Full-size cars from the mid-1970s have long been overlooked as collectible classics in the mainstream market, but that seems to be changing. This particular 1975 Royal Monaco is a full-size family wagon, at a very reasonable asking price, and it’s up for sale here on eBay out of Knoxville, Tennessee. Read on to learn more!
Chrysler Corporation introduced and began production of the Monaco in 1964, and the last ones rolled off the line in 1978. (There was a short-lived attempt to resurrect the Monaco name in 1991, but that’s a whole other can of beans.) Four generations over 14 years, with styling that set them apart from the competition. When the oil crisis came, Chrysler saw fit to keep on truckin’ with full-size people-movers when the others were downsizing. For 1975, you could have a number of V8 engines, and a range of options and colors, allegedly including the “Fine Corinthian Leather” as touted by the late, great Ricardo Montalban in the famous ’75 Cordoba commercial.
Turning our attention to the example before us…it’s…seen better days. The first thing that hits us is the paint, which has turned from a metallic blue to a mix of blue, gray, and patina, but the body itself appears to be reasonably intact. Even with the visible weight-reduction It’s probably not a rust-bucket like so many cars from that era. Inside, the driver seat is split, carpets dirty, and some of the plastics have faded from blue to green-ish, but it looks like it’s all there. It even has the rear-facing seat in the back and the original spare tire!
Under the hood we can see the 400ci (6.6L) engine and evidence that someone has done some fix-up work. The seller tells us that they’ve done tune-up and driveability repairs to the brakes, wheels, and tires. We’re told that it yard-drives but might need carburetor work to get it up to full speed.
All that said, it looks like it could make a neat project. It sounds like it has been “revived” as is the popular term nowadays, and one could theoretically put a more modern powerplant under the hood for a sleeper effect. At the asking price of only $5000, it appears as though it might be an affordable, fun project for those of us who don’t have a YouTube channel, TV show, or trust fund. You’d definitely be the only kid on your block with a Royal Monaco wagon, as there aren’t exactly many of these things left. What say you? Let me know in the comments!
I think most mid 1970’s cars are overlooked for several real reasons. They were big boats. They often rusted out. After 1971 became smog powered, Pony cars from Mopar and AMC gone after 74. Mustang II arrived same year. Nothing really to get excited about.
The big Monoco longroof here I am afraid would be more exciting if a four door sedan in order to make a Blues Brothers clone. The big boat is still cool.
This was posted here a few months ago. I remember this well because these full-size Dodges from the mid-70s seem so rare, especially the station wagon. I would purchase this in a heartbeat specifically for that reason. I think $5K might be a little much for Ol Blue, here, but bring this to a car show and there will not be another match. I’ve found that to be the case in the 24 years I’ve owned my ‘62 Buick Special.
Knock the windows out, mount the “Surrender Stick”, and ready to go,,a sad end to probably the most influential vehicle of our time, the station wagon. Before these pickup truck/ cars, the station wagon was Americas workhorse. It did it all from hauling 9 sheets of drywall to an evening on the town. Chryslers were about the best, but all had truck-like components, and below the convertible, the wagons were the most expensive cars to buy, but well worth it. Sorry, with gas what it is, looks like the county fair for this one,,,
In my youth buying cars as my fancy and budget allowed,i purchased a 1976 Royal Monaco 2 door(identical styling to the 75) that was green on green on green :P .It was the worst car i ever owned,i loved the look of it and the over-plush interior,but it had a lean burn 400.It was not a happy system in the slightest,as i was a driver and a bit of a body man only i wasnt able to fix the issues(IE:remove it completely)It’s a pity really as a teen of the 70’s i loved the malaise car styling and the royal Monaco was one of the better lookers(imho)
Mother-in-law had one of these. Dark green and you measured the hood in acres, not inches.
The odometer has rolled over at least once basically for $5k your getting a 4 door pickup with a built in canopy
Looks like something out of ‘Mad Max’.
I sold these NEW… What a GAS HOG THEY WERE.. You could actually watch the gas guage go down…. its not worth the dynamite it would take to blow it up
You are right, not many left, imagine trying to find parts? It would be easy to spend 10K on the cosmetics, if this old girl was a low mile good runner it might be worth the effort…
Something like this Dodge could be fixed up nice for an extra car to haul junk, kiddies etc. Not a good daily commuter. If the rust and rotten paint could be removed, then take it to someone like Macco for a paint job. It won’t be anywhere near show quality that is not what this is for. It can still be fixed up to look usable and nice for a whole let less than a new Escalade and have more usable space.
It sure beats the fake Cadillac Esclade with Chevrolet underneith
A/C stuff is there but i have not tested it, we know what that means. Has 3 mini-trail 70’s listed also.
This would be a fun car to fix up for camping and hauling the pop-up camper. The Lean Burn carburetor is easily fixed or removed. The 400 C.I has good low end torque. Mileage on this beast is certainly no worse than its peers. I would give it an inexpensive pain job once all the normal maintenance and repair items were complete.
HAHA 5,000
Lean Burn the valves engine
I remember these cars very well.I started my long automotive career with Chrysler Plymouth.We didn’t see the Lean Burn System until 1976.It was an ignition timing control system that would get quirky.Mounting the Spark Control Unit on the end of the air cleaner was not a very smart idea as it would bake over the left exhaust manifold.And automotive electronics of the time also weren’t very good but a sign of things to come.The 4 barrel carburetor was a Carter Thermoquad which also got a little quirky also.The big block and the slant six around that time had crankshaft problems thus creating low oil pressure.I remember removing the engines for crankshaft and bearing replacement under warranty.These were gas hogs as one writer put it.But they were big and roomy and the last of the big American Station Wagons.GM downsized for the 77 model year but Ford and Chrysler held up til 78.Ahhhh memory lane, showing my age now!! I’m headed into retirement and still have all my books and tools from the era.Been a long road but I still do it everyday.