Blingy Warlock pickup stirred our love of custom trucks … 
I have to admit that when I heard Auto World was releasing the 1977 Dodge Warlock I was confused. I’d never heard of it, and I pride myself in being a pretty heady car guy.
Of course, it’s a truck.
Still, in 1977 I was just out of school, just married and my vehicle tastes were fuel-efficient small cars that didn’t cost much, think Mazda GLC, Datsun B210, Honda Civic, and Plymouth Horizon. OK, I was smart enough to avoid the later.
So I did a little digging on the Warlock, a name that no doubt would be nixed by any marketing person today. Seems Dodge was ahead of the curve with factory-produced custom pickups. Now any pickup, custom or not, is hotter than a Kardashian’s bikini photo.
The History
Warlock was a limited release in late 1976, known for its gold wheels, gold pin-striping, bucket seats, wide Goodyear tires and oak side-boards and bed flooring. Certainly it was an eye-catcher as is the pre-release model we got to review from Round2.
But by 1977 Dodge had moved it into the full production lineup and kept the custom add-ons while offering it in dark green, blue, red and black. Early releases were mostly black. All the Warlocks featured black interiors, no doubt keeping costs down for Dodge.
Yet that cool gold pin-striping over the wheel wells and along the front fenders and doors carried over onto the inner door panels. Bling!
Engine choices were many, as was common in the day. Chrysler’s famous slant-six was the base and then there were various carbed iterations of its 318, 360, 400 and 440 cu.in. engines. This one features a 360 model.
Not a huge hit, but the Warlock sold through the 1979 model year and one could argue started fueling America’s love with fancy pants pickups as Dodge made some others too, such as the Li’l Red Express, Macho Power Wagon, Macho Power Wagon Top Hand, Palomino, and Adventurer. Macho indeed!
The Model
Not surprising that Auto World’s die-cast car skills come to play big time with this pickup, bathed in a gorgeous dark metallic green and accented with gold pin striping on the hood, doors, fenders and tailgate. Plus Dodge is printed in gold on that tailgate and there are 1977 yellow Oregon license plates declaring “Warlock” too.
Those are the key visuals plus Custom 150 logos on the front fenders, just in front of the opening doors. Speaking of, there are chrome door handles and silver key holes on each door along with large chrome mirrors. Front and rear bumpers are chrome as are the side steps just in front of each rear fender.
Want more chrome? Oh, it’s here.
The wipers are chrome, as is the fender-mounted radio antenna, and of course the huge grille with Dodge imprinted in black at its top. Headlights are textured to look real and there are red round lights for the first time from Auto World on the rear. That was a change from the original concept and limited edition 1976 Warlock.
The bed features textured wood-look plastic panels with green metal seams in the floor and the Warlock features plastic wood-look (a bit shiny) railing on each side of the bed to mimic the wood used on the original truck. There’s even a white bed light overhead on the cab.
Flip up the massive hood that lifts on its solid hinges and there’s the baby blue 360ci Mopar engine cradled in the spacious engine compartment. The black air filter cover includes a 360 label and there are giant black air hoses running from the grille to the filter. A battery and coolant container also are visible along with the radiator and hose to the engine block.
Inside, the fun continues with pin striping atop the door panels and also boxing out the lower portions of the doors in the black interior. Just a bench seat as there was no Crew Cab at the time, and the dash looks great with detailed instrument panel with reflective gauge faces. The steering wheel features three silver spokes.
As with all Auto World vehicles the undercarriage also is detailed, including exhaust and suspension parts, plus a spare tire under the bed. The wheels are gold, as on the original and wrapped in treaded Goodyear rubber, labeled as Polyglas GT F70-15s. Talk about detail!
This is another winner from Auto World, and this time it’s a pickup.
Note: This was a pre-release 30th Anniversary model from Round2, celebrating its Auto World brand’s 30th year for the American Muscle series. We’re grateful to get an early peek at the Warlock and note you can pre-order it now at Autoworldstore.com. The first shipment of Warlocks is due to arrive within a week or two.
Vital Stats: 1977 Dodge Warlock
Maker: Auto World
Scale: 1/18
Stock No.: AW-1243/06
MSRP: $99.99
Link: Autoworldstore.com
Savage On Wheels 