In 1969, Dodge added the 500 to its Charger series. Their goal was to have an equivalent to Ford’s Torino Talladega model (NASCAR). Like its Blue Oval competitor, the 500 had a flat grille and a smooth back glass area. It was done in limited production, with just 500 made in 1969. However, the next year, the special body treatments were gone, and it would represent more than half of Charger production. This 1970 Charger 500 has had a motor change, yet it doesn’t run. It can be found in St. Louis, Missouri where the no-reserve auction here on eBay has reached $10,400 so far.

The second generation of the Dodge Charger would run from 1968-70. It shared its fuselage styling elements with other Chrysler products. The car would see few physical changes from year to year, although the 1970 was perhaps the best executed of the three (personal opinion). ’68 and ’69 sales would be similar, with 96,000 in the first and 89,000 in the second. Charger sales for ’70 fell by about half to 46,000 units, but some of that can be attributed to sales being taken away in-house by Dodge’s new pony car, the Challenger. No longer a special edition, the Charger 500 was now sandwiched in between the base Charger and the R/T. It saw sales of 27,000 units in 1970. Thanks, Hagerty, for filling in some info gaps.

This 1970 Charger 500 has had its ups and downs over the years. It started life with a 383 Hi-Perf V-8 and a bench seat. It later acquired a 1971 version of the 383, which is now stuck, and the bench seat is gone in favor of buckets, but the automatic transmission (year unknown) is still column operated and its condition is unknown. Much of the original FK5 Dark Burnt Orange Metallic paint remains on the car, but the black top (vinyl?) is no longer recognizable. The car was parked in 1984, we’re guessing due to mechanical issues.

As much as I’d like to say the body is passable, it’s not really. But the undercarriage, while crusty, is better looking than many we’ve seen here. The car is said to be “mostly complete”, but we don’t know what isn’t part of the “mostly”. We’re told the frame rails are solid, but there is a small rust area on the passenger side corner of the torsion bars. The trunk will need new metal, and the rear quarters will, too. The car took a hit on the driver’s side at one point and that will need a bunch of attention, too. So, getting the body back in shape will be no small undertaking. While the glass is okay, the windshield is cracked.

The matching Burnt Orange interior could stand some help. The driver’s seat is the worst, with the carpeting, dash pad and carpeting coming next. Before you replace those carpets, you’ll have to fix some holes in the floor pans. It was a well-equipped car, with factory air, multi-speed wipers, and power steering and brakes. The rally gauge package includes a rather optimistic speedometer of 150 mph. The mileage is unknown. Contrary to the eBay listing, the car is in Missouri, not Macau.

The buyer will not get the wheels and tires shown in the photos. The seller is keeping them, and you’ll get regular rims with tires that will hold air for transport (aka Maygo-brand tires, “may go at any minute”!). Hagerty thinks fair condition examples of this car will fetch $15,000, while stellar copies would be north of $40,000. This car has a ways to go to get to the starting point and projects like this always cost more to complete than you think. Even though the seller has been most forthcoming, this is a project to go into with both eyes wide open.