Dodge waited until 1970 to get into the pony car market, sharing its platform with the new Barracuda. The market for these cars was peaking by then, so sales never approached those of the Ford Mustang or Chevy Camaro, but respectable for Chrysler. Of the five years the car was in initial production, convertibles were only offered the first two years – like this sharp-looking survivor from 1971. This Challenger resides in Temple, New Hampshire and is available here on eBay where the bidding is up to $33,200, but the reserve has not been met. However, the seller discloses he set it at $39,000, so whoever get closest to that number will have themselves a sweet ragtop.

The best sales year for the ‘70s Challenger was its introduction year of 1970, when Dodge pumped out just shy of 77,000 copies. 1971 saw a sharp decline to 26,000 units, attesting to the market and competition. Less than 1,900 of the ’71 Challengers were convertibles with under 1,800 of those having some form of V-8. There would be no Challenger convertibles for 1972 or the rest of the car’s run. Less than 12,000 Challengers were built in 1974, after which the car retired for 35 years at 165,000 automobiles produced (excluding a Mitsubishi import with that name later in the ‘70s). Thanks to Challenger Forumz for the production info.

This 1971 Dodge Challenger is likely rare today given the initial low production and survival rate after almost 50 years. Prior to the seller acquiring it, this was a one owner car that comes with a ton of documentation, including the factory build sheet. We believe that most of paint is original (and beautiful), but the seller indicates that some work was done in 1980 to repair floor panels and quarter panels, so the latter would have involved some touch-up. Otherwise, there is no rust although the seller suggests some small ripples on the bodysides which likely came that way when the car was new. The convertible top is also original, but the plastic back window has been replaced and may be the source of a small water leak. Who wants to drive it in the rain anyway!

Except for the dash cover, the interior is said to be original and carries itself well. All the controls work as they should, although you’ll get mostly static out of the radio. The seller believes he has the original boot for the top cover, but the car will come with a new one, just not installed. The car is powered by a numbers-matching Mopar 318 cubic inch V-8 coupled with the Slap-Stick automatic and both are said to perform well. The engine has been rebuilt, although the seller doesn’t know at what mileage or to what extent.

A small fortune seems to have been expended recently on the mechanics of the car, so we’ll try to list just major ones here. The tab for all that work is said to total $14,000.

• custom exhaust manifold, Edelbrock carburetor, air cleaner and valve covers
• suspension work including bushings, bearings, torsion bars, sway bars, shocks and tie-rod ends
• stainless-steel dual exhaust
• stainless-steel gas tank
• all new brakes, brake lines and master cylinder
• new wheels and tires
• new alternator and a rebuild of the distributor

There is more to the list of stuff that has been fixed or replaced, but the seller lists everything in one long paragraph with some repetition, so we may have left something off.

At 97,000 miles, this Challenger has been well-kept, with a lot of work done to keep it that way. Hagerty pegs these cars in the mid-30s in terms of resale value. Looking at some of the other ads on the net, they might be a low or people are just asking for big money. So, the seller’s idea of the value of this car is not unreasonable, as long as you have that kind of money to spend, that is.