Old school vs Modern Muscle car duels are not that uncommon or unheard of. In fact, we’ve ourselves have covered them a couple of times last year. But this race between a stock classic 1967 Dodge Coronet R/T and a modern-day Dodge Challenger put out by Cars And Zebra’s really caught my eye. Here’s why

1967 Dodge Coronet RT Hemi

In the red corner, we have a rather modest-looking fifth-gen Dodge Coronet R/T, that was made between 1965 through 1970. I say modest because it looks a rather plain Jane when compared to other muscle cars like the Charger from that period. Only the R/T badge gives lends that you’re looking at something a little more potent.

Don’t let the underwhelming looks fool you as under the hood lies a 426 cu.in or 7.0-liter HEMI V-8 that puts out 425 horsepower and 490 pound-feet of torque. Compression ratio? 10.25:1. Now those are some serious numbers even by modern standards. The 426 V-8 is mated to a Mopar three-speed TorqueFlite transmission. The classic Dodge tips the scales at 3726 pounds.

Only 283 examples of the hardtop Hemi Coronet R/Ts were produced in 1967, and the car seen here is one of just 162 to ever feature that three-speed auto, making it extra special indeed.

Dodge Challenger 392 Scat Pack Shaker

Moving on to the Lime Green car, we have a modern-day Dodge Challenger Hemi 392 Scat Pack Shaker. Ahh, yes, the Shaker is a throwback to old-school muscle cars. Those nostrils however don’t vibrate as they used to back in the day.

Powered by SRT, under the hood lies a 392 cu.in or 6.4 liter Hemi V-8 that produces 485 horses and 475 pound-feet of torque. This beast of an engine is also mated to a Torqueflite automatic, however, unlike the Coronet’s three-speed, this modern box features eight cogs. The Challenger is not light, coming in at 4239 pounds.

The Race

Okay, so let's see how those numbers play out on track. Another old school vs modern muscle car showdown. The conditions look near perfect on a bright sunny yet chilly 63F day. After laying down some rubber onto the tarmac, both cars were ready.

The lights go out and the Coronet got a mega launch off the bat. It almost immediately took the lead and it was at least two car lengths ahead, by the time the pair get to the mid-way point. The gap only got bigger as the two cars hurtled towards the finish line. The ’67 Coronet punched in an impressive time of 11.01 seconds at 125 mph vs the Challengers 11.95 seconds at 116.91 mph.

To Sum It Up

There are nearly five decades between these two cars and it really shows how lethal these old school cars are, even today. I double-checked to watch the start again to see if either car jumped it, but Nah, drivers in both cars had the perfect reaction times. The added weight and the lower torque figures on the modern Dodge obviously didn't help it either and it is what it is.

You can catch the action in the video below