There’s sort of a fine line between offering too little or too much information when selling a car. Sometimes, when the seller writes a short book, it becomes hard to follow and often redundant. On the other hand, when very few details are given, potential buyers may wonder why, especially when the car is over fifty years old and has the mileage listed at 18,000. That’s the case with this 1969 Plymouth Satellite here on Facebook Marketplace, whose owner offers few specifics besides stating that it’s a very nice condition survivor. However, the photos seem to back up what we’re being told here, as this one seems to be in great shape all the way around. If you’re ready to dig deeper, this one’s in Zimmerman, Minnesota, with an asking price of $14,900. T.J., thanks for another excellent tip here!
This Satellite may have too many doors for some Mopar enthusiasts, but when a car this old remains in such fine shape, it’s hard not to get excited despite being a sedan. It would have been nice to get more information about the car’s background, but what I’m envisioning is that perhaps this Plymouth really is one of those cars that just drove its owner to the grocery store and church on Sundays, then spent the rest of the time inside a garage. Even a close look at the pictures doesn’t reveal any concerns about the exterior, and if that’s still the original paint, this one might indeed be a survivor in the true sense of the term.
A look inside shows an interior that seems well-cared-for, and in line with the condition I’d expect for a car that’s been sat in and driven so infrequently. Blue was a popular color back in the day, with the seats featuring two different shades, and color-keyed seat belts before all autos had them. Hopefully, the large floormat up front has protected the carpeting underneath, and I’m spotting very little inside that needs much attention.
The base engine for the Satellite in 1969 was the 318, which is what can be found here. The 230 HP it provided was adequate for most family sedan buyers, and with just 18k miles, there may be lots of life left in the V8 for the future owner to enjoy. A 2-door model would be more desirable, but I’m guessing this one probably still turns lots of heads, even with the additional doors. Hopefully, whoever buys this 1969 Plymouth Satellite will focus on preservation, rather than making any changes. What would you do here?
Convert to a four door Roadrunner. That ought to mess with people at the next C and C. “Yeah, it’s a rare factory prototype, designed for street racers who are tired of dealing with child car seats.”
Funny you say that – when I was 18, I bought a beater 4 door 68 Belvedere (for $5 !) . The front was crunched a bit, so I went to or local junkyard and bought a 3/4 nose off a 68 Roadrunner , and later, a trunk off another Roadrunner, with the aluminum trim panel. even though the car was now three colors, more than one person mentioned that “you dont see many 4 door Road Runners anymore” – and they were serious !
318s were a nice base motor. 👏
In 69 it would have just been another “old folks Mopar” but since auto designs and choices has gone amuck ones like this go up on the desireability scale. Nothing exciting to look at but easy to drive, simple to maintain, comfortable to get in and minimal electronics and multi-function displays. Could operate it as new without multiple lookups in one of many operator manuals included with purchase or YouTube videos explaining what to do. Ok, I’ll admit it, I have crossed the line to where I’m just one of the “old folks”.
So nice to see the stock wheels on this! Price may be a bit off but these are under appreciated in my opinion. They’re only original once and nobody usually saved these more doors.
I really don’t know how a real car lover can dislike a car just because it has 4 doors! This is in great shape, and it has one of the best engines ever to come out of Detroit… the 318. If you love cars you gotta love a find like this.
I love it. Of course i’m old enough to say ” One Adam-12 ” here. Some very very early childhood memories of one of my uncles had a black one. Must have been a manual steering because when i sat in front between uncle and aunt ( like we all did ) i remember each time he turned he must have turned that wheel a dozen turns. And also when he parked he always brought the shifter to first gear before swinging it back to park. It should find a new home quick. About the only i would do for safety’s sake is convert it to power brakes and power steering
I’d add a St. Christopher and compass to the top of the dashboard and drive it!
And a chrome/red AAA sticker to the bumper.
Very nice clean low mile mopar at a good price! The only thing I see wrong in the add is the hood insulation being worn/missing in the middle of the hood.
“I really don’t know how a real car lover can dislike a car just because it has 4 doors!”
It has everthing to do with the age of the “real” car lover. If you were growing up during the ’50-’70s, not even your parents would have been seen in a 4-door. The 4-doors were popular with your grandparents, your odd uncle, the local police, and taxi fleets. For those of us of a certain age these were not desireable then, and not any more desirable now. Sure, it interesting to see anything this old in amazing condition, but it’s just that; interesting to some of us.
Not sure where you grew up, but families always bought four doors. A two door was pretty rare in a sedan.
Jimmy’s, you are right. Me and all my friends were carted around in station wagons, we had no connection to 4drs and today all look upon wagons favorably.
The 4dr fans seem to equate disinterest to dislike. No one I know has anything against 4drs, they just don’t want one nor do they pay attention to them.
If the actual interest in 4drs matched its online enthusiasm their prices would be more closely aligned to what station wagons sell for.
Steve R
I was born in 1960. I grew up in 2 door cars but I have no priv Lou en with 4 doors. I have a beautiful ‘62 BelAir sedan. I consider myself a custodian of history .
Your family must have been way cooler than mine then…I grew up in the 50’s/60’s and my folks never had anything but 4 door sedans during my entire childhood.
Jimmy X, I grew up in the 1950s-1970s and that’s all my parents had in those years: A four-door, and they were quite happy to be seen in it.
I dunno. Back then 4-doors were everywhere. Typically cheaper, lighter weight and more solid than a hardtop. If you were like me and grew up as my brother said, an only child, your folks didn’t need the wagon.
My second comment is in the add I see the front of the radiator with which looks to have blue paint on it of it could be a reflection
Wow…….. if I were restoring a 69 Road Runner I would be hot on the phone to pick this one up as a parts car. And yes, it would be worth 10k + for that cache of perfect factory everything……..
No AC, power, steering or power brakes would make this tough to live with. I don’t think I would have any issues altering this car in the name of safety and basic comfort. It is a beautiful machine.
Worth 8 to maybe 10k!
I can see the potential for one helluva sleeper with this car. Just don’t run the duals all the way out back to avoid tipping anyone off.
My slight antipathy towards four doors stems from the fact that I’m 6’4″, and once I push the seat back, no one can sit behind me (comfortably); thus, I tend to prefer two door cars. I’d gladly and proudly drive this one, after installing a set of Magnums, white walls, a dual exhaust, and maybe Vintage air.
GLWTS!! :-)
I would add PS, PB, AC, Cruise, white wall tires, and make it a daily driver. A little pricey though, even in this condition. I’m in the minority, I know… but I won’t look at anything that doesn’t have four doors (or four doors and a long roof), so this really grabbed my attention. Thanks for sharing. Very nice car.
I agree with everything you say except the Cruise (personal choice). And I know this car would get a lot of attention. It’s a beauty . I really hope it gets a great owner.
I really like this car. Color scheme is just right. In my neighborhood, too; well about 60 miles away. The 4 doors don’t bother me. I rather like that because you don’t see enough of them.
Reminds me of a ’68 Dodge Coronet ( don’t recall the numerical trim #) but the affable, suspendered fellow who owned it had it completely repainted from white to all blue to match the interior. Including the door jams, & inside the hood & trunk. And his had a/c, p/s & brakes. He was proud of it and he should be. Haven’t seen him for awhile.
Like someone else said, I’d add on p/s, p/b, and a nice slim line a/c unit and I think whitewalls would complete the car with the stock covers. I happen to like AM radio, too, so arrest me! LOL!
Even with low miles, I need to see underside pics. We’ve all seen super low mile cars that were stored in damp environments and well, not a pretty sight.
$10,000 would be my price.
In late 76, Uncle Henry died. At the time I was racing SCCA and had several British sports cars and a truck, so the family said “hey, we’ll give Henry’s car to him, he’ll like it”. The car in the ad is identical to the “Cranbrook” that I inherited. Wasn’t my kind of car, so I loaned it to a buddy who had kids and was always needing an extra car. He drove it for a year or two, and when he and his wife divorced, he gave it back. It sat around for a couple of months and I took it out to run some errands, and it sucked a valve and locked up at a stop light about a half a mile from my home. I walked home and called another buddy who had a shop and a wrecker. Needless to say, Uncle Henry’s Plymouth was in the crusher before the end of business that day, and the junkyard $$$ paid my buddy to pick it up, and bought us a case of beer. Win – Win!
These are great cars if you are loaning them to friends, or parting them out, or just keeping an old beater around to feed the junk yard.
“1-Adam-12, 1-Adam-12….”
Seriously though, the Satellite 4-door was a 4-door Road Runner. Just order the 383 4-barrel,HD suspension, HD Cooling, Brakes and Dual Exhaust. I’d use the Speedway Motorsports 15” X 7” police wheels (from the 1970s Pursuit package) and Firmfeel front and rear anti-sway bars.
All the discussions concerning two vs four door cars got me thinking about when my dad switched from two to four doors. His 1953 Chevy had two doors as did his 1958. Then he bought a 1966 Chevy Belair four door. I know that some of it had to do with we skinny little kids not bothering to put down the front seat and squeezing between it and door post getting into the back. That didn’t help the windlace. I still remember the ripped strings waving in the breeze when the windows were open. I also remember him saying that a four door was more practical for his growing family. Dad was always a realist.
How much would it cost for a mechanic to install PS, PB and A/C in this Satellite?
Mid range price, not dealer installations. NY or FL prices….. appx! ThX.
On my ‘62 BelAir I had vintage air installed, power steering and manual front disc brakes . Total cost was around $2,500 – $3,000.
Disc brake kits range from $750 to $1,000, aftermarket AC kits $1,800 to $2,200, PS conversion $750 to $1,100. That means parts are roughly $3,300 to $4,300 plus labor, you’d be lucky to keep the tab close to $5,000 out the door. Don’t forget, the parts prices are if you buy them and bring them with you to the shop, the problem with that is, shops will only warranty their labor if they mess up the installation, if there is a component failure you are on your own. If you choose to have the shop order the parts they will likely mark everything up by 50% or more.
Steve R
While the Adam-12 references are always welcome, a more important issue faces the hobby, and not more evident with Garys ^^^ post. I by no means want to admonish his post, but we are at a turning point in the hobby. People like the style, clearly have the money, but want the modern doo-dads, and totally understandable. In 1969, not even the cops had A/C. The AMC Matador was the 1st A/C cop car, in L.A. I heard. I can see P/S, but there is always a kerfuffle about not having power disc brakes, when manual drum brakes worked just fine for 75 years, ( and mechanical before that), a locked wheel is a locked wheel, and you better not want to drive this like a sports car. It’s a basic people mover, and not much more.
Re: 4 doors. I found, it was clearly a parents choice. 2 doors prevented kids in the back seat from falling out, and just about everybody remembers a kid, or themselves, that did fall out the back door, so there was merit to a 2 door.
The blue interior and exterior look great. The 318 and Torqueflite are perfect for a family type car. Not sure if there is air conditioning or other options on the car. Working A/C would be a plus. I love the headroom on the older B body. I would ask for proof on the mileage claim and a 3rd party inspection. Today’s cars have sharply raked windshields that cut headroom. There are too many electronic adjustments just to get a radio station. More stuff to fail. So it appears to be a good practical car for its age.
I bought a really nice Satellite almost exactly like this back in 88′. Was my daily driver for 5 years. Could go out the coldest day of a MA winter, pump the pedal a few times and that 318ci would start up everytime.Still miss it to this day. Love this car. Wouldn’t change a thing on it.
These “Fleet Vehicles” were so common, nearly all got destroyed, just for that fact.
I have a collection of what you can hardly find any more.
They were cheap and completely intact.
Go find yourself a something that has nothing more than a Speedo and a gas gage.