1976 Dodge B-100 ‘Crazy Van’ Will Put You In A Purple Haze

By Elizabeth Puckett May 08, 2019

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By Elizabeth Puckett May 08, 2019

And it’s packing a 440 under the hood!

This custom B-100 van is a fantastic representation of the easy-living lifestyle and personal expression of the 1970s. Enthusiast-built to capture the feeling of an era, this vintage Dodge van has many details worth paying close attention to.

While one might look at the van as just a themed build, using a whole lot of purple throughout, this 1976 Dodge B-100 is packing some surprises. The visual customizations and beefy muscle car-lent powertrain will position this unique van in your heart, and possibly your garage, if you have an open space in your collection.

1976 Dodge B-100 ‘Crazy Van’ Will Put You In A Purple Haze

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Dodge launched the Street Van, in their “Adult Toy” collection, as a variant of the Tradesman cargo van, and it was a fantastic point for many vanners to get on the open road, go camping, or live a nomadic lifestyle.

The porthole style windows on this party van were one of the options buyers could choose from to keep their activities inside private, as one might require for most things done in the ‘70s - adding to the privacy of the occupants are a set of louvers on the rear windows.

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Covered in what looks very similar to (if not the same as) the Plum Crazy Purple hue commonly found on Hemi-powered cars of the time, this B-100 employs several period correct elements. While it does have custom badging and graphics, the chrome elements also add a lot to the ascetics of the Dodge van as a whole.

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When you hop inside, you’ll be transported to a land of angel hair carpeting, and spacious cargo room. A period correct headliner, which is very distinctive to the time, doghouse-style center console, and front bucket seats are all a nice touch to the cabin - and again, a lot of angel hair carpeting is used throughout.

Maybe the wildest thing about this is, it’s actually powered by a 440 cubic-inch big block - the massive engine even gets air and fuel from a Holley 750cfm carb and an Edelbrock intake to take full advantage of its potential. As you’ll notice, the 440 exhales into the set of side pipes that were most commonly found on the baddest of muscle cars of the time.

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Backing the big block engine is a three-speed automatic Torqueflite transmission, that feeds into a limited-slip differential with sporty 3.23:1 gearing. It rolls on period-correct 15" Cragar wheels and Cooper tires, and gets stopping power from disc brakes up front, with drums in the back.

With the full-size vintage vans on the rise, this is a great time to get into this niche vehicle, and here’s a great chance with this nostalgia-inspired custom example from Streetside Classics.