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Could the average American afford a 1968 Hemi Road Runner? Not even close.

Published by Christopher J. Holley | Mopar History & Tech | July 2025

In 1968, Plymouth’s Road Runner shocked the muscle car world by delivering big-block brawn in a stripped-down, no-frills package. At just under $2,900, the base model offered 383 power, heavy-duty everything, and a quarter-mile attitude straight from the showroom. But for those who wanted the ultimate bragging rights and blistering performance, the answer was a $714 checkmark on the order sheet: the 426 Street Hemi. That extra line item changed everything.

Sticker Shock

With the Hemi option and required upgrades, like a 4-speed or heavy-duty TorqueFlite, beefed-up suspension, and dual exhaust, a typical 1968 Hemi Road Runner rolled off the lot for around $3,600 to $4,000, depending on options.

That might not sound like much today, but in 1968, that price tag represented a serious financial commitment, especially when you consider that the average new car sold for just over $2,800.

So, how much would you need to earn to afford one without eating canned beans for the next three years?

Talking Numbers

In 1968, the federal minimum wage was $1.60 per hour. A full-time minimum wage worker pulling 40 hours a week for 52 weeks would bring home around $3,300 per year, which is less than the cost of a car.

Even unionized factory workers, who were earning a decent living by the standards of the day (somewhere around $5,000–$6,000 annually), would have had to stretch their budgets to afford a Hemi car. Factor in gas, insurance, maintenance, and registration, and the math quickly turns ugly.

On the other end of the spectrum, middle-class professionals, engineers, junior executives, and skilled tradesmen doing side work earned closer to $10,000–$15,000 per year. That kind of income put a $4,000 performance car within reach, especially for those without dependents or significant debts.

Rule of Thumb: 25 Percent

Most financial advisors (then and now) suggest that a car purchase should not exceed 25 percent of your annual gross income, especially if you are financing it.

Using that formula:

• A $4,000 Hemi Road Runner would require an annual income of $16,000 to stay within the comfort zone.
• That is roughly five times what a minimum wage worker was making in 1968.

In short: if you were a 19-year-old gas station attendant dreaming of a Hemi, you had better hope your old man was feeling generous, or the local bank manager was a Mopar guy.

Who Bought Them?

Of the 44,599 Road Runners built in 1968, only 1,019 were optioned with the 426 Hemi. That includes:

• 480 pillared coupes
• 519 hardtops
• And just 19 convertibles

These were not typically daily drivers for commuters struggling to make ends meet. Many were sold to:

• Drag racers who knew precisely what they were getting
• Street racers looking to rule the boulevard
• And a few die-hard Mopar guys who stretched every nickel to get the real-deal elephant motor

Financing was possible, of course, and insurance was not quite the nightmare it became in the early ’70s. But even then, a Hemi Road Runner was not something most people stumbled into. It was a calculated, high-stakes purchase for the committed few.

Final Verdict

Could the average person afford a 1968 Hemi Road Runner?

Not really.

Unless you were pulling in $12,000–$15,000 per year, which was well above the national average, you were probably better off sticking with the 383. The Hemi was an aspirational engine, a legend in its own time, and that legend came with a price tag to match.

Still, for those who bit the bullet, signed the papers, and rumbled off the lot with 425 horses under their right foot, the investment paid off in one unbeatable experience: driving one of the fastest, most feared street cars of the era.

And that is something money cannot quite measure.