In the late 1960s, GM and Ford set about to develop their own subcompact automobiles. But Chrysler came at it differently, opting to use captive imports built by Mitsubishi in Japan (as one solution). Beginning in 1971, the Colt began showing up in Dodge showrooms (and over time, Plymouth would get rebadged versions to sell). This 1976 Colt may be the nicest one you’ll find as most have already found their way into junkyards across the land. Located in Abbotsford, across the border in British Columbia, this “Mopar” is available here on craigslist for $13,900 OBO. A nifty tip brought to us by PRA4SNW!
The concept of a captive import worked well enough to carry the Colt through 1994. The second generation appeared in 1974 and lasted for four model years. The Colt was based on Mitsubishi’s Galant and Lancer models (rear-wheel-drive) before shifting to FWD with a rebadged Mirage in 1979. The seller’s car likely has a 2.0-liter inline-4 (96 hp) which is paired with an automatic transmission.
This Colt looks to have been treated with kid gloves from the very beginning. If the interior is original, it appears to have been hardly sat in, which helps account for the odometer reading that’s under 49,000 miles. The paint is new, and the rest of the car looks as tidy as they come. I worked at the local port about the time this auto was built, and I recall there being a steady flow of ships coming in to upload cars like this Dodge Colt.
$13900 is way too high.
Probably would cost you that much (or more?) to restore one to this level.
But there just isn’t much demand for a 76 Dodge Colt in the collector vehicle market.
(Personally, I’d be on-the-fence at $3900.)
🤔💰💰
Gas got to $1 during this oil embargo era. They went insane when it got to 75 cents a gallon under Jimmy Carter. By W, even here in Texas, it got to $5 briefly before heading back to $2.50 – $3. It’s going to be $4 and probably not get cheaper. These light vintage cars will get more popular. Already happening. Some of us remember trying to do our part buying the more responsible cars to stop having wars over oil. Cars like this are actually important.
I posted this earlier and realized I was linking to a “prepper” site, not my intention! Site administrator can feel free to delete my previous post. Here’s the story and graphic from the original source about inflation-adjusted gas prices. An eye-opener!
https://www.titlemax.com/discovery-center/planes-trains-and-automobiles/average-gas-prices-through-history/
It shows the price of gas in historic and inflation-adjusted 2022 dollars going back to 1923 and it has stayed remarkably consistent! The spikes were usually due to world events (wars, recessions, etc) but gas has remained pretty much between $2 – $3 inflation-adjusted for a great many of those years. Gas was cheapest in 1998 ($1.06 then, $1.89 in 2022 dollars). 2020 was the high point at $4.90 when the Russia/Ukraine war started. Also shows relative price of other commodities.
And small cars weren’t always great mileage makers. My 2017 F150 gets better mileage than a 1970 Pinto!
These were tough little cars. Knew a dude that (under various and multiple influences) took his colt “stump jumping”. Ripped the oil pan opened.. still got him home. Replaced with a JDM crate motor a couple months later and just kept going. Always liked the car.. roomie back seat area for a car this small. 4 speed car, not winning any races but enough grunt to be fun.
So light it doesn’t need big grunt. This one is an automatic, so gonna be a bit of a turtle. But still a comfortable decent car. Mitsubishi Japanese Colt cars were very good quality except not the most thorough rust protection. Which is why they are getting scarce in good shape like this. Perfect first car for someone perhaps.
Perfect first car? Not In my book. Agree with you mostly.. but I’m old school and a first car should always be a manual transmission car.. teach them to drive anything 👍
Seller a little high but that’s not too far off. I do believe the engine is the 1.6 liter. I wonder if the Hyundai 1.6 fuel injection and CDI ignition could be adapted to the current setup. If so, would be a fantastic little gem to drive on basic errands. Too much brake and suspension to do “Big motor swapper!” to impress the fellers. Plus would need to reinforce the shock and motor mounts, as well as driveshaft and trans mounts. Very expensive. Just get it reliable. It’s only 2100 pounds. Should get 33mpg+ if done properly. The Mitsubishi cars badged as Dodge were the best cars in Dodge dealerships in this era. Strange how their quality tailed off and presence almost disappeared. They were excellent cars in the era. The 2.6 was a fantastic engine in the wagon available 1980 I believe. I won’t say a number, but he’s not unreasonable. Go find one this clean anywhere. But pretty sure it’s a 1.6 and about 85 HP.
I worked at a dealership when these cars were new. Great little cars and fun to drive. Loved the twin stick version with a separate shifter that selected either direct or overdrive.
red, white, and blue for the spirit of 76
Would have been a 1.6, I think, that early on. The 2.6 was used in cars like the Arrow and the Challenger/Sapporo lines.
The Dodge Colts were always Mitsubishi, but the early Plymouth Cricket, though similar looking, was derived from a British car. It was not successful and later Plymouths were badge engineered siblings to the Dodge.
Trivia note: A shipload of 300 Dodge Colts ran aground on BC’s west coast in 1972 and many of the cars were salvaged from the shipwreck.
https://japanesenostalgiccar.com/300-mitsubishis-were-shipwrecked-off-the-coast-of-canada-in-1972/
https://www.nauticapedia.ca/Gallery/Vanlene.php
I rented a Plymouth Arrow (basically same car as this) in LA in 76 or 77 when on vacation and drove it hard for 2 weeks, including a trip to Phoenix and back. That little 1.6L four cylinder ran like a Swiss watch and cruised easily at 75 on the Interstate. I was very impressed. Then I flew back home to PA and got into my Vega and realized what a POS that was, not that I didn’t know that already. There were very good reasons why Japanese cars became so popular in the 70s. $13,000 sounds a bit high to me though.
However, if we only drove what we “needed”, would there be a classic car market? I drive an Avalanche because I like the way it drives and I occasionally put stuff in the bed. I’m willing to endure the 17.4 mpg because I like it and there’s no payments attached. Also, I bought it used for under $8,000 so I can afford plenty of gas. I like the Colt, I had one of those in 1976 and it was a good car. It needs to be a stick though to make it fun to drive. If you just want dependable transportation that gets good gas mileage, a Honda Civic fills the bill and will blow the doors off this car.
You missed GM…some of the worst of the bunch !
I had two Mitsubishi products: a 1979 Plymouth Arrow Sport pickup truck and a 1980 Dodge Colt station wagon, both with the 2.6 liter engine and 5 speed manual transmissions. Great vehicles, good power for the era (105 HP) and very reliable. Bought both new. Don’t see these anymore. GLWTA.
Whoa! I haven’t seen one of those on the road since the high school days, and the ones I did see weren’t even close to being in that good a shape. Still, that asking price is just a bit of a stretch. Hope the seller doesn’t have his/her fingers crossed too hard.
These cars are very loved amongst the Latino community, let the right person see it and it will sell.
We had a 1982 Plymouth Champ (Dodge Colt clone); it was the only car my Dad ever bought new and it was a great car. It was so much better in every way than the Mercury Bobcat he traded on it that it wasn’t even close. Didn’t seem like it at the time, but it’s a really tiny car. Scary small. Don’t want to think about what would have happened in an accident. Seeing one now and thinking that we packed four people and all our stuff in it to drive to Myrtle Beach defies belief, but we did.
I had an 84 colt
The problem I had with it was the crankshaft snapped into two separate pieces at a lofty 78000 miles. Went to replace the engine could not pull it because of the special tool needed to pull the head and unbolt the engine to the transmission. Apparently I was supposed to take it to a Mitsubishi dealer to do that. After that I had a leBaron with a Mitsubishi engine, was not impressed and a Montero which when I needed to replace the control arm bushings, I couldn’t get the dumb things except at a Mitsubishi dealer. For an exorbitant price mind you. So anytime I see Mitsubishi I run. Which should be a warning anyway. I should never buy a vehicle from the same company who made the aircraft that attacked pearl harbor
Drop a HEMI in it and go to the track!
they did later biff. 2.6 liters of neck snapping power lol
i am driving one of this cars big sisters (challenger) with the 2.6 and a 5 speed
24ish around town and crowding 35mpg on the highway. it’s actually pretty snappy. be warned parts for these captive mitsubishis are made of unobtanium. i have had to do alot of ebaying and “that will fit and work” parts for stuff i can’t source through regular channels. some stuff i do get surprised by it being on the shelf still.
this one is a really really clean example. someone is going to get a nice ride.
even if it is too rich for my taste.
Sox & Martin tribute as a 70s Pro-stock is about the only way to make this cool. Too pristine to cut up and not desirable enough to baby as a survivor. It’s a tough niche. I hope the seller is lucky enough to find the one person on the planet looking for this opportunity.
Owner one exactly …well almost…mine was a 5 speed stick…my 1st car…points ignition..learned how to set timing and do tune ups on it..great vehicle…
Price is steep but if I had it I would try for that and see what happens. The longer I have my new car the more I’m thinking about selling it and just going back to cars like this where you actually have to drive and pay attention to your surroundings.
This would make a perfect companion to my newly restored Plymouth Cricket (don’t ask). I love the interior and condition but the price is unrealistic.
Hey Robin, I have a Plymouth Cricket tieclasp (among other Mopar memorabilia) that I got from my dad from when he worked for Chrysler back in the 60’s & 70’s. I didn’t know there were any still on the road. That’s more rare than the Colt!
A guy I know has one of those, I think his car is a 1975. He suffed a Ford 302 engine with aluminum heads and a Demon carb in it. I don’t remember which transmission or rear-end it has, but I suppose both are Ford too. You can hear that car from a 2-block distance. BTW, we’re in Puerto Rico, where someone recently put a rotary engine on an otherwise factory-looking restored 1967-68 convertible Mustang. Both are examples of things I wouldn’t do, but I would be first-in-line to see the results when someone else does it.
A high school buddy got to drive his dad’s ’76 Colt, right after he got his license. Took it to the local car cruise hangout, and got laughed out of there. Flipped a kid in an old Nova off, as we were leaving and the fun began. A Dodge Colt surrounded by 4 bigger vehicles at 70 mph, isn’t the safest place to be! Good times….
We had one and one of my wife’s friends said when she saw it “I am happy you bought an American car”
I had one in South Africa, drove it several times on a 600 mile return trip from the coast to 6000 ft before selling it to a fellow who used it as a taxi. About 3 years later he phoned me to see if I knew of another one for sale as it was now rusting to death on the coast, not because of any mechanical problems even after he told me that it had now done over 200,000 miles! He was he was very impressed by it.
This is a very nice looking car, I’m loving the seats. I see so many cars on BF that I want but don’t need, so I can only look. My stable is full. It’s like going into the hobby shop when I was a kid and wanted a dozen model cars but only had money enough for one. I’m not sure, but I believe these had a shaft in the engine that was balanced to counter act the vibration that is common in four cylinder engines. It made the engine extremely smooth and quiet. I don’t really have an opinion on the price as I don’t remember ever seeing one for sale. The price is OBO so probably could be had for something less than the price shown, depending on how many calls he gets from interested buyers.
I don’t believe the 1600 engines had a balance shaft but the 2600 engines did, can’t remember about the 2000 ones. I had a 75 Colt with a 1600, my parents had an 80 Plymouth Sapporo with a 2600. The automatic transmissions made the cars seem gutless, much better with a standard.
I really think that the Chrysler Corp. / Mitsubishi offerings were really great. I’ve never owned one, but would not turn my back if a nice Challenger / Sapporo showed up locally.
I love this ad:
Back then? You’d have blended right into those seats, wearing the wide lapel plaid sport coats that were all the rage.
Waaaaay too much, especially with an automatic. The Arrows and Challengers/Sapporos were more attractive cars, but still nowhere near worth $14k.
I was in the “foreign” car fixing biz back in the 70s, never liked seeing these come in. The carbs were the worst. Was little about them that was special imo.
I was a tech at a Chevy dealer back in the 70s and I remember the carbs on the Chey LUV (Isuzu) pickup truck being a nightmare. After years of swearing “I’ll NEVER own a fuel injected car, I can always fix a carburetor at the side of the road”, it was the Japanese carbs (and other early emissions era overly complicated carbs) that made me a convert to fuel injection. Today even my 150cc scooter has electronic fuel injection, and I’ll never go back.
I’ve had 4 mitsubishi cars since 2011, now with a 23 Outlander. None of them has ever required any repairs, other than maintenance. They make great vehicles
Mitsubishi used to build a good car in the mid 70’s – 90’s – but I don’t think your problem free experience is typical of late models. I worked for a large used car dealer that reconditioned all brands of cars for resale up to 11 years old. If the cost of reconditioning got too high, the car would be sold at auction as opposed to the public. The Mitsubishis rarely made it thru the system as they were always in bad shape – even the low mileage ones. I would never recommend buying one built after 2000. The Eclipse was especially bad – almost permanent check eng light!
I had a high school friend that had one of these, with bias ply tires. All I remember, it was NO fun going around corners.
The escutcheon is absolutely appalling. I love it!
The car is overpriced, i agree, though price is a buyer’s issue and there are things one just wants. Were i better-heeled (which i could be if i walked less and was riding in a Plymouth Colt), I might pay what i had to to have what i’d have to have and be glad i had it.
Because it would be escutcheoned!
Till the roving bands of teenagers heard about it.
Dreams don’t all die hard, but they do die.
The UPHOLSTERY is astonishing. Anybody here seen the Bogie-Bacall flick “Dark Passage”? A similarly robust appointment figures in the storyline.
I don’t know if heavily striped seatcovers were the rage before “Dark Passage” but the interior of the car Bogie stole in the movie could have caused the style to take the same dive Agnes Moorehead eventually does.
$4000?
My ex had one like this one except maroon with white interior and a 5 spd. Drove it from S.L.C. to Elko NV. and back every weekend. 0 issues. There was one of these that was that model here in S.L.C. that someone put a 318 in it. Put a shortened ford 9″. Tubbed. Absolutely did everything right. It needed some finish work but was real nice. He sold it for $2,500.00. If I hadn’t already bought my Camaro, it would be sitting in my driveway. Dig the body style. Hate to say it but hopefully it gets the same treatment that one did. It was truly a car to appreciate.
We had one as our first vehicle in 1986. A women was coming down our street in Chicago when the transmission suddenly dropped rendering the vehicle useless. My dad offered her $150 and she wanted $ 200 they settled on $175. My dad pushed it into the garage where he reinstalled the tranny and said here you go guys it would not shift past first but in Chicago who cares. Best of my recollection it was the same exact car and seats color and all.