The crazed folks at The Truth About Cars posted in 2017 about a 1984 Dodge 600 Landau Coupe as part of their Junkyard Find series.
There’s a strong feeling of fulfillment behind the wheel of this striking coupe.
The Dodge 600 was an extended (E-platform) version of the original K-platform cars, with three more inches of wheelbase added to the sedans (coupes and wagons kept the same wheelbase as the first K cars). It debuted in the 1983 model year, two years after the original K cars reached the market. Other E-platform cars were the Chrysler New Yorker, Chrysler E-Class, and (later) the Plymouth Caravelle.
There were three engines available for the Dodge 600. The base engine was Chrysler’s K 99 bhp 2.2 liter/135 ci inline four with fuel injection. The high-performance option was the Turbo I 146 bhp version of the same engine with a Garrett T3 turbocharger and fuel injection. The other option was Mitsubishi’s Astron series 4G54 101 bhp 2.6 liter/153 ci inline four with a two-barrel carburetor.
Fuel economy for the Turbo I and three-speed automatic transmission combination (the five-speed manual was no longer available) was 19 city/24 highway by the day’s standards (it would be 17/22 today). With a 14-gallon gas tank, the new owner of a club coupe could expect a range of between 245 and 270 miles with a 10% fuel reserve.
Standard exterior and mechanical equipment on the $9,060 Club Coupe (about $27,900 in today’s dollars) included halogen headlamps, a Landau padded vinyl roof, power front disc/rear drum brakes, power rack-and-pinion steering, and P185/70R14 steel-belted radial white sidewall tires (a size still readily available) on 14-inch wheels with Luxury wheel covers. Inside, cloth high-back front bucket seats with integral headrests, a full-length console, a Luxury color-keyed two-spoke steering wheel, and an electronically-tuned AM radio were standard. Features listed in the brochure that wouldn’t be considered worth mentioning now included a tethered fuel filler cap and an inside hood release.
Exterior and mechanical options included tinted glass ($115), a sport/handling suspension ($79), and cast aluminum wheels. Inside, air conditioning ($757), automatic speed control ($179), a leather-wrapped steering wheel ($50), and a tilt steering wheel ($110) were available. Three optional radios were available.
The View From 2025
The original K cars and their many variants were once so common on the roads, but have essentially vanished. I haven’t seen a 600 of any type in years, even though Dodge produced over 300,000 of them between 1983 and 1988. You’ll sometimes see the original Dodge Aries/Plymouth Reliant cars at AACA shows along with the top of the line Chrysler LeBaron convertibles. You do occasionally see Dodge 600s for sale in the Hemming’s Motor News classifieds, on eBay Motors, and on Bring a Trailer, but there are no coupes out there as I update this blog post in October 2025.
Make mine Garnet Red Pearl Coat, please.
Other K cars I have written about include the 1981 Plymouth Reliant coupe, the 1982 Chrysler LeBaron convertible, the 1986 Chrysler Town & Country convertible, and the 1987 Dodge Aries LE sedan.
Last updated October 2025.
Eighties Cars 