When it was new, this 1968 Dodge Charger must have been quite a car. Let’s face it, a black-on-black Charger R/T 440 has to tick a lot of the right boxes for any enthusiast. Those glory days must seem like they are a lifetime away for this muscular beauty, so what the Charger now needs is a new owner who is willing and able to recapture the car’s lost youth. If you think that you could be that person, you will find the Charger located in North Las Vegas, Nevada, and listed for sale here on eBay. It would seem that there are plenty of people who can see the potential in the Dodge because 13 people have now submitted a total of 69 bids on the vehicle. This has pushed the price along to $15,600. At that price, the reserve has been met. In addition to the strong bidding, there are also 205 people who are currently watching the listing.

I tend to agree with the owner’s assessment that a Black Charger R/T with no vinyl top and the White stripes would have been a menacing looking car when new. One of the greatest enemies of the Charger was rust, and while this vehicle hasn’t been spared its attention, it has been spared anything that would be classed as severe. The car appears to be structurally sound, with the rockers, torsion support, and the frame rails having little more than surface corrosion for the next owner to contend with. The floors generally look pretty reasonable, and any rust in these could quite easily be addressed with patches. The trunk pan is not quite as good, and I think that a replacement will be on the cards. The same is true of the rear quarter panels, and while the trunk lid also sports some rust, a good replacement is included in the sale. The body wears plenty of dings and dents, not to mention the occasional bullet hole or two, so there will be plenty of panel work on offer to keep the next owner fairly busy. This is really a case of what you see is what you get. If a piece of trim or chrome seems to be missing, then it probably is. It also appears that the next owner will be outlaying some cash for a full set of new glass.

As is the case with the exterior, there is plenty of interior trim and hardware that is missing, and the buyer will effectively be starting from scratch inside the Charger. There are no seats, door trims, carpet, or headliner, but when it was new, the interior certainly would have continued the menacing theme. Black upholstery, bucket seats, a console, a tachometer, and an AM radio. This wasn’t an interior loaded with luxury features. It seems that this was a classic ordered by a buyer interested primarily in speed.

Hmm, a 440ci V8, a 4-speed manual transmission, and a Dana rear end. This is a combination that is pretty mouth-watering, and that is what was hidden under the Charger when it was new. Unfortunately, the car is neither new nor is it equipped with any of this equipment. The drivetrain had been stripped before the seller purchased it, and the vehicle is now a roller with a different rear end under it. However, the news isn’t all bad, because the owner does have a 1968-vintage 440, and this is included in the sale. That means that the Charger might not finish up being numbers-matching, but at least the next owner does have a starting point for a drivetrain.

In a perfect world, the next owner of this 1968 Charger R/T 440 would restore it to its original and number-smatching glory, and they would be sitting on a classic that would command a value well north of $60,000. It isn’t a perfect world, but it is a world where the Charger R/T 440 continues to grow in both popularity and value. Even pristine vehicles minus their original drivetrain, but restored to their original specifications, can still fetch $50,000 on a good day. As with any restoration, the devil is in the detail. That means, if you have an eye for perfection, then this is a Charger project that could make a lot of sense from both a satisfaction perspective, as well as financially. As a bonus, you could wind up owning a classic that is guaranteed to give you a smile a mile wide every time you hit the gas pedal.