When Dodge announced the plans for the 2023 model year Challenger and Charger at the Speed Week muscle debut event at the M1 Concourse, the brand showcased the exterior colors by applying them all to a single car. Each color was applied to the car in a side-to-side stripe, with these stripes running from front to back, allowing onlookers to see every color on the car when being viewed from either side.

For older Mopar_® muscle car fans, this unusual paint scheme was a familiar one, having been used back in 1970 to showcase the exterior color options for the Plymouth Barracuda. Those fans of the Dodge brand who are not familiar with the 1970 Plymouth Rapid Transit System thought that it was something that the company came up with for the 2023 model year. Many people who saw the car in person at M1 or who saw it online commented that it would be cool to see the actual design offered – with all 14 2023 Hi-Impact colors on one car.

Dodge saw those comments about offering every color on one car, but actually painting cars for customers to look like this would be expensive and time consuming. Fortunately, with advancements in vinyl technology, Dodge is able to offer the “paint chip car” look for the modern Dodge Challenger in limited numbers.

This multi-color look is not a factory option, but in teaming up with CG Detroit^®, vinyl wrap packages designed to recreate the appearance of the 2023 color chart car are now available for sale. These kits cost $3,700, not including the required professional installation, which is right in the range of an average full-vehicle wrap. You can order the 2023 Hi-Impact Colors wrap right here on DodgeGarage for any modern model year Challenger, dating back to 2008 and including widebody models.

Due to the unique nature of this offering, coupled with the fact that a great many people do not understand where the design originated, we wanted to give Dodge fans a look at the original “Paint Chip” car back in 1970.

The Paint Chip ‘Cuda

Back in 1970, the original muscle car war was being waged on the streets and the tracks, with high-performance vehicles from Dodge, Plymouth, Chevrolet, Buick, Pontiac and Ford. To help showcase the performance capabilities of the Plymouth brand, the Rapid Transit System campaign was introduced, similar to the Dodge Scat Pack program.

As part of the Rapid Transit System campaign, Plymouth issued a brochure that discussed the vehicles, the engines and the other options for the 1970 model year. This 16-page booklet started by talking about the inspiration behind the Rapid Transit System program with a big spread of drag racing imagery followed by information on each of the key Plymouth performance models – ‘Cuda, Road Runner, Duster 340, GTX and Sport Fury GT.

When you got to the page 12 of the 1970 Rapid Transit Brochure, you came to information on options and interiors for the Plymouth lineup. This included things like the exterior “Dust Trails” on the Road Runner, the Air Grabber hood, the Shaker hood, a performance tachometer and a variety of performance-minded wheel choices. At the bottom of page 12 was a 1970 ‘Cuda that had been modified to show how the street car could be transformed into a racecar, with items such as huge rear tires, skinny front tires, wheelie bars and individual header pipes that exited under the front door.

This uniquely modified 1970 Plymouth ‘Cuda was completed with a unique paint scheme that had every available color applied as a side-to-side stripe. Prior to the creation of this 1970 Plymouth marketing, exterior colors could only be viewed on a page of square samples called paint chips, so when they applied all of those colors to the car, people called it the Paint Chip ‘Cuda.

The Paint Chip ‘Cuda had 25 stripes, each of which was numbered, and on page 13 of the brochure, all of those colors were listed in a chart:

1 – Citron Gold Metallic
2 – Citron Mist Metallic
3 – Yellow Gold
4 – Sunfire Yellow
5 – Lemon Twist
6 – Black Velvet
7 – Tor-Red
8 – Burnt Tan Metallic
9 – Sahara Tan Metallic
10 – Scorch Red
11 – Frosted Teal Metallic
12 – Sandpebble Beige
13 – Deep Burnt Orange
14 – Burnt Orange Metallic
15 – Vitamin C
16 – Lime Light
17 – Ivy Green Metallic
18 – Lime Green Metallic
19 – Rallye Red
20 – In Violet Metallic
21 – Jamaica Blue Metallic
22 – Blue Fire Metallic
23 – Ice Blue Metallic
24 – Silver Metallic
25 – Alpine White

That classic marketing image from the 1970 Plymouth Rapid Transit System brochure created the Paint Chip ‘Cuda and in the modern era, Dodge has applied a similar look as an aftermarket option in vinyl wrap form. Not everyone understands or appreciates the unique look, but for those modern Challenger owners who want to make a splash at car shows with a vintage twist – the 2023 Hi-Impact Colors wrap will certainly draw attention everywhere you go.