Franklin Mint 1971 Plymouth Road Runner 6-Pack- Nbr Ltd Ed of 5000

This is The Franklin Mint’s follow-up to their ’71 Hemi Road Runner in Curious Yellow. A FM independent dealer had the car redone in red but also as a Hemi-powered Mopar. This is their first 440 6-Pack. Issued in True Blue with white broken-field striping running across the roof, the model is cool.

There’s a lot to like about the image and the model as well. First, you notice its heft. It is put together well and all the pieces fit precisely, as they should. The door hinges are old-style but are not readily seen and do not distract from the nice interior view. Starting from the bottom and working up, we see good functionality in the build. The front suspension operates on individual coil springs and has a modicum of travel adjustment. A small screw provided less positive camber angle on my example giving the car a better sitting stance. The rear works on coil springs and working shocks. The body is sharp looking with excellent paint coverage. It is smooth and glossy. The graphics, tampo-ed in place, are scaled and delicious. The road runner cartoon figure is extremely small and delicately fashioned. He appears in a blurred action motion on ether rear fender within the ends of the broad white stripe and again, full face with helmet in hand surrounded by the infinitely tiny, “Plymouth Road Runner” script in a black circle. You may need a magnifying glass to fully enjoy this detail.

Again, the interior is very nice. Spartan by the standards of today and even in the early seventies but this was a purpose-built machine and FM did an admirable job in capturing that. The seats have a nice texture, flip forward and come with fabric belts and photo-etch buckles. The dash uses a wood grain accent that is carried over to the pistol grip that the Road Runners used. The door handles and lock buttons are formed well to scale. Flooring and pedals are well fabricated. The trunk employs a jacking sticker, space saving spare and jack and acts as a platform to display the limited edition plate. The engine compartment contains the Road Runner’s, “Beep, Beep!” The bright orange lump beneath the hood proudly says, “440 Six Barrel” on top of the huge air cleaner. It provides shade for the three two barrel carbs. FM did a great job with the wiring, engine stickers and plumbing.

Nice touches include bright-work surrounds of the windshield and rear window, if not the drip railing; the metal antenna is scaled well and the wipers are nicely done in photo-etch metal. Overall, the image is well done and looks really great in a muscle car collection or Mopar hobbyists gathering. Issue price is $120.

-Tony Perrone