Last week’s Auto Show in New York made us realize that no matter how “late-model” American muscle may get, there will always be room in the street scene for Mopar performance. After all, who else could cover a stoplight street fighter in Panther Pink, and actually pull it off?

In this spirit of enthusiasm for the Mopar brand, “For A-Bodies Only” is a web forum dedicated to your favorite Chrysler, compact lineup. Makes sense; if the Nova and Falcon guys can have a forum to themselves, then so can the Dart club.

Dodge’s Dart and it’s Plymouth look-a-like, the Valiant, are A-body classics that may not be bragged about nearly as much as their 426 Wedge and HEMI-powered contemporaries. Luckily our featured ride, submitted by Joe in Laguna Niguel, California, resurrects the “little guy” of the Chrysler, muscle car pack.

The fact that the West Coast local sports a 440 in our featured, ’68 Dart may not seem much more remarkable than an early Chevy II with an L-79, but the 440 itself hasn’t seemed to garner nearly as much attention as its long-ram induction setup, one which Joe has incorporated into his A-body build.

One of the most fascinating statements that has floated around the A-body forum is that Joe’s long-ram setup is his Dart’s most distinctive feature, as the induction assembly is one most typically associated with Mopars of early-’60s vintage. Aside from this unique use of old-school rodding tech, Joe’s Dart chases a 727 TorqueFlite automatic, hooked-up to an 8 3/4″ rear with a 3.55 differential.

Featuring a sweet-looking, custom painted dash and gauge panel, Joe’s late-’60s Dart features upper control arms and subframe connectors from Magnumforce. But when it came to making use of his way cool, long-ram assembly, Joe didn’t have to chop-up his A-body too much, though it did require some fabrication, “They didn’t fit under the hood, so I cut-out two holes for the air cleaners to pop up through,” Joe explains.

Many of the best builds we’ve covered are works in progress, and most times they make for intriguing write-ups on our end. But with a long-ram 440 and an overall eye for mechanical detail, the finished product that has emerged from our featured Dart is truly something to see!