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Mopar Literature and Promo Models


General Mopar Promo Model Information



What I have found is that there is a dearth of information available regarding Mopar promos. I'm going to attempt to collect as much information as I can on this site. I welcome any input you might have. It's my hope that when we're gone, future collectors will have access to everything we know about Mopar promo models. The following information refers to musclecar promos only. It is a work in progress. Please help me make this more robust and complete! Any information I have about specific years and models is accessed via the links to the left.



WHO MANUFACTURED THEM?



Dodge promos were manufactured by MPC. Plymouth promos were manufactured by Jo-Han and MPC. 1967 and 1968 Barracudas were made by MPC. For 1969 and 1970, GTX's were made by Jo-Han and Cuda's by MPC. From '71 onward, all Mopar promos were made by MPC.



Boxes



Mopar promos have by far the coolest boxes of the Big 3.

Here's what I know:

  • All '67 and '68 Barracuda's came in a plain box.
  • For some reason, 1970 GTX's all have plain boxes. This is odd given that the '69's came in such cool boxes, both made by Jo-Han.
  • Roughly half of all 1971 Cuda's I've seen have been in a plain box.
  • I've seen several 1972 Roadrunners in plain boxes, in both Lemon Twist and Basin St. Blue.
  • Beware of reproduction boxes! Many of us aren't pleased with this unfortunate development. It's just a matter of time before unscrupulous sellers misrepresent the originality of a box. The repops are plain white boxes which have had stickers applied to them which feature the graphics for that year's box. It's just a matter of time before someone starts printing the graphics directly on the boxes. Caveat emptor!
  • Does anyone know who the guy is who felt compelled to write the year on the end flaps of the boxes of 80% of the promos out there? Sort of like the old lady in the midwest who made up all the dirty jokes, I'd like to meet this guy.


Paint Information



All metallic cars were painted, thus it is not uncommon to find imperfections. My In-Violet Cuda, Bronze '69 Charger, and Turquoise '69 Coronet all have blemishes. I've had others in the past.

I've talked to several people with painted blue '70 -'74 Mopar promos who have had the cars shatter when handled. The '71 Dark Blue metallic cars are said to be exceptionally brittle. Something about the molding and painting of cars in this color resulted in the cars being like hand grenades. Other blue cars from '71 and up are also quite brittle.


The '72 Challenger at left was MINT- literally looked like it just came off the assembly line in Mount Clemens. Except for the body, most of the pieces are still mint. Generally speaking, ALL painted MPC models are brittle. Unscrew the chassis at your peril!



dave@moparlit.com
925.639.8683


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