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2026 Subaru Crosstrek ReviewCool Car Find: 1969 Plymouth GTX
This Plymouth GTX offers loads of V8 power coupled with upscale refinements unique among classic muscle cars.The Gentleman’s Muscle Car
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As cool as muscle cars are, the adjective “sophisticated” is typically reserved for cars like the Rolls-Royce Ghost or the Mercedes-Benz 300 SL. But one car, the Plymouth GTX, was positioned as the sophisticate’s choice amongst the wide array of Detroit muscle available in the late 1960s. One assumes the “gentleman’s muscle car” was originally purchased by that guy in your ’68 college freshmen class who had bushy sideburns but short hair, smoke not cigarettes but a pipe, and who’s record collection contained Rachmaninov and Coltrane alongside Hendrix.
Our Cool Car Find today is a numbers-matching 1969 Plymouth GTX hardtop in red and black with a pewter interior. The burly 440 under the hood is complimented by the immaculate condition of the car, surely as refined a muscle car as you will find.
Plymouth GTX Background
The Plymouth GTX debuted in 1967 as the brand’s first attempt at a mud-size muscle car. Their Barracuda had won converts within the pony car segment, but Plymouth wanted something bigger to compete with the likes of the Pontiac GTO.
The GTX was based on the Belvedere’s B-body platform and offered as either a hardtop or convertible. It came with one of two engines, the default being a 440 cu.-in. “Super Commando” V8 making 375 horsepower and 480 lb.-ft. of torque. The upgraded engine was, naturally, a 426 Hemi V8 with 426 horsepower and 490 lb.-ft. Transmission options were either a three-speed TorqueFlite automatic or a four-speed manual.
Performance features for the GTX in 1967 included dual chrome exhaust, a front anti-sway bar, heavy-duty brakes, and a heavy-duty front torsion bar. The 1967 GTX was nearly indistinguishable from the regular Belvedere, aside from its Belvedere GTX badging. The front end’s boxy styling lasted only long enough to see a second year of production.
The 1968 to 1970 Plymouth GTX was given a visual update, smoothing out the body lines to give the car a look more closely in line with the “Coke bottle” styling common among muscle cars at the time. The GTX, aka “the gentlemen’s muscle car,” was sold alongside the simplified, and therefore less expensive, Plymouth Roadrunner as a higher end alternative. The engine options remained the same, the 440 being the more common choice.
Competing against more economically priced muscle cars, the GTX struggled to catch on and sales numbers steadily waned from their peak of around 19,000 in 1968 to just 7,148 by the 1970 model year. The only major changes for the car in those years was the addition of a “Six Pack” version of the 440 engine that came with a set of three two-barrel carbs in 1970, and the cancellation of the convertible option that same year.
The 1971 Plymouth GTX received a major overhaul along with the rest of Chrysler’s B-body cars that year. A new grille design was nearly identical to that of the Roadrunner, further reducing the distinctions between them aside from price. Sales for the GTX tanked to a new low of a mere 2,703 cars, making the ’71 car especially collectable today. Needless to say, Plymouth discontinued the GTX after 1971, sparing it the ignominy of having its horsepower nerfed by forthcoming emissions and fuel economy standards.
This Cool Car
Our Cool Car Find is a quintessential example of a GTX from that visual sweet spot of those ’68 through ’70 model years. This 1969 GTX comes in red with a black hardtop and black accenting and a distinguished-looking pewter interior that marks it as indeed, the gentleman’s choice of muscle car.
Under the hood is a numbers-matching 440 cu.-in V8 paired to a four-speed manual transmission (also original) and a 354 Dana rear end. As a mid-size car, the GTX defies the muscle car axiom of a long hood and short rear deck with the trunk of the car being quite long but ensures the car has a balanced, proportional look. The interior of the car is done in pewter with wood grain trim on the dash, steering wheel, and door cards. The car was even optioned with a tachometer. Overall, this GTX is in excellent condition.
For the price of $88,998, this 1969 Plymouth GTX offers a refined take on the classic muscle car experience.
