This page is a chronicle of the evolution of my 1983 Dodge Rampage.
I had wanted a Rampage for 20 years, when in December of 2002 I finally found one for sale on E-Bay and bought it. It was located in Billings Montana, and I live in WV. I flew to Billings on 7 Jan. 2003 and the next day started the drive back to WV with a detour through Kansas to visit my family. The trip ended up being over 2700 miles and the Rampage performed flawlessly the whole way, which was pretty outstanding for a 20 year old vehicle with 143,000 miles on it.
I have many improvements planned for the Rampage, both cosmetic and performance oriented. I will try to document them here as they occur. I have two donor vehicles currently being utilized for parts, a 1982 Rampage and a 1985 Shelby Charger GLH. A 1987 Shelby Charger GLHS #168 was also purchased for use as a donor, but due to outcry by purists I didn't use it and sold it to somone who wanted to restore it to it's original glory.
This is the Rampage and I in Kansas. This was during the initial trip to WV from Montana. The Rampage used only one quart of oil in the entire trip, and averaged 35.7 mpg; this was running 75mph on the cruise control.
This is the Rampage as it looked just prior to it's trip to the body shop in Febuary 2004.
This is the reason the Rampage went to the body shop! I was planning on completing the mechanical modifications (1st round anyway) before doing any body work. However, there was this unfortunate left hand turn incident . I drove it this way for several months and just couldn't stand it any longer; I took it to the shop to have the rear quarter replaced and it ended up as it appears below. I already had the front end parts, just had to make a quick trip to Kansas to pick them up.
The only modification to the Rampage prior to the trip to the body shop was the addition of seats from a 1988 Omni. All I had to do was install the Rampage seat tracks and they bolted right in. A significant improvement over the originals. Around this same time I removed the Sparkomatic stereo and installed a Pioneer CD head unit, 4 1/2" Infinity 2-ways in the doors driven by a 60 watt amp, and 6X9" Infinity 3-ways in enclosures on rear package shelf driven by a 120 watt amp. Not a major system by today's standards, but since I prefer classic rock music it's more than adequate for my pleasure! Future plans include custom built-in enclosures for the rear speakers.
Here's some quick pictures after the body shop trip, new tires, window tinting, and tonneau cover install.
This is your basic black Rampage, front fascia and hood courtesy of my 85 Shelby Charger donor car. All window trim, rocker panel trim, and the hood grill have been done in matte black (for that stealth look). Future plans may include some fog/driving lights and a couple of tasteful burgundy racing strips.
As you can see, the door handles kind of leap out at you, I may matte black them in the future. Side window tint is WV legal 35% transmission. The rims are 15X6 Dodge "Pizza" wheels that were sadly corroded, I sandblasted them and painted, then baked in the oven to get a good hard cure. Unfortunately I damaged the paint on a couple of them when mounting the tires. The tires are Dunlop GT Qualifier 205/50TR15's. These wheels and tires are temporary as I will be changing to 5 lug wheels when I start my mechanical upgrades. Coming very soon is an 1 3/8" wide body side moulding to help protect against door dings. Future plans include getting ground effects installed on the sides.
I'm not sure what I'm going to do about the rear end, but the stock bumper is an eyesore! The back window tint is WV not legal 5% transmission, but I liked the way it looked! The tonneau cover is by Protect-O-Top. Future plans are to sand/gelcoat the tonneau cover to get it smooth and paint to match truck, install a fiberglass wing with 3rd brake light; and do something about the ugly bumper!
When I get a decent sunny day I'll handwash the Rampage and get some better pictures, until then I apoligize for the quality of the latest additions.
