With only 2,128 examples built in 1969, the Plymouth Road Runner Convertible has a bit of an air of exclusivity about it. This one has spent the vast majority of its life in Arizona, and this has paid dividends now, as it is a car that has very little rust. The Road Runner has migrated from Arizona to Chatsworth, California, where it has now been listed for sale here on eBay. Bidding has now reached $11,300, although the reserve hasn’t been met.
Plymouth only offered the Road Runner in Convertible form for the first time in 1969, and this is one of those cars. It has its fair share of marks and minor dings, but the news on the rust-front looks really promising. There is basically nothing visible on the body itself, although there are no photos of the floors or frame. The soft-top is present, but while the frame looks like it is good, the material is definitely destined for the trash can. All of the external trim and chrome appears to be present, and it looks like a lot of it might respond quite favorably to a bit of elbow grease and a quality polish.
The interior has been very nice in the past, and there’s no reason why it couldn’t be again. The front seat looks like it is wearing a new cover, and unfortunately, it doesn’t match the cover on the rear seat. This is a shame because the rear seat looks like it might be in good condition, and it would be a shame to have to change the cover to achieve a match. The dash and pad look like they are quite good, although there is an aftermarket radio/cassette player fitted to the car. The rest of the interior will need restoration, but that shouldn’t be a great problem. There also aren’t any photos of the engine, but we do know that this isn’t a numbers-matching car. The original 335hp 383ci 4-bbl V8 is gone, and a replacement 383 of 1968 vintage is in its place. The owner says that this runs well and sounds great. The car isn’t currently a driver, as the brakes require a rebuild. The original transmission would have been the 727 TorqueFlite, but it isn’t clear whether this is still fitted to the vehicle. Decoding the fender tag also shows that the Road Runner was originally fitted with air conditioning, 3-speed wipers, a remote left-hand racing mirror, an AM/FM radio, and a 26″ radiator.
This is a car that I will be watching with some interest, mainly because there have been a reasonable number of ’69 Road Runner Convertibles in the market-place in recent months. Similarly equipped cars to this one, but in really top condition, are currently fetching prices of between $47,000 and $55,000. However, these examples are numbers-matching cars, which this one isn’t. So, I’ve given you an idea of the sort of money that this car would be worth if it were immaculate, and now it’s your turn to decide what it’s worth as it stands. I’d also be interested to know whether we have any readers who are interested in bidding on this Road Runner.
Back 40 years ago I junked nicer cars then this. Times are crazy!
You MONSTER!!
Sandy – that’s why there are crazy prices – so thanks.
Stilly Boy! That might be part of it, but the biggest part is the whole sale slaughter of the American Middle Class leaving a very few people with money to burn and show off with.
>>>”leaving a very few people with money to burn”
That would cause prices to go DOWN, not up. In fact, the reason prices are going up on this stuff is because more people are willing to spend more money on it, another result of a strong economy.
I. We drove every mopar into the ground back then. Dime a dozen! All the Mopes we went through? i cringe. I enjoyed every minute of the chevies i stomped. 60 now. Always wanted a 70 GTX with air grabber . can’t afford one now….cuz we all blew them up? there out there. cash in your IRA….Thanks.
Cash in the IRA, now there is just a great idea. Do you really think that non Boomers are going to pay the ridiculous prices we do for OUR youth? Someone else here just said that in pretty much the same way. Younger people want their memories, not ours. Of course, that might have been all tongue and cheek, and if so, may I quote the great Emily Latela, “Never mind!” I also remember rodding these, actually trying to harm them. Ahh, youthful indiscretion. I recall dropping the clutch in an old hemi car that was well rotted away, and the K member broke! Boy did we laugh! It was something my buddy had bought for like a hundred bucks. He made out like a bandit, crushed the original body and sold the rattle trap of an engine to a racer who rebuilt it for track use only. Seems to me that was mid 70s, and the car was like only ten years old. Up north, cars, esp Chryslers, rotted like it rained acid daily. I think it was an old Belvedere, a 2? I recall on its side it said something like HP2 on it. Does that sound right guys? I assume it was a rare car, even in those days, but no one sure wanted a smoking rusty 5 MPG car after the first gas crisis, hence Sam got her for a song and we abused it a little and then he doubled his money and thought he had done well. I know I sure was impressed with his financial genius at the time.
Sandy, you seem like the reincarnation of Billy007.
Steve R
Steve, not sure who that is, but sounds like a cool guy. Maybe some redneck from below the Mason Dixon line yet still works for MI6. Do not confuse an old gray haired man with an interesting hillbilly. So tell me Stevie, are you all knowing? Do you have a sixth sense? Excuse me, time for some warm milk then off to bed with my little missus (even if she does have cold feet).
Sandy, Early ’66 Plymouth Hemi cars came with Hp2 emblems, cars after January ’66 had bigger emblems that said 426 HEMI.
So Moosie, did my friend Sam crush what would have been a valuable car today? I know all Hemi cars are worth something, but because it was an early one, would that make it more rare and/or valuable? All I remember is that the car looked like rusty swiss cheese at that time, someone had really abused it before we ever saw it and it obviously was used all winter long in many Midwest winters. The only thing keeping your feet off the ground on the passenger side was rotting carpet. With that said, it looked much better then some of the 356s we see here. Thanks for the info, am going to have to look those up on Google. Might have to dig up Sam (Haven’t seen him in years, and at my age, Sam might really have to be dug up!) and give him grief about this!
Sandy Claws, Truthfully I dont know early versus late values. I have a friend that had a ’66 Belvedere II 2dr. ht. Hp2 car that he bought cheap with no motor and was able to track down the original born with 426 Hemi which was at the engine builders for a great number of years. The original owners had dropped off the motor for some finessing and didnt pick it up when finished, engine builder was happy to finally get it out of his shop. Botchagalupe seemed to think the Hp2 was special, I know he sold it for good money when he was done racing it a half dozen times . It was a 4 spd. car.
Had a 68 RR coupe. The 68 did not have head rests. Seat was bad so we replaced with a 69 bench from a wrecked RR. It had head rests. That seat must be from a 68 or older.
The front seat is a ’69 RR “Decor” trim package item – head rests were not mandatory on ’69’s until January1,1969.
My dad bought a new ’69 Polara without headrests – it was an October ’68 sales bank build.
What it would be worth if… that doesn’t mean much as this one doesn’t. Good luck finding the original motor. Body does look solid, but he needs to post a lot more photos to convince me.
I installed a new top on a four speed version. It was a nightmare. (I did the upholstery work for Nostalgia Lane in MP, IL for over a decade before they closed) The material is an odd vinyl and the customer supplied top ended up tearing during installation. The owner told us that the top had been stored in his basement for years which explained why it was somewhat brittle. I ordered a new top and we had a heck of a time getting one sail area wrinkle free. Got it very close but still had a slight pucker. I often wondered if the unibody on that one was slightly out of whack.
This could be a decent project! The B-body ragtops were some of the few convertibles with a usable rear seat.
Just in case anyone else likes B-body convertibles..
Blue seems to have been a popular color.
They even look good out of focus.
I bought this car about a year and a half ago.