A plain-looking police Polara held a speed record for 25 years: 149.6 mph, the fastest four-door sedan on Chrysler's test track, until a 1994 Caprice finally beat it.
Lead trim: Polara 383 V8
Dodge PolaraPOLARA-1969 · 1969–1973
- 0spots by members
- Unclaimednobody has spotted one yet
- 0sets it belongs to
Nobody in Burbles has spotted a Dodge Polara yet. See one on the street, point the app at it, and the first card is yours — with your @handle permanently credited on this page.
FactA plain-looking police Polara held a speed record for 25 years: 149.6 mph, the fastest four-door sedan on Chrysler's test track, until a 1994 Caprice finally beat it.
The new 1969 Polara wore a broad-shouldered streamlined "fuselage design" that continued for five model years, with front seat head restraints, a reintroduced Polara 500 (convertible or hardtop coupé) between the standard Polara and the top-of-the-line Monaco, and a unique "Super-Lite" option placing a single quartz auxiliary "turnpike beam" headlamp in the driver-side grille (discontinued after 1970 for lack of interest and legal challenges). The 1969 CHP Polara held the record on Chrysler's Chelsea test track until 1994 for the highest top speed of a factory-built four-door sedan, 149.6 mph (241 km/h), until a 1994 Chevrolet Caprice with the LT1 broke it. In 1970 the Polara got a wrap-around bumper, the Polara Custom replaced the Polara 500 and a stripped-down Polara Special was offered; 1970 was the last year for a convertible (842 produced) and Dodge never again offered a full-size convertible. The Polara Special was dropped for 1971 for the new Polara Brougham (hardtop coupé or four-door hardtop, discontinued 1972), and the 360 cu in V8 arrived in 1971; the 1972 facelift and 1973 front end were followed by discontinuation after 1973, eclipsed by the Monaco, which replaced it for 1974. Engines: 225 cu in (3.7 L) slant-6 standard with 318, 360, 383, 400 and 440 cu in (7.2 L) V8s; wheelbase 122.0 in.
Collectors Spotted in the Dodge Polara Lineage
No member has published a public street spot of the Dodge Polara yet — the First · Worldwide stamp is wide open.
Trims & Figures
6 published trims in the catalogue. A blank is a figure not recorded, not zero.
| Trim | Years | Engine | Power | Torque | 0–60 | Drive | Gearbox | MSRP |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polara 225 slant-6 I6 | 1969–1971 | 3.7 L Inline-6 | — | — | — | RWD | — | — |
| Polara 318 V8 | 1969–1973 | 5.2 L V8 | — | — | — | RWD | — | — |
| Polara 360 V8 (from 1971) | 1971–1973 | 5.9 L V8 | — | — | — | RWD | — | — |
| Polara 383 V8 | 1969–1971 | 6.3 L V8 | 245 hp | — | — | RWD | — | — |
| Polara 400 V8 | 1969–1973 | 6.6 L V8 | — | — | — | RWD | — | — |
| Polara 440 V8 | 1969–1973 | 7.2 L V8 | — | — | — | RWD | — | — |
Owning one
We don’t estimate running costs for a car like this. What it costs depends on its condition, its specialist and how it is driven, and an average would mislead.
Owners’ builds
Nobody has claimed one yet.
Photographs
A plain-looking police Polara held a speed record for 25 years: 149.6 mph, the fastest four-door sedan on Chrysler's test track, until a 1994 Caprice finally beat it.
The Argentine Dodge Polara borrowed its name from Dodge's big American sedans, but underneath it was really a reskinned 1967-69 Dodge Dart.
Argentina's hottest engine ever lived in this car: the Dodge GTX's 318 cubic-inch V8 is considered the most powerful engine Argentina ever produced.
Dodge's full-size comeback came with a catch: 383-powered Polaras of this era averaged just 13.8 mpg, a number owners complained about even in an era of cheap gas.
The downsized '62 Polara exists because Chrysler's president overheard Chevy's chief and misread it as a sign GM's big cars were shrinking — so Dodge frantically shrank its whole lineup to match a Chevy downsizing that was never actually happening.
This Polara exists because of a rumor gone wrong: Chrysler's president overheard and misunderstood a GM executive, and panic-shrunk the whole lineup to match a downsizing Chevy never actually did.
Virgil Exner's reversed-fin 1961 redesign bombed so badly that full-size Dodge sales crashed to their lowest since the company's 1914 founding — just 14,032 built.
Rivals
Same body, same money, other badges — tap any card to flip.
It briefly served as senior sibling to Marquette, a GM companion brand cancelled after just one year.
Nissan hired former BMW engineers to help develop the 510's suspension, which is why period reviewers frequently compared its handling to the BMW 1600/2002.
A Trabant 601 won its class at the 1970 Monte Carlo Rally, with a second 601 right behind it in second.
The 600 was a stopgap: the P50's body over the 601's mechanicals, and for a while its estate was built alongside the new 601 saloon.
The G80 Sport brought a 370 PS twin-turbo 3.3 V6, a mesh grille and copper-tinted chrome with copper stitching to match.
The Vigor was sold only with a five-cylinder engine, an unusual configuration Honda used to fit a longer engine transversely under a short hood.
The GS/E coupe earned the nickname "German Charger" for its long hood, short deck stance borrowed from Detroit muscle cars.
This DeVille/Fleetwood was the first production car anywhere to mount its V8 sideways, Cadillac's front-drive gamble on the new C-body.