style “George Jetson” type instrumentation . Interior styling was futuristic overall, like all Chrysler products of the era, with tapered door handles, window cranks, and armrests.

Dodge performance fans had four 383-cubic-inch V-8s from which to choose in ’63, including the 383 B-Wedge High Performance V-8 that churned out 330 horsepower via a single Carter AFB or 390 horses with two. Known as the 383 “Polara” in Dodge installations, this smaller-displacement V-8 had good road manners and reliability well ahead of the 426 Ramchargers. The 340-horsepower 413 was the largest engine most buyers considered for the street.

But with the 426’s brute horsepower came reliability and streetability problems that made it tough to manage for daily use. The Dodge sales brochure warned that the Ramcharger engine warmed up slowly because it put no heat on the intake manifold. Dodge even  issued a clear warning that the power-packed 426 Ramcharger was NOT a street machine. Dodge claimed it had been designed to be run in supervised, sanctioned drag-strip competition by those qualified, even though the 426 Polara is stock in every sense of the word.

On the track, the super-powered Dodge earned instant respect. The potent 425-horse, dual-quad 426 Ramcharger rang the NHRA record books with 1/4 mile times in the 12-second range. In factory lightweight form, wearing an aluminum front-end, the 1963 Dodge tipped the scales at 3200 pounds, (which was not bad for a mid-size with a big block under the hood.)

With the available aluminum front fenders, hood and front bumpers, and two big air scoops feeding the twin ram-inducted four-barrel carbs, the 1963-1964 Ramcharger was the toughest of contenders. The aluminum-component Dodges cleaned up in a special “Limited Production” category.

The 1963 Ramcharger Dodges  hold special meaning for Mopar fanatics as key players in the history of early muscle. I'd have to agree...wouldn't you say?