Goodguys 2022 Griot’s Garage Muscle Machine of the Year!
Congratulations to Kevin Hart for winning the Goodguys 2022 Griot’s Garage Muscle Machine of the Year title with your 1969 Plymouth Road Runner built by Salvaggio Designs! We’ll see you and your vehicle in Scottsdale, Arizona November 18-20, 2022 at the 25th Speedway Motors Southwest Nationals!
“Build me a street machine that is timeless and innovative,” is a tall order to any builder, but that’s exactly the direction Dave Salvaggio of Salvaggio Designs received from Kevin Hart about building a ’69 Plymouth Road Runner. Yes, we’re talking about the actor/comedian Kevin Hart whose collection of cool muscle machines continues to grow.
It’s a good thing for Dave that he’s worked with Kevin on a couple previous projects so he had a pretty solid vision about what Kevin likes in a customized muscle machine. In fact, the end result netted the duo a finalist spot for Goodguys 2022 Griot’s Garage Muscle Machine of the Year during the 21st Meguiar’s Del Mar Nationals.
Dave worked with Shawn Smith Design on the overall concept and appearance of the car before blowing apart a solid, 383 powered, 4-speed, Plymouth sedan. Once apart, they scanned the entire unibody structure to craft a set of frame rails that were mated with a Detroit Speed front and rear suspension system. Then, the entire floor of the car was cut out so the body could be channeled low over the new chassis.
From there, the team built not one, but two complete floor assemblies. All the wiring, brake lines and fuel lines are sandwiched between the two along with a layer of insulation to keep the heat and noise out of the custom interior. Speaking of the interior, the door panels and three-piece modular dash assembly were all 3D printed then covered by Gabe’s Custom Interiors in leather with a unique blood orange stitching combined with some splatter insets. The Dakota Digital gauge assembly received similar highlights to go along with the Michael Myers Halloween slasher movie motif including a masked road runner icon!
Under the carbon fiber hood is a modern 426 Hemi topped with a Whipple supercharger controlled by a Holley Dominator EFI system. The entire engine was treated to a custom color based on a McLaren volcano orange combined with a blood red and is surrounded by a display of custom sheet metal work coated in satin black. The body received thorough massage work and gapping but remains truly Plymouth bookended by carbon fiber bumpers and a custom billet grille.
The Salvaggio team laid down a flawless BASF black which is highlighted by the 19/20-inch HRE Wheels and massive Diamond Back tread featuring the same blood orange stripes as used in the interior.
Black cars will always be timeless and thanks to the restraint of the design team, Kevin’s ‘Michael Myers’ Road Runner retains the feel of a classic Mopar muscle machine. The Plymouth has everything Kevin asked for and more: innovation, timeless style with serious Hemi power creating a wicked-mean Road Runner. Beep-beep-slash-slash!
Photos by John Jackson
