1960 Dodge Dart Phoenix D500
The 1960s opened with great promise. The Dodge Dart was a new model that year, based on a mid-sized 118-inch wheelbase unibody design adopted from Plymouth, and the Phoenix was the premium trim package for it. This special Phoenix was further equipped with the performance-oriented D500 package; indeed, this amazing motorcar features not only its original drivetrain and sheet-metal, but nearly every available option that could be added to this vehicle platform in 1960. Dodge created 586 Phoenix D500-optioned Darts in 1960, but few were as spectacular as this one.
The car is equipped with the 361cid Cross-Ram V-8 engine with Chrysler’s special long-tube D500 ram induction, which featured dual 4-barrel carburetors mounted on sonically tuned cast manifolds that looped across each opposing valve cover. It is backed by the pushbutton-activated TorqueFlite automatic transmission.
Factory trim code Raven Black with special order interior package. Celebrity Pick and signed by Bill “Maverick” Golden at the 1997 Carlisle “All Chrysler Nationals.” Golden drove an almost identical 1960 black Dodge hardtop to his first Super Stock drag racing title.
Management issues atop Chrysler’s upper hierarchy rapidly deteriorated during this era, resulting in the disastrous styling revisions for 1961; coupling the unique inaugural-year design with this example’s extensive optional equipment, the 1960 Phoenix D500 offered here is a reflection of the jet-age styling of the late 1950s and the cataclysms that brought about the legendary Chrysler products of the 1960s.
