Some folks say that 1971 was the last “great” year for early muscle cars, with rising insurance premiums starting to deter the purchase of high-performance machines, combined with the fact that economy cars were also quickly gaining in popularity. Oddly enough, it was also this same year that Plymouth introduced a new body style to its Road Runner and GTX, and from a fun-factor and performance standpoint, things were still going strong, with the GTX even coming with a 440 as standard equipment. If you like the fuselage-style B-Bodies and are looking for a decent near-driver-quality example, this 1971 Plymouth GTX may be worth a look. It’s located way down south in Miami, Florida, and can be seen here on eBay, with bidding currently sitting at $19,300.
The seller says he’s owned the GTX for over half a decade and has made some improvements on it during that time, with the latest plans being to get the car running well enough to drive it to the paint shop. Now that he’s become a father, the owner realizes he just doesn’t have the time to move forward and is ready for someone else to take over. Originally, the car was painted Glacial Blue Metallic but has been resprayed in Curious Yellow at some point in the past. Overall, the body seems to be fairly straight, although there are a few bubbles on the tops of the front fenders and what appears to be a stress crack in the roof over the passenger side rear window. But it looks like a bed of roses compared to some of the early seventies B-Body cars that have crossed our desks at Barn Finds in the past.
The original 440 has been replaced with what’s described as a fairly hot 440 that sounds like it’s cammed, although the seller doesn’t know exactly what’s inside as this was all done prior to his acquisition. The big block did have the heads redone on his watch a couple of years ago, and the factory radiator was also replaced around the same time with an aluminum Champion component and a new shroud. The transmission has had a reverse manual valve body added, and out back is an 8 3/4 Sure-Grip rear end with 3.91 gears. The car is said to start and run but is going to need a proper tune-up before any serious driving.
Things inside are still mostly intact, with the air-control panel strangely missing in action, but it looks like just an afternoon’s worth of focused cleaning might do a world of good in there if it’s just a driver status the next owner is going for. A can of black spray paint and another hour would also probably work wonders on that steering column. We also get to see a video of the car starting and driving, and I’m thinking maybe just a good tuning and leaving the rest like it is may be the way to go on this one and just enjoy it, at least for a while. What do you think?
This car looks wild, deserves a comment.
Excellent write up Mike.
Have never seen one of these Plymouth cars here in Australia, we are missing out.
Dave, a friend of mine in Adelaide had one 10 years ago, he listed and sold it within 24 hours after putting the ad up, I had to do some plastic welding repairs to the cracked and broken grille. Obviously someone had imported it in from the US at some stage, it surprises me what you can find in Oz if you’re in the market, I recently sold my ’62 Imperial 2 door, almost had to beat the buyers off with a stick.
Totally under rated Mopar. These are now getting popular. These body styles are becoming very popular. Future big money cars. My favorite is the 69 Roadrunner. Different body and style of course. This looks like a pretty solid car for the money. Good luck!
Mopar or no car !!
Needs longer tailpipe.
You’ll need to put those small orange triangle flags on each
tailpipe so the car behind you doesn’t run into them. 😂😂😂
🚩🚩
A red grease rag will do just fine. I do love this body style though.
Ha!
My brother has a 73 Plymouth Roadrunner 440 GTX not in the best condition at the moment but it’s his baby
Sorry to say this… This bird is a hot mess!! The roof crack (rust)or paint pealing off the roof. The bubbles on top of the fenders. This is a bad paint job. I wonder what the frame looks like? This is a Puerto Rican special from the Bronx. I grew up in the Bronx and this is what I saw. Especially the tailpipes sticking out through the back. 🤦Back in 70’s . Heater control missing and no hoses going to firewall. I know it’s Florida but really! The price is $4,000 too much. But we know that’s what Mopars go for. At least is a true GTX with a U code for engine (440). Good luck to the next owner. 🇺🇸🐻🇺🇸
…had a similar car in 1971…she was a beaut….then, like a schmuck, I sold it for a ’67 Chrysler 300 convertible…wish I had kept both those cars….could’ve retired earlier….now I have a 2010 Challenger….
What’s with all the shin getter tailpipes lately??
looks like the owner watched too many James Bond movies….if someone is chasing you, SPLAT, oil comes raining at you from those pipes….either that, or they’re friggin’ flamethrowers…or they are “Bronx cockroach killers” (you back the car into a corner and slice and dice those little critters !
Maybe the seller had a pickup before with a trailer hitch
sticking way out of the back,& misses it?
Is it possible that it’s a motor home 440?
For some reason the smartphones try to outsmart me and change my texting I was trying to let you guys know about shot peened cranks or steel cranks that’s what they would come with
in motorhome,s or cop cars good luck guy,s thank you.
Why
Painted numbers suck and the exhaust shout stick out under the bumper about an additional foot.
Florida car. Bubbling on the fender? Scary.
I had a green with white vinyl top 71 GTX 440 4spd car in the early 80’s. Picked it up from a used car lot that it had had a birthday on that they just wanted it gone – for $400. It drove in a straight line fine but cornered like crap. Took it to a friend that had an alignment shop and got the bad news. Car had been wrecked and the frame rails bent in front such that caster/camber/toe was ok going straight but it got all wonky if you turned the wheel left or right. Only way to fix it back then was to scrap it since back then it was dang near impossible to get a unibody straight – at least for the money I had to put into it. So another friend worked in a body shop and one Saturday he put the beast on their Kansas Jack and did what he could for $100 worth of his time and made it a lot better but it was never right. Sold it when he got done for $800 to a guy that wanted to make a drag racer out of it. Never saw the car again
If it is that might not be a bad thing motorhome 440 up till 73 we’re quite often 4406 pack motors with a four-barrel on them meaning of the cop cars had the same motor also right down to the purple Cam as they call it . Of course as usual the secrets in the numbers if you look at the pad on the block it can go if your lucky like this , t meaning taxi or / police car then HP for high performance meaning it would be the 446 pack motor the only difference being a crankshaft same head bells ham everything crankshaft instead of being forged gas or something they change it to shopping for the police cars even on the high performance still balance and blueprinting everything that six pack motor was but the cranks being the only thing changed and there’s nothing wrong with his if you find a Maltese cross on the block it would be t e h440 HP and then there will be a MALTESE cross that would be 10 under crank or shot peened crankshaft,, YOU BETTER STILL BALANCE AND BLUEPRINTING PILLS THE HOUSE PURPLE CAM EVERYTHING THE SAME AS A SIX PACK BUT WITH FOUR WHEELER READY TO GO UP UNTIL 73 AND FROM 73 TO 76 YOU CAN STILL FIND A FEW OF THEM SCATTERED SOME OTHER HOMES IF YOU’RE LUCKY I EVEN PULLED A 413 OUT OF A MOTORHOME, I BUILT 37 MOPARS IN 17 YEARS , PARTED OUT A DOZEN POLICE CARS THE BEST ONE WAS A TRUE INTERCEPTOR 1971 MONACO CALIFORNIA HIGHWAY PATROL CAR IT HAD A WHOLE ROAD SWITCHES SO THEY CAN TURN OFF EACH HEADLIGHTS SEPARATELY AND TAIL LIGHTS AND PULL YOU THAT THEY WEREN’T A COP THEY HAD A TRUE 440 HP SIX PACK MOTOR IN IT WITH A BIG GIANT THERMOQUAD 277 GEARS
Dual OIL FILTER,s ON THE FIREWALL ALL METAL LINE GOING TO A GIANT OIL COOLER ON THE FRONT OF THE RADIATOR ALONG WITH THE GIANT TRANSMISSION FLUID COOLER AND THE BIGest RADIATOR I’VE EVER SEEN FACTORY DUAL SNORKEL ORANGE INTERCEPTOR AIR CLEANER SOMEHOW It FOUND ITS WAY INTO MY 68 CHARGER LOL, THAT CAR WENT SO FAST IT WAS BOUNCING THE NEEDLE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE speedometer AT 150 mph MARK BOUNCING IT I LOVE THAT CAR AND I LOVE ALL THOSE OLD COP CARS THEY’RE A GREAT ..
NOW THE NEW ONES WITH THE CHARGERS THEY SHOULD BE FUN TOO CURRENTLY PUTTING A BLOWER ON a CROWN VIC INTERCEPTOR 136,000 MILES ON IT SLEEPER FROM HELL I HAVE A FEELING THE DEVIL MAY COME BORROW IT FROM ME HIMSELF LOL GOOD LUCk
MOPAR FRIENDS HAVE FUN.
Cool looking car….I like it all. Well…except for the bubble bee yellow color.
The exhaust pipes are kinda funky too !
Body very similar to the Plymouth Satellite.
Compared to what they’re getting for Cuda’s & Chargers of this era,
this is reasonably priced.
The wheel barrow handles are a nice touch! As much as I like it, they were the cheapest cars built at the time
As if a stock 440 needs a cam. Nonsense, but of course, most of this is. Why the high rear end and the over sized tires? This isn’t 1976 anymore. How old is this guy? Did he get his idea of what a car should be from looking at his dads high school yearbook? I agree, that body, and probably frame, are a nightmare to be discovered. Walk away children, no, run away, fast as you can and do not look back lest you turn into a pillar of salt. Of course, being a block of salt might be better than being suckered into buying this hulk of excrement.
Bad day today? Did your football team lose? It’s called “Old School” and these car’s were designed for “Fatties.” But being in America you are entitled to your “Free Speech” opinions and freedoms.
Agreed, these cars look bad with skinnies on them. I used to really dislike this body style but it has grown on me a bit. Still not my favorite but I could be interested for the right price.
Grant writes about how bad this car looks but I think he is the same guy that wrote about how great the new Honda Civic is… Tells me all I need to know.
Mark, have you driven a new Honda Civic? Might surprise you. I would like to think that I have grown with the times. My youth goes back to this era. I miss my youth, but not some of these cars. Yes, they are fine for what they were, and still are for a mile or two drive, but that drive will remind you just how far we have come, and indeed, how lucky we are. New cars handle better, get quintuple the MPG, are far safer, much more comfortable. What is not to like? Shuttle Guy, no, these were not designed for ffatties. If they had been, would have been a factory option.
New cars are nice to drive if you want to disengage and not really be involved in the driving experience. For me they’re just too refined. All the smells, vibrations and necessary driver input is what I personally prefer about the old classics. I’d drive a classic to California from here in Indiana over a new car personally. Make it as mechanically sound as possible before the trip, take a few tools and mark where all the parts stores are on the way. “Why, because getting there’s half the fun. You know that.” (Clark W. Griswold)
I think he’s one of those guys that doesn’t know what the 3rd peddle is for.
60’s would be fine all around!
One of my neighbors had one of these in a plum purple color. Our windows in the house shook when he started it up.
I had a 1970 Chevelle SS convertible that was red with black stripes. My brother had a Camaro. I’m sure the neighborhood really loved it when we started these up to head to high school each morning.
I appreciate these cars more today. I wish I still had mine. I gave it away dirt cheap.
I have little appreciation for any 4 door… If I have 4 doors it’s for riding for comfort only… I don’t like the look of 4 doors although I do own a couple of them. I have a couple old Gen 3 Vettes and a Gen 1 viper as well as an old Ford F150. I prefer driving my old cars to my new cars. I had a Hyundai Genesis Coupe but I really wasn’t all that impressed with it and got rid of it. I’m the spring I will be getting a Hellcat Challenger because I dislike the look of the 4 door Charger.
I don’t know about the rest of you but after reading the comments I’m thinking about trading my restored 69 Camaro for one of them there new Honda Civil, I would never have thought a newer car could be more comfortable, better handling and get better gas mileage than a 60 muscle car, man have I missed the boat…
I’m with ya rat, ain’t nothing better than muscle, these clowns that talk about their updated this and that all that does is give them time to hang on their PHONE’S while driving. How about buy a project car get your hands greasy and appreciate owning a muscle car.
Man, that’s sitting low in the front… hoping it’s just that someone cranked the torsion bars down to give it that slammed look (can it even steer?) but worse-case says that the torsion bars have given up the ghost, or the crossmember mounts have rusted out.
They do sit pretty low at stock height. If anything it’s probable just cranked down torsion bars. The car looks too nice and cared for to me for there to be that much rust damage.
Again with a snide comment about 70s rusty Mopars ??? You writers must be Pentastar haters – With all the rusted away and trashed 60s and 70s Mustangs, Camaros, Chevelles and their corporate cousins , no one ever says
” typical 70s Camaro rot” or something like that. I dont know where you guys are from, but here in the East Coast, EVERY car rusted badly . I remember going to pick up my sister from college in upstate NY, and was amazed to find they rusted even worse there than in CT. You could see the window regulators and peek into the trunk through the rear quarters . I was buying cars for 50 bucks to put in demo derbies that were only 9 or 10 years old, and the people were happy to see their rusty wagon out of their driveway. While there’s no doubt all the cars are desirable the Mopars were made in far fewer numbers , so they can bring in more money then say a 71 Mustang . Another point is that there are fewer reproduction parts available for certain Mopars ; while a Mustang or a Camaro can be built right out of a catalog, a car like this 71 GTX has little or no repro parts available, so a solid one would attract more buyers .
Well said Karl, you’re right on the money.