Went to the cruise in last Was talking to a guy that said he had ordered a 1968 GTX from the dealer, 440 4 speed and it had a pistol grip shifter. I thought the pistol grip was only in 1970 and newer. When was it an option?

not in 68....if I had a dollar for every person who had a hemi in the 60's/70's I could buy a crate motor...same BS here....also...one guy tells me his 71 AAR cuda...340/6 pack ran 130mph in the qtr...stock...could tell stories for hours

Same here. I like the stories that start out with "I had one just like that, but" followed by it was a different color, motor, interior, and even brand.

I always like the ones that start out with "I had one of those with a 383/440 Hemi in it".

Listen boy, I had a 65 Cuda with a 413 Hemi, that's right I said HEMI, and a 5-speed muncie with a hurst pistol grip shifter. Came fact'ry with a CD player and deelay wipers.

A guy at a show once told me he had a 70 GTX exactly like mine. I asked what engine, colors, interior, airgrabber, etc. and he said well, if I had one it would be just like your's.
Okeedoke!

I had my 4 speed T/A at a cruise in one night and a guy came up to me and said he had one a long time ago but it was hugger orange with the his/hers automatic.

Last night on grave yard cars they even had that question on the show. So 1970 was the first year for the pistol grip

at least those old timers keep their stories all "mopar" by telling you their 68 mopar had options on it that weren't available until 70.

just yesterday, I had to listen to a guy tell me about how his father-in-law's 2012 Hemi ram, you could turn off the Eco-boost option, and it would get sideways at 55mph on the highway. bone stock 5.7L 2wd HemiRam.

First, I thought Eco Boost was a turbocharging system....by ford...and that you can't turn it "off"

needless to say, I got schooled yesterday on stuff I didn't know.

I need to prove to him that the pistol grip was 1970 and newer, to WIN the bet. What can I print off to show it?

It really won't matter what you show him Mike. These "experts" know more than we do. Remember, you can't fix stupid.

Yup..
These type guys are @ all the car shows..
Just go with the flow..

The best stories I have heard are...
A guy bought a his & hers AARs in 1970, 1 was Pink and 1 was Yellow. Both had 440 Hemis installed, and were tuned by his close friend/neighbor Richard Petty..

Just my $0.02...

Stopped to fill up the Cuda when a rotted out 80s S-10 rolls up. The dude with no shoes gets out and makes a mad dash for me and asked if it had a 400 in it. I told him it was a 340. He quickly responded by telling me that the good Cudas all had 400s in them. I shrugged my shoulders and told him I couldn't afford a '69 Cuda with a factory 400, so I had to just settle for a 340 car.

Also, at a local small town car show, I had a gentleman kind enough to aggressively point out that the water pump was not concourse correct. Mind you, he looked past the MSD box, TTI headers, aluminum radiator, Eddy heads and intake, and Holley carb...but the water pump really got his goat. He actually seemed angry about it. I just told him I couldn't find a correct one and excused myself.

I'm getting to old too argue about a hobby that is supposed to be fun.

the FSM for 1968 will NOT have the Hurst Pistol grip in it. Allpar.com will have 1970 Mopar option lists. I'm positive I've seen 1970 literature that states it is a new option. Barry (Alaska TA) might have it. The pistol grip is a big deal for MOPAR guys. It is one of the coolest options ever to come on a muscle car and exclusively Chrysler. Have him sign up on Moparts and pose the question. Not a single person will agree with him and 2000 guys will tell him he's crazy.

Pulled into a gas station with my Dart. On the other side of the pump was some teenage kid with a mid to late 80s suburban. He says to me that my car sounds sweet. I said thanks, and he says, I think mine beats it. He then proceeds to start his truck. I had to keep from laughing. It was a stock probably 350, factory single exhaust, possibly with headers. Mines 2.5 dual exhaust with Flowtech Raptor mufflers.

I had a guy in an S-10 with a 4.3 expelling gasses into a 4" flex Y-pipe and no muffler tell me the same thing at a car show after he parked beside of me. I told him it sounded good, as I'm sure he didn't have the funds for a nice car with sweet exhaust. It got awkward when he asked if he could sit in my car with it running, as he has back problems and said the lopey idle would feel good on his back. I could not make this stuff up. I need to drive the car more often, take notes, write a book, and just retire off of the stories... Lol.

My neighbor said he had a 68 Coronet with the 383 six pack,I said you should have held onto that rare car.He agreed

Had a guy at the track tell me that he had an "original factory" '67 Hemi Barracuda 4 speed. Even his kid was rolling his eyes.