1968 was a great year for muscle cars.
The GTO had a brand-new look, so did the Dodge Charger–and Plymouth introduced the legendary Road Runner.
Every muscle car had (in my opinion) that perfect paint code so here are my thoughts on the perfect shades of paint for the Class of ’68.
Jerry Sutherland
I’ll start with the 1968 Pontiac GTO.
These cars went neon a year later, but in ’68 the only color that worked on a GTO (again—my opinion) was black. These cars came with compound curves all over the place and black paint made them bulge more—and look tougher.
The Olds 442 was another solid Class of ’68 muscle car.
This Olds had a vertical cowl stripe to emphasize the 442 badge on the fender and it stood out better with a darker paint scheme like Nocturne Blue Metallic. I thought the position of the stripe defined the ’68 Olds 442, so a white stripe over blue paint was perfect marketing.
The ’68 Chevelle SS 396 was another legend from a year full of legends.
You could order from a reasonably large list of paint codes in 1968, but in my opinion Fathom Blue defined the ’68 Chevelle SS 396. It was a dark enough shade of blue to showcase the lines of the Chevelle, plus it was a color you associate with Chevys in general.
History tells us the 1968 Buick GS became a force in the muscle car wars.
The Buicks were upscale versions of cars like the SS 396, but that doesn’t mean they were soft. The GS 400 was an unsung hero on the street—as many contenders found out. In my opinion, the best paint code for a ’68 Buick GS 400 is Scarlet Red because these cars were so subtle you had to add some flash.
The 1968 Plymouth Runner may have been a muscle car rookie that year, but it was an instant success.
There were several paint options for a Road Runner in ’68, but Forest Green will always be the number one choice for me. That’s the color of the first ‘68 Road Runner I ever saw—a friend of my older brother drove one. Sometimes you don’t need anything more than that memory.
The Dodge Super Bee debuted in early 1968 as another version of the Road Runner for Dodge dealers.
There’s only color for the ’68 Super Bee—white. They also went neon later like the GTO did, but white paint makes the Super Bee profile and the trunk and quarter stripe soar like an eagle.
The 2G Dodge Charger also debuted in 1968.
You might think I’d prefer black like the Charger in the movie ‘Bullitt’, but the Dodge Charger profile looks really cool in basic white. And yes, the rear stripe soars on a white ’68 Charger too.
Ford also had some cool muscle cars in 1968.
The fastback ’68 Torino GT was a force at NASCAR because their profiles were more slippery than the Plymouths and Dodges. That roofline gave the Torino GT an edge and Candyapple Red was the final touch. It sent the Torino to another level of cool—in my opinion.
The last entry in the muscle car wars of 1968 is the Mercury Cyclone GT.
You might think I’d go straight to red again because the Cyclone is a first cousin of the Torino, and you’d be correct. This time the code is Calypso Coral, and it fit the Cyclone GT fastback like a tailored suit.
Did these paint jobs make these classic muscle cars faster? No. Did they make them cooler? I sure think so…you may not.
Jerry Sutherland
By: Jerry Sutherland
Jerry Sutherland is a veteran automotive writer with a primary focus on the collector car hobby. His work has been published in many outlets and publications, including the National Post, Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal, Ottawa Citizen, Montreal Gazette, Saskatoon StarPhoenix, Regina Leader-Post, Vancouver Sun and The Truth About Cars. He is also a regular contributor to Auto Roundup Publications.
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