The Road Runner was developed by Plymouth as the budget-minded version of their upscale GTX performance car. After three successful years, the car was redesigned for 1971 using a more rounded “fuselage” look that was in sync with current Chrysler styling trends, which included a steeply raked windshield, hidden cowl, and deeply inset grille and headlights. This is one of those cars and has something of a “Halloween” look to it inside and out with the use of orange and black colors. Located in Magnolia, Texas, it’s going to need some work but has a recently rebuilt drivetrain. Available here on eBay, the bidding has reached $15,700, but the reserve has not yet been met.

Second-generation Road Runners would not be as popular as the first, but the muscle car landscape had changed, and Chrysler also did some reorganizing within its line-up at Dodge and Plymouth. At 13,664 units plus a few export cars, production of the 1971 Road Runner was down considerably from its peak in 1969. Those numbers included just fifty-five installations of the 426 Hemi, which would be gone for 1972. The 383 V8 with a TorqueFlite automatic was the most popular selection at 7,952 copies, including what was the original set up in the seller’s car.

As the story goes, this car had the same owner from 1974 until recently. Said owner had died some time ago and the family didn’t know what to do with the car, so it sat for some time in a barn in west Texas. Before his passing, the original 383 was replaced by a G-code 440 cubic inch V8 from the same model year and it was rebuilt (by the seller) just a few months ago. The transmission was given the same treatment along with a new torque converter and both only have break-in miles on them.

Most of the Tor Red paint is original (code EV2, which was called Hemi Orange at Dodge but Tor Red at Plymouth, which was a play on the word “torrid”). The engine compartment was repainted when the drivetrain was out. And the trunk floor was replaced and repainted as it had rusted out. The floorboards are said to be in good condition although a fresh coat of primer in the back suggests a patch or two. Some work was also done on both rear quarter panels and the lower channel of the rear window was replaced with a deck filler panel.

The car had a black vinyl top which was removed, so the rear window is currently out of the car. The seller sprayed the entire top with black epoxy to protect it from the elements. Some rust remains around the A-pillars and windshield area. Most of the interior pieces will need to be redone and photos provided show the car with them installed and then not when the seller pulled out the worn carpeting.

By 1971, the Road Runner was shedding its budget muscle car image and this one comes with plenty of options, like power steering and brakes and factory air conditioning. The color combination chosen is said to have originated at the factory, so if you’re into Halloween, the orange and black would be right up your alley (although in some of the photos, it looks more red than orange). In top condition, this ’71 Road Runner could one day be a $50,000 car with a lot more work. But the lack of a numbers-matching motor would put a dent in that number.