Beep Beep—The Road Runner Was Mopar's Middle Finger to the Muscle Car World
They Named It After a Cartoon—Then Blew the Doors Off Everyone.
Wile E. Coyote Never Had a Chance—And Neither Did Ford or Chevy
There was a time when car companies didn’t take themselves so seriously.
A time when muscle cars weren’t about status—they were about speed, sound, and fun.
And in 1968, Plymouth pulled off one of the smartest, most iconic branding moves in automotive history.
They named a muscle car after a cartoon.
But for Mopar fans, what started as a joke, wasn’t just funny—it was the beginning of a legacy. The new generation could use a little more of what it stood for.
The Road Runner: A Mopar Masterstroke
By the late ‘60s, Plymouth wanted to deliver a no-nonsense performance car. Something fast, affordable, and built for the kind of young driver who didn’t need luxury—just power. The result was the Plymouth Road Runner, one of the most famous Mopar models ever produced.
To market it, they spent $50,000 licensing the Road Runner character from Warner Bros., plus another $10,000 developing a “beep-beep” horn that sounded just like the cartoon.
It wasn’t a gimmick. It was genius.
The cartoon and the car shared the same spirit:
Fast. Clever. Unstoppable.
Road Runner vs. Wile E. Coyote: The Mopar Metaphor
Anyone who grew up watching Saturday morning cartoons knew the deal:
- Road Runner = Speed, Simplicity, Outrunning the Competition
- Wile E. Coyote = Overcomplication and Constant Backfire
That dynamic perfectly matched Mopar’s muscle car philosophy. Where Ford and Chevy often went for flash or flair, Plymouth delivered raw, reliable power that didn’t need to show off.
Mopar guys didn’t need frills.
They just wanted something that worked—and worked hard.
The Plymouth Road Runner became the everyman’s hero on the street and the strip.
The Mopar Culture Behind It
Mopar isn’t just a parts brand—it’s an identity. And the Road Runner helped define it.
- The 1968 Road Runner proved that affordable didn’t mean slow.
- The 1970 Superbird took it into NASCAR legend territory.
- And every version kept the cartoon logo proudly on the fenders and decklid.
Plymouth built it for young men chasing speed—and those same men are now loyal Mopar collectors, finally building the garages they dreamed of 50 years ago.
The only problem... For the last 20 years, the same guys watched the original signs they dreamed about owning, sky rocket in price, and become almost impossible to find.
Just in time, right? Well, screw that. We're going to change the game and make neon worth owning again. No more of the same cheap, low-quality, junk everyone else sells.
Why It Still Matters
Today, Wile E. Coyote and the Road Runner aren’t just characters.
They’re Mopar mascots.
You’ll see them on vintage dealership signs, jackets, oil cans, garage walls—and neon.
Because for real Mopar guys, it’s not just about the car.
It’s about everything that came with it—the era, the culture, the brotherhood.
And that's what, Road Runner and Wile E. Coyote neon signs represent for an entire generation of men; because it’s not just about the sign.
It’s about what it reminds you of—what it means to be part of something bigger than yourself. And how you choose to represent and carry that legacy.
And honestly, the younger generation could use a little more of what that era stood for.
