Car Model History

Fourth generation · Personal-luxury B-body · 1975–1978

1977Dodge Charger

Repositioned as a personal-luxury coupe — sharing its body with the Chrysler Cordoba — with formal styling, opera windows, and plush trim rather than performance. The B-body Charger ended after 1978.

Fourth generation · Personal-luxury B-body

1977 Dodge Charger Midnight Special — personal-luxury B-body coupe, front three-quarter view

Photo: “1977 Dodge Charger Midnight Special” by Greg Gjerdingen from Willmar, USA / Wikimedia Commons, licensed under CC BY 2.0. Cropped to 16:9.

Start here

What do you need to know?

This page covers the whole 1977 Dodge Charger model year. Choose your task first; exact trims and engines are separated where the factory offered different versions.

Documented lineup

Find your exact 1977 Charger

Start with a family, body style, or engine. Every card opens the facts and maintenance information for that factory version.

8factory configurations
Exact factory pairings documentedHow this lineup was verified

These source-backed records identify published body, engine, and transmission combinations. Exact pairings do not by themselves assert that every factory option or special edition is represented.

8versions shown
Two-door pillared hardtop

Dodge Charger SE 318 V8

Body
Two-door pillared hardtop
Engine
318 cu in LA V8, 2-barrel carburetor
Gearbox
TorqueFlite automatic
Built
Regular production
Open exact version
Two-door pillared hardtop

Dodge Charger SE 360 2-barrel V8

Body
Two-door pillared hardtop
Engine
360 cu in LA V8, 2-barrel carburetor
Gearbox
TorqueFlite automatic
Built
Regular production
Open exact version
Two-door pillared hardtop

Dodge Charger SE 400 4-barrel V8

Body
Two-door pillared hardtop
Engine
400 cu in B-series V8, 4-barrel carburetor with Electronic Lean Burn
Gearbox
TorqueFlite automatic
Built
Regular production
Open exact version
Two-door pillared hardtop

Dodge Charger SE 360 4-barrel V8 (California/high altitude)

Body
Two-door pillared hardtop
Engine
360 cu in LA V8, 4-barrel carburetor
Gearbox
TorqueFlite automatic
Built
Regular production
Open exact version
Two-door pillared hardtopCharger Daytona appearance and handling model

Dodge Charger Daytona 318 V8

Body
Two-door pillared hardtop
Engine
318 cu in LA V8, 2-barrel carburetor
Gearbox
TorqueFlite automatic
Built
Regular production
Open exact version
Two-door pillared hardtopCharger Daytona appearance and handling model

Dodge Charger Daytona 360 2-barrel V8

Body
Two-door pillared hardtop
Engine
360 cu in LA V8, 2-barrel carburetor
Gearbox
TorqueFlite automatic
Built
Regular production
Open exact version
Two-door pillared hardtopCharger Daytona appearance and handling model

Dodge Charger Daytona 400 4-barrel V8

Body
Two-door pillared hardtop
Engine
400 cu in B-series V8, 4-barrel carburetor with Electronic Lean Burn
Gearbox
TorqueFlite automatic
Built
Regular production
Open exact version
Two-door pillared hardtopCharger Daytona appearance and handling model

Dodge Charger Daytona 360 4-barrel V8 (California/high altitude)

Body
Two-door pillared hardtop
Engine
360 cu in LA V8, 4-barrel carburetor
Gearbox
TorqueFlite automatic
Built
Regular production
Open exact version

The 1977 model year

Overview

For 1977 the Charger catalog contracted to two personal-luxury hardtops: Charger Special Edition and Charger Daytona. Both used the 318 two-barrel V8 and TorqueFlite automatic as standard equipment. Outside California and high-altitude markets, buyers could select a 360 two-barrel or Electronic Lean Burn 400 four-barrel; those emissions markets instead listed a 360 four-barrel. The Daytona combined its own two-tone color break and striping with dual sport mirrors, radial tires, and front and rear sway bars.

Specifications

Engines
  • 318 cu in LA V8, 2-barrel
  • 360 cu in LA V8, 2-barrel (not California/high altitude)
  • 360 cu in LA V8, 4-barrel (California/high altitude)
  • 400 cu in B V8, 4-barrel with Electronic Lean Burn (not California/high altitude)
Transmissions
TorqueFlite 3-speed automatic
Body styles
2-door pillared hardtop (Charger SE and Charger Daytona)
Dimensions
Length 215.3 in · Wheelbase 115 in · Width 77.1 in · Height 52.6 in · Fuel tank 25.5 U.S. gallons

Year over year

What changed

  • The 1976 base Charger and Charger Sport bodies left the Charger catalog; only SE and Daytona remained.
  • A removable tinted-glass T-bar roof became a new option.
  • The Daytona received a new horizontal grille treatment, revised striping, and new two-tone combinations.
  • Engine availability became emissions-market-specific: 360 two-barrel and 400 four-barrel generally, but 360 four-barrel in California and high-altitude markets.

Worth knowing

Notable

  • The factory brochure names only Charger Special Edition and Charger Daytona for 1977.
  • Both models used the 318 V8 and TorqueFlite as standard equipment.
  • The brochure's engine table explicitly separates regular, high-altitude (N96), and California (N95) availability.
  • Factory form 81-205-7003 was printed in August 1976.

Living with it

Reliability & ownership notes

  • Confirm the emissions label and sales market before ordering carburetor, ignition, exhaust, or tune-up parts; the brochure assigns a different 360 carburetion package to California and high-altitude cars.
  • Every factory-listed power team uses TorqueFlite, so a manual-transmission 1977 Charger requires evidence of a later conversion rather than a catalog configuration.
  • Inspect T-bar roof seals, drains, latch hardware, and surrounding roof structure for leaks or corrosion on equipped cars.

Maintenance & service parts

Keep your 1977 Charger on the road

Start with the service interval, then match the engine or exact version you own. Order links appear only when a catalog-backed part number is available, and every listing still needs a fitment check.

Service desk

What this car needs & when

Use this as a service-planning checklist for 1977 Dodge Charger. Start with the interval, confirm which engine or configuration you have, then use an exact ordering reference when one is verified.

Service topics
4
Factory intervals
0
Fitment-scoped
4
Exact references
4

Before orderingIdentify your engine, options and build date.Part numbers and sizes can change within one model year. Shopping links appear only for catalog-backed references; still verify the listing against your vehicle before ordering.

Collect

Bring this model year home

Find a scale model using the exact year, make, and model—not a generic generation search.

Sources

  1. Dodge — 1977 Charger SE and Daytona factory brochure (81-205-7003)
  2. Mopar Muscle — Dodge Charger model history and 1974 body/engine range

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