he following information on the 71 Swinger "Specials" with factory equipped 340 drivetrains was researched and compiled by Dan Rasmussen of Edmonton, Alberta. Dan owns two of these special order Swingers. He has researched these cars quite extensively and deserves credit. The photos are a courtesy of Don Uhl.
The 340 was not avaiable in the American nor the Canadian Dart Swinger in 1971. In 1971, the fastback Demon 340 had replaced the hardtop 1970 Swinger 340 in the Dodge lineup. Therefore fans of performance A-body hardtops, which were very popular here in Canada, were left empty handed.
A Dodge dealership in Regina, Saskatchewan called Crestview and another in Edmonton, Alberta called Crosstown convinced Chrysler to make a special run of 340 Swingers in 1971 due to their success with the 1970 model. (There was likely some other reason why these dealerships were able to get a special order of these cars but that may never be revealed).
All 1971 340 Swingers were ordered and built as the Swinger Special which had the VIN prefix LL23H1R (L=Dart, L=Low, 23=2 Door Hardtop, H=340, 1=71, R=Windsor, Ontario Plant), unlike the 1970 Swinger 340 which had the VIN prefix LM23H0R (M=Medium, 0=70). The "Special" in Swinger Special does not imply a special run. The Swinger Special was the bottom of the line Dart in 1971. The production figures for the Swinger Specials for the U.S. and Canada are as follows:
198ci (LL23C1R) 2,757 U.S.
225ci (LL23C1R) 7,706 U.S.
318ci (LL23G1R) 836 U.S.
340ci (LL23H1R) 75 Canada
198ci + 225ci + 318ci 1,557 Canada & Export
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Total Specials: 12,931 units
