The Dodge muscle car created as a budget-priced counterpart to the Plymouth Road Runner was the Super Bee.
Chrysler introduced the Super Bee for the 1968 model year after the Plymouth Road Runner became a major success. Dodge wanted its own low-priced, high-performance model, so the Super Bee was based on the Dodge Coronet two-door and given a distinctive identity built around Dodge’s “Bee” imagery.
The Super Bee used a straightforward muscle-car formula: strong V8 performance, heavy-duty suspension and relatively limited luxury equipment. Its standard 383-cubic-inch V8 produced 335 horsepower, while buyers could order larger engines, including the 426 Hemi. A four-speed manual transmission and high-performance tires were also available.
Although closely related in mission to the Road Runner, the Super Bee was not identical. It was slightly heavier, used a longer wheelbase in its early years and included Dodge-specific styling, instrumentation and trim. The name itself refers to Chrysler’s B-body platform, shared by several mid-size performance cars.