The Surprising Rise of Muscle Car Values

While it may be somewhat of a surprise that muscle cars have become some of the most highly prized cars on the market today, the prices people are paying for them really have enthusiasts reeling. With some cars easily surpassing the ­million-dollar mark at the Barrett-Jackson auctions and others swelling in value in the wake of it all—well beyond the prices paid for the most treasured of European exotics—muscle cars have been transformed into commodities. That’s a good thing and a bad thing.

Muscle Cars as Commodities: A Double-Edged Sword

Much like purchasing Wall Street stock or pork bellies, investors are looking to the seemingly limitless escalation of muscle cars to turn a healthy profit, and while some say it won’t last forever, there’s no question that people everywhere are rethinking the worth of these much-­storied rides.

The High Stakes of Muscle Car Investments

Whatever the car, be it a Hemi Cuda, a Shelby GT350 Mustang, a Z/28 Camaro, or any of the other ’60s and ’70s “collectibles,” many people have come to believe that these cars—regardless of their condition—are actually worth the six-figure commitments they command. However, not everyone looks at these cars through the same oil-tinted glasses, especially when they are aware of capabilities that have yet to be explored. And the others will learn a very hard and expensive lesson.

Introducing the Plum Floored Creations Super Bee

Enter Plum Floored Creations (PFC), the creative force behind this relatively stock-looking but highly modified ’70 Dodge Coronet Super Bee. Built to follow in the tracks of cars more often associated with road racing, including C5 and C6 Corvettes, Porsches, and Ferraris, this muscle car lives up to its advertised legend with incorporated technologies never before seen on these cars. From the drivetrain to the suspension to the subtle exterior modifications, everything about this highly modified Mopar tests its limitations, with a new approach to performance and looks that will definitely have people reconsidering their choice in cars.

The Radical Chassis and Suspension Setup

First and foremost, the most radical aspect of this Super Bee is the chassis, which, while based on the original B-body unibody chassis structure, now utilizes a far more refined combination of elements better suited to lateral abuse. The original components used in the front suspension have been replaced with specially built pieces, including the tubular upper control arms joined with new dropped spindles that lower the ride height 2.5 inches. When combined with MP’s Super Speedway 1.22-inch torsion bars, a 1.5-inch sway bar, and a pair of QA1 adjustable shocks, the desired refinements are realized in greatly improved car control and cornering power. Add in a Flaming River fast-ratio manual steering box with a 16:1 ratio, coupled with Flaming River’s column and a Revolution D-shaped steering wheel, and it’s as if the driver’s hands are right on the tie rods. Heavy, yes, but steering control is absolute, and soon Flaming River’s electronic steering assistance will ease the effort while further improving the connection between the wheel and the pavement. Braking has also been upgraded with Wilwood’s 14-inch vented GT rotors and billet six-piston Superlite 6 calipers. These have been adapted to the spindles with Lateral Dynamics brackets for a nice fit inside the 18×8-inch Centerline Lexi two-piece forged aluminum rims fitted with 225/40-18 YR-rated radials.

Advanced Rear Suspension and Braking

While the installation of the rear suspension is covered in great detail following this feature, a quick review is impressive in itself. Here Lateral Dynamics’ 9-inch rearend housing was utilized, along with Strange axles and limited-slip 3.90 gearing. Vertical control comes by way of Lateral Dynamics’ B-body three-link suspension kit, which makes use of a Watts link and fully adjustable Carrera coilover shocks that negate the need for the standard Coronet leaf springs. It also provides exceptional control of the rear axle assembly to gain the upper hand in maintaining ideal rear suspension geometry. Braking is again handled by Wilwood, with a Pro Series Ford 9-inch big brake kit incorporating 13-inch GT rotors and billet Superlite four-piston calipers. These make the most of 285/30-20 radials wrapped around the 20×9.5-inch Centerlines.

Harnessing 600 Horsepower and Precision Engineering

Needless to say, when you have 600 hp and 510 lb-ft of torque on tap, the pressures applied to the rear axle are immense, whether it’s rocketing the car in a straight line or pressing it hard through the corners. In this case, that power is provided by a combination of specialized components fitted to the same 6.1-liter short block utilized in DaimlerChrysler’s series of SRT8 vehicles. To maximize the benefits of this proven lower end, a pair of PFC ported aluminum heads was added, along with a proprietary camshaft contoured specifically to maximize flow between the innovative induction system and the pistons reciprocating below. The exhaust system consists of polished and TTI-coated equal-length headers adjoining a 3-inch exhaust system benefiting from an X-pipe and Dr. Gas’ Street Boom Tube mufflers leading to side-exiting tips. To ensure that lubrication is retained even under hard cornering, the oiling system was augmented with a PFC oil pan, a NASCAR-style cooler, and a reusable Pure Power 8900 R remote oil filter to keep the Pure Power High Performance 10W/20 CH-4/SJ motor oil spot on.

The Innovative ITB Intake and Fuel System

Created from scratch, this highly functional and trick-looking induction system was created specifically for this 6.1-liter Hemi. Referred to as the Individual Throttle Body (ITB) intake, it incorporates eight 58mm throttle bodies combined with a central vacuum accumulator. Balanced through PFC’s own stand-alone electronic controls, this system utilizes dual wide-band 02 sensors and a Hemi-specific wiring harness. A Bosch 044 fuel pump pressurizes the 92-octane, which is fed from a 20-gallon fuel cell at 45 psi through braided lines to special aluminum fuel rails feeding Dodge SRT-4 Stage II injectors. This combination was chosen specifically for this application, as were the twin ITG JC55 Megaflow filters, to realize the maximum mixture ratio. While electronically controlled, this highly evolved fuel system recalls the Hilborn injection found on Can Am racecars built around the same time as this Super Bee, and it provides absolutely linear response.

Transmission and Drivetrain Mastery

To harness the horsepower, a McLeod 133-tooth aluminum flywheel and its Dual Disc 10.50-inch clutch assembly intended for Chrysler’s 18-spline Hemi four-speed transmission was fitted, although another gearbox was to be utilized here. To provide the best combination of ratios to set up corners and maximize acceleration and top speed, a heavy-duty six-speed transmission was installed, along with a Weldtech pistol grip shifter that recalls those fitted to many Mopars back in the day.

Exterior Modifications and Body Refinements

With so much technology positioned beneath the exterior, it’s only fitting that body modifications conceived by PFC and incorporated by Paintshop 101 were applied. These include a heavily modified hood displaying a functional “power bulge,” R/T-inspired side scoops, and new lower sills that give the body a lower appearance while emphasizing bodylines renewed with Year One body panels. You may have also noticed that the original front bumpers look a bit different, as 1.5 inches were removed from the inside and 1 inch was cut from the outer contours. With new lighting incorporated along with a front spoiler fitted with foglights, a more menacing appearance has been created. Once all of these changes were united beneath a coating of SEM’s Color Horizons “Plum Floored” paint, the expertise applied here was fully ­realized.

Interior Comforts and Modern Amenities

From the inside, you really get a feel for the road sitting in any one of the four European-style bucket seats upholstered in bright white leather and divided by a full-length custom console. Add in a set of large-face gauges, Vintage Air Generation IV air conditioning, power windows, and electric door and trunk releases, along with other special trim pieces, and the excitement is only amplified. This is also the operative term for the EFX Hyperformance audio system from Scorshe Industries. Utilizing a four-channel, 800-watt amplifier, twin 12-inch subwoofers supported by twin 6x9s and 5.5s in the kick panels provide ample sound effects for this special environment.

A Revolutionary Muscle Car: Innovation Meets Tradition

As we’ve seen, this Super Bee Coronet has been recreated to do what no other muscle car in its category, nor most other ’60s vehicles, have done before. While there will be those enthusiasts who see this approach as a violation of a classic muscle car, its enhanced capability is likely to test the mettle of even the most respected sports cars. When it does, you can bet enthusiasts everywhere will be lining up to augment the past with history-­making innovations.

The Watts Link Suspension System: Innovation in Rear Axle Stability

This car is long on innovation, great style, and power to spare. One of the innovative improvements included in this B-body build is a newly developed Watts Link kit that’s both easy to install and quick to provide a return on investment.

Benefits of the Watts Link Suspension System

The beauty of the Plum Floored Creations’ Watts Link rear suspension system can be found in the unique nature of its design. A Watts link is a part of the rear suspension system that restricts sideways movement while allowing the axle to move vertically. Typically, Mopar fans and muscle car enthusiasts would use a Panhard bar for rear-axle stability, which would push the rear end toward the outside of the car when cornering. But the advantage of the Watts Link suspension is that it allows the rear end to move straight up and down, so the driver can have more control over the car’s stability. With this system, the amount of lateral movement is greatly reduced, while all of the benefits of a four-link system are retained. This improvement in lateral stability results in a better overall ride with less body roll, improved steering response, and reduced wear on other components. Add in the lateral dynamic Watts Link suspension system, and you have the ultimate combination of road control for straight-line performance and lateral grip for all-out cornering ability.