Dodge’s entry in the red-hot personal-luxury category for 1978-79 was the Magnum XE.

The Magnum name has a complicated history at the Dodge division of Chrysler, the company we now know as Stellantis. It first appeared on the brand’s 440 cubic-inch high-performance V8 engine in 1966, and the badge was more recently seen on a sporty LX-based station wagon in 2005-08. But in 1978-79, the Magnum was a personal luxury coupe.

Designed to replace the 1975-78 Charger SE, a near-clone of the Chrysler Cordoba that had never escaped from the Cordoba’s shadow, the Magnum offered a new name and a new look. The Magnum was still based on Chrysler’s corporate B-body platform, same as the Cordoba. (See our feature on the Cordoba here). But it sported its own exterior sheet metal with distinctive front-end styling by noted Chrysler designer Carl Cameron, which featured clear plastic covers over the sealed-beam rectangular headlamps. To avoid safety and legal issues, the covers retracted via electric motors when the lamps were in use.

Powertrain choices included one transmission, the venerable Torqueflite A727 three-speed automatic, and a range of V8 engines from 318 to 400 cubic inches, although the 400 was dropped for ’79 when Chrysler discontinued its big-block B/RB engine family. There was a single trim level, XE, which included bucket seats, deluxe carpeting, and the usual touches of the ’70s personal luxury class. Extra-cost options (above) included an AM-FM stereo with a built-in CB radio and a T-Bar Roof with lift-out glass panels.

While the new sheet metal and nameplate created a more distinctive identity for the Dodge division’s entry in the personal-luxury class, the makeover failed to translate into greater sales. Magnum production bumped along at 55,000 units in ’78 and barely 30,000 in ’79, less than half the Cordoba volume. For 1980, the Magnum was kicked to the curb and replaced with the Mirada, a downsized luxury coupe (read about it here) derived from the Dodge Aspen/Plymouth Volare platform.