Summary

Street-legal replica of Jack Sharkey's 'Rampage' altered-wheelbase Dart. Barn-find looks outside, expensive parts inside. Built by Steve Magnante and featured in his book, 'How To Build Altered Wheelbase Cars.' 512ci engine and automatic transmission.

Details

Before the arrival of flip-top Funny Cars in 1966, A/FX drag racers built altered-wheelbase match racers out of steel-body Super Stock sedans. This 1963 Dart was built by Steve Magnante in 2008 as a totally streetable tribute to Jack Sharkey's Chicago-based 'Rampage' Dart match racer. The complete construction of this car is featured in Magnante's book 'How-To Build Altered Wheelbase Cars,' and also is the subject of his 90-minute DVD, 'How to Build Your Own Altered Wheelbase Funny Car.' The buyer will get copies of these items as well as issues of Car Craft, Hot Rod Deluxe and Hemmings Muscle Machines, each of which ran feature articles on this car. Over the past 10 years of Magnante's ownership, he's driven the Rampage Dart over 8,000 street miles. The Rampage has become a popular attendee at many East Coast car shows, including the Hemmings Musclepalooza at Lebanon Valley Raceway and the NHRA Hot Rod Reunion at New England Dragway. Magnante drove the Rampage to these events, a 180-mile round trip from his Massachusetts home. The all-steel California body is California-sourced with just the right amount of real patina and a Mazzolini Racing fiberglass Max Wedge hood scoop. The painted body graphics were hand-applied by Southern California go-to graphics man Bob Thompson. The narrowed 8-3/4' rear axle has 10' drum brakes, and a clutch-type 3.91 Sure Grip with Super Stock leaf springs and shocks. The rear suspension has been altered forward 12' to deliver 48/52 (front/rear) static weight distribution. Up front, a Dodge A100 van straight axle and leaf springs with 11' HEMI Charger-sized drum brakes offer excellent stopping power. A heavy-duty 4-row radiator looks stock and keeps engine temperature below 200 degrees under all conditions. The engine is a 512ci Dodge big block with an all-forged 440 Source stroker kit making about 550 horsepower. The compression ratio is 9.8:1 and it runs great on 92 octane unleaded gas. It has an automatic transmission, 440 Source aluminum heads with stainless valves, an A&A 440-port-size Max Wedge Cross-Ram intake manifold with two Edelbrock 600 cfm 4-barrel carburetors. The camshaft is an Isky Mega 290 hydraulic flat-tappet with H.D. Mopar Performance rocker arms and 3/8' chromoly push rods. The construction of the fender wall headers was featured in the May 2008 issue of Hot Rod Deluxe (a copy comes with the car). Inside the simple interior, a full-manual push-button 727 TorqueFlite controls shifts. Other era-correct interior details are an 8-point roll bar, fiberglass buckets, radio and heater delete plates and a retro Sun tach. This car is a nostalgic drag racing hero - but for the street.