1965 Plymouth Fury 3 Hardtop (LHD)

Description

Plymouth's full-size Sport Fury became a separate model for the 1959 model season and the most expensive offering from Plymouth for the duration of the next decade. Introduced on September 29, 1965 the Fury line was facelifted from the previous year, with newly restyled grilles, stacked headlamps and revised side moldings, and Plymouth offered the model in both convertible and hardtop guises. The base level Fury I was supplemented by the more upmarket Fury II and III nameplates, each with additional interior appointments and exterior trim. Setting the Sport Fury apart, the long list of standard equipment included sporty bucket seats, centre console, a Deluxe Fury steering wheel while the exterior was set apart from lesser models thanks to special finned wheel trims, fender skirts and decorative chrome bars on the doors. A vinyl roof was optional on the hardtop. The Sport Fury was equipped with one of Mopar's finest engines, the 318ci V8. Developing a healthy 230 horsepower at 4400 rpm, all but a handful would be combined with the optional Torqueflite automatic transmission. Optional motors in 1966 were the Commando 383ci and 440ci V8s although the legendary 426 'Hemi' was reserved for the smaller Belvedere. Plymouth had a good year on the track, with Richard Petty winning the Daytona 500 at the average speed of 160.627 mph and kept the hopes of Mopar fans alive by winning the NASCAR Championship the following year. With a list price of just over $3,000, the Sport Fury proved popular and customers bought no less than 32,523 hardtops in 1966 (along with a further 3,418 convertibles). Relatively few of these have been imported to Australia, but owners enjoy great support thanks to the thriving Chrysler Car Clubs around the country and parts are relatively cheap and in good supply.