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Original 440/Six-Pack: 1969 Plymouth Road Runner Coupe

The Plymouth Road Runner was a genuine muscle car with no bells or whistles. For buyers who couldn’t justify the expense of ordering their new Plymouth with the fire-breathing Hemi under the hood, the company introduced the A12 option in February of 1969. It brought a few notable upgrades to improve the Road Runner’s already impressive performance. Chief among these was the legendary 440ci Six-Pack V8, and our feature car is one of those vehicles. It is a rock-solid and original classic that would make a rewarding restoration project. The Plymouth is located in Rushford, Minnesota, and is listed for sale here on eBay. Bidding has raced past the reserve to sit at $41,200.

Finished in Limelight, the A12 Road Runner could have been a genuine sleeper. There were no huge badges or decals to help it stand out, while it rolled on 6″ steel wheels that ignored hubcaps and trims in favor of chrome lugnuts. People would have been none the wiser if it had not been for the lift-off fiberglass hood with the enormous scoop. There’s no denying this Plymouth requires restoration, but the indications are that the process should be pretty straightforward. The panels sport no significant dings or dents, with any imperfections easy to fix without replacing steel. The story is similar when we confront the subject of rust. The underside shots reveal spotless floors that wear much of their original paint. Any rust problems externally would appear minor, and the buyer could address these with simple patches. Some of the trim and chrome items have seen better days, and the next owner will need to spend money there. The rear glass on the driver’s side looks to be missing, but the rest seems okay. Without an in-person inspection, I couldn’t be sure, but I believe that the wheels and lugnuts may be original.

Since the 1969 Road Runner is a genuine muscle car, buyers could expect stunning performance when they nailed the loud pedal. Even the entry-level 383ci V8 could launch the Plymouth through the ¼ mile in 14.4 seconds. If a buyer stumped up the extra cash for a Hemi, that figure dropped to 13.4 seconds. Some buyers wanted more than the 383 offered but couldn’t justify the expense of a Hemi. That’s where the A12 option filled the void from February 1969. As well as the fiberglass hood with the functional scoop, the drivetrain received some tasty upgrades. For an additional $462.80 over the Road Runner’s sticker price of $2,945, buyers received the legendary 440ci Six-Pack V8 that churned out an impressive 390hp. That figure remains short of the 425hp produced by the Hemi, but on a “bang for your bucks” basis, it represented excellent value. Buyers could choose from two transmissions, with our Road Runner featuring a four-speed manual that feeds the power to a 4.11 Dana 60 rear end. While it wasn’t as fast as the Hemi-equipped version, the A12 could turn in sub-14-second passes with ease. For potential buyers, the news appears to be nothing but positive. The seller indicates that this is a complete numbers-matching classic and that he holds the VIN Tag, Fender Tag, and Build Sheet confirming its authenticity. The Road Runner doesn’t run or drive, but returning it to that state should prove enormously satisfying.

Before spending a dime on this Road Runner’s interior, I would expend some time and effort to deep clean everything. It looks like many of the upholstered surfaces could prove okay, but a few trim pieces are missing. These include the trim around the radio, some window regulator handles, and the horn ring off the wheel. Locating these parts shouldn’t prove a challenge, and if the upholstery is okay, this part of the restoration may prove the least expensive. Otherwise, reproduction interior trim in the correct material and pattern remains readily available.

With such a late introduction into the product range, the A12 1969 Road Runner didn’t sell in huge numbers. You are more likely to spot a Hardtop version in the current market than a Coupe like our feature car. Plymouth produced a mere 388 examples equipped with the four-speed manual transmission, making this a relatively rare muscle car. I initially saw that rarity as ample justification for someone to return it to its former glory, but it isn’t that simple. It is a First Generation Road Runner, representing the muscle car genre in its purest form. That is reason enough for someone to return it to its original state. The rarity and drivetrain combination just happens to be the icing on a pretty tasty cake. Would you consider making a play for this classic?

Comments

  1. Avatar Harvey Member

    Over $40,000 and any toddler on a tricycle can leave this one in the dust:-)

    Like 4
    • Avatar stillrunners

      Your right – needs a battery .

      Like 2
    • Avatar Chris

      Is bout collective bud and with a procharger on it will dust most any cars out there making 700-800 hp considering SC on it as stock is at 475h

      Like 0
  2. Avatar bobhess Member

    Can’t believe that’s a color/combination a major manufacturer would put out. It’s as close to ugly as you can get compared to everything else out there in muscle car land.

    Like 4
    • Avatar stillrunners

      Yep – just like the competition’s green pea soup offerings.

      Like 4
    • Avatar karl

      Jeez, some people just cant put a positive comment on any Mopar posted – You dont think any other muscle car could have had this color combination ? How about tan or dull gold ? There must have been 18 exterior paint choices just for Mopars ,and I’d bet GM and Ford had about the same . They aren’t all red with black interiors like at cruise nights !

      Like 6
      • Avatar Leslie Martin Member

        I had a forest green 69 Dart Swinger 340. I thought the dark green just added to the sleeper vibe. For all the times I blew the doors off unsuspecting Camaros and Mustangs, nobody ever said “hey that green car is too ugly to be that fast” :-)

        Like 7
  3. Avatar Melton Mooney

    The A12 cars are as serious as muscle got in the 60s. I restored an A12 Superbee in the 90s. It ran 12.90s with nothing but a cam upgrade. It eventually ran 11s with the same cam, open headers, ported 906 heads and carb tweaks…and it never broke. it did eat its way through a lot of clutches though.

    Like 35
  4. Avatar Jcjc

    Would respectfully disagree with the author that this was a sleeper. Looked meaner than Christine on fire and probably sounded like thunder.

    Like 27
  5. Avatar Brad Chipman

    Had this car same color with 383 4spd. Paid 400.00 for it. Times have changed

    Like 11
  6. Avatar reinmd21811

    I had a lot of clutch problems as well with my car until I switched to a SPEC Stage III 6 puck unit. Needs a little slipping until it gets warmed up then it’s the best clutch I have ever used in over 50 years of owning manual shift vehicles

    Like 6
  7. Avatar Gunner

    A very rare and extremely desirable Mopar. Especially considering it’s originality. That would probably be the reason the auction has ended early. A top 10 Musclecar.

    Like 5
  8. Avatar Howie

    No longer available.

    Like 2
  9. Avatar Michael Berkemeier

    I remember this car from a while back when it was first for sale. This is the one. If I could have one to restore and wanted to afford what it would take to get this one to 100%, this would be the car.

    …and, it’s gone.

    Like 5
  10. Avatar Phil Stevens

    I bought the exact twin to this car off the lot in November of 1969. $ 3400. and change. Never should have sold it!!!
    Stupid me.

    Like 7
  11. Avatar Leslie Martin Member

    I hate to be pedantic about this, but the M-code 440 in A12 cars was known as a “Six Barrel” not a “Six Pack” as it was known in the Dodge Super Bee’s.

    The only part that will be hard to come by for this restoration is the steering wheel horn pad and with the “Beep Beep” horn button. Almost everything else is readily available or reproduced. Would not be a bad care to restore and not that hard to do it!

    Like 5
    • Avatar Lynn Dockey Member

      U beat me to the 6 barrel comment

      Like 4
    • Avatar MikeP

      I’m a novice here: so 6 pack is Dodge and 6 barrel is Plymouth? Thank you.

      Like 1
      • Avatar Lynn Dockey Member

        Yes.

        Like 1
  12. Avatar Troy s

    An honest street racers special in every conceivable way direct from Dodge/Chrysler/Plymouth. At your dealers kids! COME ON DOWN! What a great car, the color only adds to the demonic nature of this beast.

    Like 2
  13. Avatar Jim

    Looks like a 1970 front seat my 69 was original and a friend har a 70 with a seat just like the car listed

    Like 0
  14. Avatar PRA4SNW

    The seller saw this shoot up over their 40K reserve almost immediately, so ended the auction because of a “mistake”.

    Can’t blame the seller for grabbing as much as they can while these things are hot.

    Like 1

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