Mopar’s current playbook for selling pickup trucks isn’t exactly subtle. Glance at the modern Ram lineup, dominated by supercharged monsters, and it becomes clear that doubling down on unapologetic machismo pays the bills. But before you blame contemporary marketing executives for inventing the $100,000 “pavement princess”, history demands a quick reality check. Mopar was pulling this exact stunt over half a century ago.
Back in the late 1960s, the second-generation Dodge D100 was about as glamorous as a sledgehammer. Riding on a 115-inch short bed or a 128-inch long bed wheelbase with heavy-duty leaf springs at all four corners, this solid-axle beast was an unpretentious road tractor built for hauling gravel, not clout. Base models putted along with a bulletproof 225-cubic-inch Slant-Six or an optional 318 or 383 V8 tied to a three-speed automatic. Nobody bought a D100 because it looked sleek outside a diner; they bought it because their job site demanded it.
Then something hilarious happened: suburbanites started buying work trucks strictly as daily lifestyle vehicles. Rather than questioning their customers’ sanity, Dodge leaned hard into the trend. Applying the same radical marketing logic that slapped provocative names like “Demon”, “Swinger”, and “Super Bee” onto muscle cars, Dodge decided to give its humble workhorse a theatrical makeover.
Enter the 1970 Dodge D100 “Dude”. At a time when the word “dude” still conjured images of draft-dodging, leather-jacketed rabble-rousers, Dodge boldly slapped the badge onto a few thousand pickups. They painted them in wild High-Impact muscle car shades like Sub-Lime Green, Plum Crazy Purple, and Panther Pink, complete with body C-stripes and optional textured vinyl roofs. To top off the absurdity, actor Don Knotts was hired to pitch the package in full cowboy regalia.
Underneath the loud graphics, however, the Dude packed zero mechanical upgrades. It was entirely cosmetic posturing. Yet, with only about 1,500 to 2,000 units produced between 1970 and 1971, this rare Mopar curiosity remains wildly charming.
Unlike a modern 2026 Ram 1500 Tungsten, the original Dude never lied about its roots. It was still a blue-collar workhorse wearing a Halloween costume. Naturally, if Stellantis ever revived the badge today, they’d overprice it instantly.