We recently saw a nice and reportedly rare prototype Sno Runner in yellow and here is another unusual one, a 1979 Chrysler Sno Runner that is still in the crate! This one is located in the last place on the globe where I would ever think of seeing a vehicle made for traveling over snow: Punta Gorda, Florida. The seller has it listed here on eBay and there is a single bid of $1,200 and there is no reserve!
We have seen a few snowmobiles here on Barn Finds over the last few years and they’re always interesting, at least for me and maybe others who grew up in an area that has snow on the ground for a few months out of every year. For those of us who grew up in the 1960s and 70s, we were around for the golden era of snowmobile manufacturers when seemingly everyone was trying to get in on this rapidly-growing market.
Even Chrysler wanted to get into that market, having had more than their share of financial difficulties and seemingly looking for additional income. Having bought West Bend a decade earlier, Chrysler Marine had the engine that they needed, or thought that they needed. The Power Bee 820, a 132cc two-stroke single, ended up being a little underpowered for carrying an adult through snow, but given the perfect snow conditions, they were reportedly fun to ride.
The seller says that this Sno Runner has been sitting for a long time and I’m guessing that it’s been sitting for four decades now. There is some minor scuffing and they say that the plastic paddles on the track are brittle from being in storage so they’ll need to be replaced.
For anyone who has been looking for a Sno Runner this would seem like an exciting find, especially at the current bid price. The website SnoRunner.com has this exact crated Sno Runner listed for sale for $2,599 so I’m assuming that the eBay seller is the person who owns the website. I hope that they get the price they’re looking for, I’m guessing that this may be a once in a lifetime find.
I’ve owned 3 of these. They are a dog, the carb sits right behind the front ski that would throw snow back at it. We were replacing engines all the time. Definitely cool bikes though
So it would take it a big gulp of slush and crap out huh? Maybe that’s why this one’s still in the box!
Cool that it’s still in the crate!
Ahh, 1979. Chrysler is Bankrupt! I bought a 1979 Chrysler sailboat from an auction. Several small manufacturers of recreational vehicles were owned by Chrysler, and were assets that were ordered sold. The legendary Lee Iacocca ended up saving Chrysler. Some of these vehicles were not complete! My boat needed lots of finish work. If you have one, grab It!
Meh, we pretty much went through most of the Sno-Runner stories last time. I bet there’s a warehouse in Appleton ( or where ever) that still has undiscovered stacks of these. I’d bet the motor is toast, 2 cycles don’t sit well, and after 40 years, probably stuck tight. I always think of the workers, my fellow Wisconsinites, that came to work everyday, designed these ( poorly), built these things, someone crated them up, some trucker hauled them to a warehouse,,,all for nothing.
They did get paid though, right?, so it wasn’t all for nothing. I looked up the total production number, 28,000 were made, more than I thought.
Those workers played hard and worked ineffectively! Not much different than at most Chrysler plants back in the 1970s.
Listing down. Someone has Bring A Trailer dreams of $4500 or more,
If they were poorly designed and built who designed and built a better one ?
It’s part of what made Chrysler, Chrysler. Great engineering, poor execution.
I’m 250lbs and rarely open it up all the way… I do agree that the carb could have been protected more, I use a piece of plastic shielding tie wrapped to the gas tank…
The seller was in Michigan originally. I talked and bought parts of him. Guess he sold the farm…