Walter P. Chrysler Museum Features Power, Speed and Innovation With Dodge Legends: The Trucks, Oct. 27, 2004 - Jan. 23, 2005

AUBURN HILLS, Mich., Oct. 12 -- A collection of the fastest, strongest, most powerful and capable trucks to ever wear the Dodge badge will be showcased in Dodge Legends: The Trucks, an exhibition of 18 legendary vehicles, Wednesday, Oct. 27, 2004 - Sunday, Jan. 2, 20053, 2005 at the Walter P. Chrysler Museum in Auburn Hills, Mich.

Dodge Legends: The Trucks features an evolution of models that established Dodge's leadership in the truck market. Among the vehicles assembled for the exhibition are:

* 1920 Dodge "Screenside" Commercial Car - The oldest truck in the exhibition features the same Dodge-built body as the first "commercial car" introduced three years earlier.

* 1937 Dodge Model MC 1/2 Ton Panel Delivery - Prized today by collectors, this model's distinctive "humpback" -- originally introduced by Dodge in 1933 -- cleverly provided a more spacious load-carrying compartment in the truck's rear.

* 1949 Dodge 1/2 Ton Pickup - Representing the first new truck design for Dodge in a decade, this "pilot house" truck featured increased glass and a taller cab -- an industry first.

* 1973 Dodge D100 Club Cab Pickup - Patterned after "club coupe" cars of the 1940s, Dodge introduced this truck -- with a cab extended by 18 inches -- that provided a secure and weather-proof area for storage or jump seats for extra passengers. The vehicle enabled Dodge to continue record setting sales for its truck division.

* 1978 Dodge Lil' Red Express Pickup - Introduced as part of a Dodge Truck "adult toy" special model promotion -- and available only in Medium Canyon Red -- this was the fastest American production vehicle in 1978, able to beat a Corvette to 100 mph.

* 1994 Dodge Ram 2500 with Cummins ReCon Power - Shattering the misconception that all vehicles with diesel engines are slow, this truck -- with Richie Petty behind the wheel -- set two Land Speed Records: 133.929 mph for a mile from a standing start and 141.256 for a flying mile. This model also revolutionized pickup truck design and introduced the new face of Dodge.

* 2004 Dodge Ram SRT-10 (Standard Cab) - Thanks to its Viper V-10 engine this truck, right off the assembly line, set a new world speed record for unmodified pickup trucks. The 154.587 mph speed record was certified by both Guinness World Records and the Sports Car Club of America.

The Dodge Legends: The Trucks exhibition also heralds the introduction of the all-new 2005 Dodge Dakota, which stands alone as the largest, most powerful and most capable mid-size pickup in the market. Dodge introduced the Dakota series pickup in 1987 -- a highly successful industry first -- to bridge the gap between full-sized Ram trucks and the company's compact pickups.

The Dodge Legends: The Trucks exhibition offers a perspective of many aspects of Dodge lore and legend:

* John and Horace Dodge began their careers as automotive parts suppliers, helping launch both Oldsmobile and Ford. The Dodges introduced their first vehicles in 1914. Personally tested by the Dodges, their products were advertised as "dependable." Dodge owners boasted of "dependability" and put a new word into common use.

* A bighorn ram was among the animals sculptor Avard Fairbanks proposed for a Dodge symbol in 1932. Selling the idea to a dubious Walter P. Chrysler and corporate executives, Fairbanks explained the animal was "king of the trail," adding, "Besides, if you saw one on the trail in front of you, you'd think - 'Dodge!'" Chrysler immediately agreed, "That's it! The Dodge gets the ram!" And it did, beginning with the 1933 models. In 1981 the ram moved beyond a symbol as Dodge Ram became the formal name for the company's full- size trucks.

* Dodge began promoting its trucks as "Job-Rated" -- designed for specific service demands -- in 1939. Customers met the theme with immediate and favorable response and, after more than six decades, it's still synonymous with Dodge Trucks. Truck collectors refer to the 1939 - 1947 Dodge models as the "Job-Rated Trucks."

* The Dodge Brothers' special relationship with the military began in 1915 when the Army ordered touring vehicles that proved rugged enough for Army use. Entering World War I, the U.S. took thousands of Dodge vehicles into France as staff cars, trucks and ambulances. During World War II, Dodge built nearly 400,000 trucks that saw service worldwide, as well as tens of thousands of aircraft, marine and industrial engines.

* Of the nearly 400,000 trucks that Dodge built during World War II, more than 255,000 were 3/4 ton 4 x 4 military trucks with a reputation for extraordinary durability. Dodge engineers used the truck, post-war, as the basis for its powerful, versatile Power Wagon models. So successful was the Power Wagon that it remained in domestic production until 1968; it was built for export for four more years.

* In 1939 Dodge was the first truck maker to design and build its own diesel engines for heavy duty trucks. But it wasn't until 1989 that Dodge introduced a diesel pickup, trumping the competition with a 6-cylinder 5.9L turbo-diesel manufactured by Cummins Diesel. The Ram diesel used a turbocharged direct injection engine that delivered 160 hp and 400 lbs.-ft of torque, surpassing many V-8s. The partnership was so successful that more than a million Ram Trucks wore the Cummins side badge by May 2003.

The 55,000 square foot Walter P. Chrysler Museum is on DaimlerChrysler's Auburn Hills, Mich. complex. The Museum offers three stories of more than 65 vintage, classic, muscle and concept vehicles interspersed with interactive displays and historical exhibits. The Museum also features a 125-seat movie theater highlighting three continuously running short films and a gift shop brimming with exclusive and hard-to-find scale models and collectibles.

The Walter P. Chrysler Museum is located at Featherstone and Squirrel Roads and is accessible from I-75 at exit 78.

Museum admission is $6 for adults and $3 for seniors and children 6 - 12. Admission for children under six is free and group rates are available. There is no additional charge for Dodge Legends: The Trucks.

The Museum is open 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. Tuesday - Saturday and noon - 6 p.m. Sunday.

Visit the Museum's Web site at http://www.chryslerheritage.com/ or call 888-456-1924 for further information.