In 2022, it has not been difficult to envision a pickup truck as a performance heavyweight. Effectively sports cars with bed boxes, the 450-horsepower Ford F150 Raptor and the 702-horsepower Ram 1500 TRX are modern examples for how utility can be morphed into a breathtaking road-going rocket. Although the car-based Chevrolet El Camino and Ford Ranchero would receive tempting muscle car attributes alongside sizable open storage during the 1960s, there were few examples of a proper high performance pickup truck until what was the horsepower doldrum of the late 1970s. For a brief time, a Dodge truck named “Li’l Red Express'' was a source of envy even amongst the sports car crowd.
During the second-half 1970s, the muscle car era had been long over due to a multitude of factors that included the advent of government-mandated emission control systems as standard equipment on passenger cars. Performance titans entering the decade had fallen from their peak. For the 1978 model year, the most powerful production Chevrolet Corvette produced 220 horsepower while engine output for a Ford Mustang GT was nerfed to 139 horsepower. The institution of emission control technologies such as catalytic converters, air pumps and exhaust gas recirculation was cited as reasons for reduced engine output.
Unwilling to accept the reality of lackluster performance, some intrepid engineers at Chrysler Corporation spotted a loophole that allowed them to create one of the meanest street machines of the late 1970s. While passenger cars needed to comply with emission regulations, these requirements did not immediately pertain to light trucks. With this knowledge in mind, Chrysler turned attention to their Dodge pickup truck line creating the Li’l Red Express.
Spawning from the Dodge Adventurer 150 truck, the Dodge Li’l Red Express came together as a factory-customized vehicle. Chrysler went to extremes in the theme of the Li’l Red Express starting with a bright Medium Canyon Red paint finish with distinguishing markings. Oak wood trim was applied around the truck’s heavy-duty, stepside bed box with varnished side boards. For the cabin of the Dodge Li’l Red Express, customers were offered a choice of the standard bench seat or optional bucket seats while the trim colour selection was for either black or red vinyl.
With the red paint as well as the chrome and wood trim allowing the Dodge Li’l Red Express to stand out by itself, Chrysler added something exceptionally special under the hood of the factory custom pickup truck. The 1978 Li’l Red Express’ locomotion was delivered through an overhead valve 360 cubic-inch V-8 engine was sourced from the auto company’s police equipment list. High-lift camshaft, Carter Thermoquad four-barrel 850-cfm carburetor and a high-flow, dual-snorkel air filter fitted to the cast-iron powerplant along with a variety of chrome dress-up accessories. The stunning-looking 360 cubic-inch V8 generated 225 horsepower and 295 lb-ft of torque that was channelled through a three-speed automatic transmission. Engine exhaust flowed out of combustion chambers to a pair of transport truck-like exhaust stacks mounted behind the truck’s passenger compartment.
Supporting the engine power for the 1978 Dodge Li’l Red Express was the pickup truck’s strong separate body and frame. The suspension featuring independent front coil springs and rear live leaf springs were matched with heavy-duty shock absorbers resulting in more responsive handling than many truck buyers would generally experience. Goodyear Wrangler GT tires mounted to 15-inch wheels as well as front disc braking and rear drum brakes were also equipped on the 1978 Li’l Red Express ready for a performance-seeking driver to put it through its paces.
Thanks to being unhindered by emission regulations for 1978, the Dodge Li’l Red Express pickup truck was actually the top-performing American vehicle in several performance categories. Capable of a top speed of 118 miles per hour, the 1978 Li’l Red Express’ acceleration was where the truck sizzled. Able to launch from 0 to 60 miles per hour in just 6.6 seconds, the statistic remains impressive today. When accelerating to 100 miles per hour, the Dodge Li’l Red Express made noise beating a 1978 Chevrolet Corvette in a straight line.
After 2,188 examples were sold in 1978, Dodge’s Li’l Red Express carried into 1979 with a new front end with quad rectangular headlights replacing dual round headlamps. The rest of the news for the 1979 Li’l Red Express was less positive as emission rules finally caught up to light trucks. The reduced performance and higher production count (with 5,118 vehicles sold) makes the 1979 Dodge Li’l Red Express slightly less desirable than the previous year’s model.
With more than 7,300 examples sold over a two-year span, the production of the factory-customized Dodge Li’l Red Express pickup truck concluded before the 1980s arrived. Today in the growing classic collector truck marketplace, Li’l Red Express models are gaining greater recognition with values averaging almost $30,000 in early 2022.
Photo Credit: Stellantis