Dodge experimented with some performance pickup trucks in the 1970s and the most notable may be the 1978-79 Lil’ Red Express. They were built without catalytic converters (at first) using police interceptor V8 engines, making them the fastest things going. They lost some of that edge in 1979, so production only lasted two years. The seller has a ’79 edition and enough extra parts to maybe make one good truck or start on two. Located in Orlando, Florida, this ambitious project is available here on Facebook Marketplace for the reduced price of $4,000. Thanks to Chuck Foster for the field-find tip!

The 1978 Lil’ Red Express was both a performance and a visual statement. Dodge engineers discovered a loophole in emission mandates such that the truck could be built with a mostly unrestricted 360 cubic inch V8 borrowed from their police vehicle production. It had an output of 225 hp SAE net with a dual exhaust that exited in the form of two chrome stacks. They all came with automatic transmissions and were the fastest U.S.-built vehicles tested that year by Car and Driver. Bigger wheels and tires were included along with faux woodgrain siding on the truck’s bed and tailgate.

Dodge assembled 2,188 copies in 1978, so they decided to go for two in a row in 1979. Unfortunately, the Feds closed the previous emissions flaws, and the engines were less muscular with the addition of catalytic converters and unleaded fuel. The front clip was modified to accept square headlights where round ones once were, so that’s the easiest way to tell a ’79 from a ’78. Factory output rose to 5,188 units, but that wasn’t enough to prompt Dodge to go for three in a row, so the Lil’ Red Express was retired.

The listing party for this project is not the seller, but an employee helping with the sale. From the ad’s description and photos, there may be one complete truck (not necessarily all in one piece) flanked by a spare cab, bed, fenders, and a frame. Also at least one engine, the used one in the truck, and a second Mopar crate motor and transmission which we assume matches the other. A plethora of parts also seem to be a part of the equation. If you like putting puzzles together, this project might result in a cool rare truck one day. Maybe.