IN SEARCH OF 1970
he would finally purchase, just so he
wouldn’t miss any potential opportunities.
So the hunt began in the usual way,
with internet research and visiting vari-
ous car shows where he could speak with
the other classic Mopar owners about their
experiences. These “research” efforts only
served to heighten Schilling’s desire for
a Mopar, and a 1970 Road Runner was
at the top of his list.
Schilling had initially set down a few
requirements that would help him search
for the car he would finally purchase.
While the car might have a few aftermarket
parts under the skin, it would have to look
the part of an original 1970 Road Runner
with factory-style wheels, unmodified body
lines, and an original Mopar paint color-
ation. While his father’s Road Runner was
Dark Burnt Orange, the younger Schilling
preferred a higher-impact color like Vitamin
C Orange or, as eventually turned out to
be the case, Tor Red (which is more of
an orange in the final delivery than red,
as the name would imply).
FINDING DOROTHY
Schilling finally found his dream machine
one state over from California in Mesa,
Arizona, at a place called Streetside
Classics. This 1970 Road Runner checked
all the boxes with the high-impact paint
and very few deviations from stock. With
little fanfare, the purchase was made and
the Road Runner rolled into Schilling’s
garage, complete with an assortment
of car-show trophies acquired by the
previous owner. But Schilling felt that his
Road Runner needed a nickname, just like
the Schilling family’s green station wagon
that he had affectionately named “The
Green Hornet” when he was a kid. To
honor his grandmother, and to the great
satisfaction of his father, Schilling named
his new Road Runner “Dorothy.”
1970 WAS SPECIAL
The body changes executed by Plymouth
in 1970 made this model-year Road Run-
ner something special. For 1970, 41,484
units were produced. Of those 41,000-
plus cars, 7,993 hardtops were produced
with four-speed manual transmissions—
the configuration of Schilling’s Tor Red
Road Runner. Of course, assessing how
many are still around—well, that’s up
to experts who can only guess the proper
attrition rate of these very popular and
highly affordable muscle cars, right?
Regardless of the rarity of finding a
1970 Road Runner that not only looks but
runs and drives this well (estimated total
mileage is now 121,000), Schilling finds
An important feature for any perfor-
mance car, this Road Runner features
a full complement of gauges to keep
tabs on engine operation.
For 1970, the Road Runner received a significant face-lift with
an all-new grille, tail section, and smoothed side profile.
Nothing too fancy with the interior; a bench seat draped in pure black vinyl gets
the job done.
The classic Hurst Pistol Grip shifter
just drips with classic muscle-car
machismo and is backed by a very
fuel-efficient Gear Vendors Overdrive
that drops highway cruising rpm from
3,200 to about 2,100 at 70 mph.
54 moparmuscle.com