Dodge’s Rare Budget Friendly Brawler - The Demon 340

In this Rare Cars documentary, we are going over the story of the best performance car bargain ever offered by Chrysler - the Dodge Demon 340.

The Demon 340 was a budget powerhouse that with the 340 underneath the hood actually put down some serious power and with its relatively lightweight - the Demon 340 put the hurt on a LOT of more popular and expensive cars out there.

Chapters:
0:00 Intro
1:03 The Background
2:20 Powerplant
4:45 Performance Figures

*Note, we are not historians. If you see an error in our research then please mention it in the comments!

Sources:

[rarecars]

What do you think? For the price in 71', would you have taken the Demon 340m or bought something else 🤔?

[The_R-n-I_Guy]

I was born in the wrong era. I can't stand modern vehicles with their unnecessary technology. Cars of the 60's to 80's are the best

[roywhitman]

I still have my 71 340 4 speed that I purchased in high school back in 1973. Almost sold it once. That won't happen again!

[The_R-n-I_Guy]

I would definitely have been more inclined to buy a Demon than a Dart Sport. If for no other reason than to piss people off

[davidkeeton]

My brother had the 340 out of a wrecked 71 Demon, back in 76.He put a hemi grind Mopar purple shaft in it before we dropped it in his 64 Barracuda. Surprised a lot of people with it.

[stevepick]

Yep, those demon 340s were no joke. I had a 70 1/2 Z28 and there was a 340 Demon in town that I just could not beat. He had long tube headers and put a Holly carb on it. He was obviously pulling around the same horsepower as I was, which was 360, so yes, they were grossly under estimated on power.

[johnharper]

I turned 16 in 1974. First car 1972 Dodge Demon 340. Paid $1, 200.00 for it with 17k miles on it. Made my money back first weekend at the local street races. Total screaming Demon! Drove it thru high school. Sold it 1976 for $1, 200.00!! Man, I wish I had that car back.

[richardturk]

I owned a 71 Demon 340 and it was a strong runner in stock form.
Around 74 I installed a Direct Connection Racer Brown solid lifter camshaft, Hemi clutches and bands, and a manual shift valve body in the 727 trans.
Next came a 4.56 ring and pinion in the rear end.
Street raced it a lot and did well. I was always changing intakes and had a six pack for a while then a 2 4 bbl cross ram intake.
Went back to the single 4 bbl carb for reliable street use.
Pretty stout 1/4 mile racer too.
I had a 65 Barracuda formula S with a blueprinted 273 with a 4 speed that car was a well known street racer too.
Both cars dusted lots of big block Chevrolets with no problem.

[fubarmodelyard]

Religious groups. Stirring up trouble for 3000 years. The Demon 340 was a helluva great car

[ceed]

Grand Spaulding Dodge in Chicago released some awesome Demons that made the factory cars look like golf carts performance wise.

[randylear]

Ahhh. The time that a Demon was actually affordable and could be bought by the average American. I lived in those times and sure miss them today. I wish all gear heads could experience the 70s. It was a time to be alive. Also the peaking of the first Muscle Car era and the pocket rockets like the Demon and Duster.

[Tommerd]

The Cars album featuring one of these will always be special.

[AtZero]

As far as, , Budget friendly...
If you have not yet featured one ...
Built for one purpose only... Plymouth Roadrunner..
Bench seat, no power steering, pull out rear windows (no window regulator) rubber mat,
Built for Fun ..
Why Mopar Rules...

[RoadRunnergarage]

I built the MPC model kit of the 71 Demon 340 a month ago... What a blast it was to build!!

[dodge]

It doesn't just have a different front grille, it uses the entire front clip (fenders, hood, grille) from a Dodge Dart.

[leonardpoindexter]

I had a Plum Crazy 71 Demon 340. Loved it, wish I still had it.

[somewhatfast]

Just cooked a steak about to sit down to eat and this beautiful video popped up.
Best day ever

[philipstewart]

I remember in High School I had a friend who’s father drove a 70’s Plymouth Satellite w/383ci, bigger 4barrel true dual exhaust from the stock exhaust manifolds all the way to the rear bumper, that’s all the aftermarket add -ons
And would break loose @ 45-50mph, put you back in the seat and deliver impressive performance. 🚗

[DavidJohns-wefe]

Great presentation...but 1 question...why would you compare a demon to the camaro? Challenger / cuda would of been camaro' s competition? The demon would of been a " challenger " to the nova ss, ford maverick grabber, etc.? Again great presentation...just was confused on the unlikely comparison?

[cmbaileytstc]

BeamNG’s mission is driving physics, period. It’s already a lot of fun to rally/race in and will only get better. People need to get passed the “crashing sim” myth. Although that damage model is why it’s the only game that can truly simulate PIT maneuvers, demo derby, and “Rubbing is racing”.