Lucas Bell 
It is SEMA time again, which means that we’re getting treated to some seriously cool muscle cars and trucks. One vehicle that already seems to be stealing the show is the Mopar Lowliner. This slick looking custom Mopar started life as a 1968 Dodge D200 Sweptline pickup truck, which was purchased by the Mopar team in Ohio for only $6,800. Despite its long life in the midwest, this rust free example made a great launching point for this seriously cool hot rod.
Mopar started the process by stripping the truck down and media blasting the frame before boxing the C-channel section for added strength. At this point the front axle was moved three inches forward, adding the same amount of length to the D200’s wheelbase. The cutting didn’t stop there, as in order to fit the massive 11-inch wide “smoothie” style wheels out back wrapped in 325-mm tires, five inches of width was added to the wheel wells. Up front, the 22-inch diameter wheels measure a slightly smaller 9.5 inches wide. The bed of the truck was even chopped a bit to allow the Mopar Lowliner to make full use of its air-sprung control-arm front and Dana 60 live-axle rear suspension setup.
A modern Ram 1500 cargo bed floor was utilized, and it was raised by six inches to accommodate the air suspension and fuel cell components. The air suspension system has three adjustable settings, one for both hard parking and driving, with another one designated for loading the show-truck onto trailers.
Under the custom clamshell style hood is where the Mopar Lowliner really makes a name for itself. Mopar fitted this old Dodge truck with a 5.9-liter Cummins turbo diesel I-6 crate engine out of a Dodge Ram Heavy Duty from around 2006, which finds itself mated to a six-speed manual transmission. In order to get the truck’s stance as low as possible, Mopar cut four inches out of the engine’s oil pan so that the powertrain was as low in the chassis as the transmission would allow. In this application, the Cummins produces an estimated 325 horsepower and 610 pound-feet of torque. Thats plenty of low-end diesel power for this low-riding truck.
The Mopar team carefully crafted the exterior of this truck, which is painted in a beautiful Candied Delmonico Red with Dairy Cream accents. While the cream might be hit or miss depending on the person, it kinda just works on the Mopar Lowliner. Other visual modifications include shaved door handles and fuel filler cap, as well as a badge delete on the flanks. The tail lights are fully custom with integrated reverse lights, which were not found on the 1968 D200. The ‘Mopar Omega M’ logos on the fenders are subtle, while the custom 7-inch LED headlights are anything but.
Inside the truck is adorned with beautiful Blazing Saddle Tan colored leather, with a matching Mopar embroidered headliner. A distinctive seven gauge cluster sitting just ahead of the original 1968 D200 steering wheel, next to which sits a beautiful glass Cummins-branded shift knob rests.
While most SEMA trucks are all about off-roading and lift kits, the Mopar Lowliner is a great example of what a truck can be like when it’s scraping pavement instead of rocks.
