The Valiant-based Scamp was Plymouth’s version of Dodge’s successful Dart Swinger. It was a 2-door hardtop that joined the Mopar lineup in 1971, two years after the Swinger. Sales were brisk for several years, hovering around 50,000 units/annum. This 1973 edition has a freshly rebuilt 225 cubic inch Slant-Six with a few tweaks. Located in Ferndale, Washington, this lively compact has other new stuff and is available here on craigslist for $8.250. Another sporty tip from “Curvette.”
Scamps were not known for performance, as the Slant-Six and a 318 V8 were your choices. That was unlike the Swinger, which could be had with the hot 340, but only in 1970. The Scamp and Swinger left the rough stuff to the Duster and Demon fastbacks. The seller’s Scamp seems to be nicely trimmed with a TorqueFlite transmission, sunroof, and a full vinyl top, but no factory air conditioning. No mention is made of any power assistance, such as the steering or brakes.
For a car that goes to shows and has won at least one award, the seller makes no real effort with photos. They’re all closeups in the garage (except one), and none are of the engine. It appears to be a solid car, and the Sunflower Yellow paint could be original. We’re told the interior is brand new, and it looks quite good. But the Plymouth has traveled 148,000 miles, so things do wear out.
Besides a rebuilt 6-banger, other new parts include the shock absorbers, anti-roll bars fore and aft, front disc brakes, larger drum brakes out back, and dual pipes. So, the Scamp should be substantially peppier than it was 52 years ago. This Plymouth is one of 53,000 produced in 1973 and 235,000 across six model years. The Scamp was retired along with the Valiant in 1976.
Would have been better with more engine photos, so we could see what a Leaning Tower of Power can look like!
i am cautiously optimistic… seems like a lot of car for very little money
Factory sun roof is quite rare. Lousy pictures, though.
Anything under $10000 this nice seems like a bargain.
I think we all agree very nice car with no photos. I had a 1969 plain Jane and loved it and passed on to my son. I don’t think the price is out of line, but more pictures or a in person look would make it better.
Beauty ride. I notice the E-brake handle is bent. Wonder how many power slides were done in it?
This is no where near original , more like a cobbled together car trying to pass off as an original. The paint isn’t a factory 73 color, and Mopar never painted the steel dash with glossy paint ,and certainly not with the gold interior- it would have been a matte gold.The seats are redone incorrectly as well, there was no brown , and it also has a Dart steering wheel. The grille as usual has been painted black for performance , not argent as it was from the factory. There are some awful chunky aftermarket side moldings as well as some cheapo hubcaps and trim rings. The way this car is,and with no photos of the sunroof on a vinyl top car, I’d venture its an aftermarket unit as well. It’s certainly not worth the asking price
There are no power brakes on that car. The “cars & coffee” pic on the Craigslist listing has a distant “hood open” shot that reveals little, but the top of a vacuum booster would be visible in that shot if it had one.
I’m more curious as to why the instrument panel and steering column have been painted yellow. Even if that car was Sunfire Yellow (It’s not, as Sunfire Yellow wasn’t available in ’73 — it’s JY3, Honey Gold), the instrument panel and steering column should be painted to match the interior (steering wheel, instrument panel pad, upholstery, etc.) in a matte finish paint.
As others have stated, those interior colors just don’t look right. Trying to sell a car with 5 lousy photos and you can’t even pull it out of the garage?
The Mopar knowledge base on BF is awesome! I didn’t pick up on anything you guys pointed out. Kudos! What stood out to me was dual exhaust on a slant six. A tricky exhaust manifold,twice pipes, and two mufflers for zero power gains is a waste of time and money for this pooch.
If you are going to advertise dual exhaust, the very least you could do is provide a shot of the header. Or perhaps it is just a single pipe split into tips?
BF comments can pick apart details like no other.
Lousy pictures make the price seem unreasonable.
The color of the seats is not a factory color.
In terms of performance enhancements it is not very clear to me how this 225 is better than the next guys