We’ve seen a whopping total of three 1974 Dodge Dart four-door sedans here on Barn Finds, which isn’t a lot. I love the design of the fourth-generation Dart sedan, it’s formal yet affordable, with nice details and practical interior room. This 1974 Dodge Dart Custom Sedan can be found listed here on eBay in White City, Oregon, and the current bid is $1,900, but the reserve hasn’t been met yet.
The seller says this Dart sedan was owned by a little old lady in Pasadena – that would be a great song title! Actually, they referred to the previous owner in a much more respectful way as an older woman from Pasadena. She drove the car to Oregon at some point, presumably moving there, and then lost her license due to… presumably being too old to drive? It then sat in a garage for 30 to 40 years.
There isn’t one thing I don’t like about this design; the condition is nice and could be nicer with some elbow grease. The fourth-generation Dodge Dart was made from 1966 for the 1967 model year, until the end of 1976 when the Dodge Aspen took over. Make mine a Dart every time. This color doesn’t have an exotic name, being “Gold Metallic”, but this is a Dart after all. There is some rust to deal with in the spare tire well in the trunk. The 1973 Dart has a beautiful rear bumper, coming right before the 1974 model year’s 5 mph standards were required.
The seller says a new vinyl top was put on, and there was no rust under it. The car does look rust-free (other than the spare tire well), but we don’t see any underside photos. The interior looks great, but they do mention some heat issues, and it wasn’t caused by the hot California sun. The Almeda fire in Phoenix, Oregon apparently caused some minor damage to both front headrests and to the rear passenger side door armrest. Sadly, the seller doesn’t show photos of the headrests. Hopefully those can be found. The back seat looks great, and this nice brocade pattern is hard to beat.
This engine “photo” is a screenshot of the video the seller provided, since they didn’t take any engine photos. This is a Chrysler 225-cu.in. OHV slant-six with 105 horsepower and 180 horsepower by 1974. Backed by a three-speed TorqueFlite sending power to the rear wheels, having the AC on will drain the power, but it isn’t currently working so no need to turn it on. This one runs and drives well, and has a new gas tank, a new radiator, and a new fuel pump, as well as some recent brake work. It does need work on the wiper bushings, the speedometer, and the fuel gauge. Are any of you into the formal Dart sedans of this era?
I remember when Dodge Darts and Plymouth Valiants used to be everywhere. It always seemed like they all had Slant 6 motors too. 105 HP and 180 FT pounds of torque doesn’t sound like much, well, because it isn’t. But it was ample enough to keep up with traffic and get decent fuel mileage to boot. It’s in very well kept condition all things considered. I definitely believe this was owned by a little elderly woman for sure. Hope it goes to a good new home and gets preserved.
I also remember Darts and Valiants being everywhere. Good to see one which has survived, and looks to be in reasonably good shape. I agree with Scotty’s fine write-up, this was a cleanly styled, attractive car in its day. I hope it goes to someone who will enjoy it for what it is.
My stepdad traded in his ’66 Monaco at Spitzer Dodge in Columbus, and brought home this exact car. I took my driver’s license exam in that car. Dad’s had the 318.
Years later, around 2005, one just like this popped up on ebay, and on a whim I bid 1K and then went to work. When I got home that evening, I had won the car. It was a great car, low miles, no rust, perfect condition really. You can’t buy a car like that for $1000 these days. But my wife said I looked like an old man in that car. So, I put a for sale sign on it, and a high school girl across the street just loved it and bought it.
These were bread-and-butter daily cars back in the ’70s, dead reliable and nice -driving comfortable cars.
This engine invented the the phrase bulletproof
I’ll agree with the author on the clean, simple lines. The vinyl roof and chrome window package adds a little uptick to the clean and simple.
That spare tire well makes me wonder what the underside looks like; hope it’s nothing more than water somehow sat under the tire & ate away at the metal. The rusty rim on the spare could bear that out.
I love the description “Leaning Tower of Power” – doesn’t get much better than that. A mechanic I knew went to a Chrysler tech session back in the day. The presenting engineer was asked why the Slant 6s seemed to last so long. He explained the internal tolerances were pretty generous thus “… nothing touches. Y’all might have thought of that…”
I’ll agree with the author on the clean, simple lines. The vinyl roof and chrome window package adds a little uptick to the clean and simple.
That spare tire well makes me wonder what the underside looks like; hope it’s nothing more than water somehow sat under the tire & ate away at the metal. The rusty rim on the spare could bear that out.
My parents had a couple of whipped out Mercedes, and a bunch of VWs and Toyotas, when these Darts were new, but still, when I heard the word “car” back then, this is that I pictured. Working gauges would be nice, but it’s still pretty cheap for a car that will probably never strand you.
The fire got to the armrest and the headrests, but nothing else? Cool!
My very first car was a ’74 Valiant with a slant-six. It was rock solid. Sold it about a year later to raise $$ for a ’73 Charger. A couple of years later, I ran across it in the boneyard. The new owner trashed it. Sad ending for a good car.
Mom shopped a Dodge Dart with a 318 and A/C before she bought a one-year old ’72 Maverick in 1973 (bad mistake), the new Dart was too much money she said. Given what we ended up spending in repairs for the Ford, the Dart would have been a better choice! A classic case of “penny wise and pound foolish”! Initially she insisted on a V8 like the 215 V8 in her ’61 Buick Special, but that requirement died when she saw what the V8 engine option cost in the Dart and Nova (the Maverick wouldn’t get a V8 option until ’73, IIRC).
Imagine how bad the Aspen/Volare were when the ancient and beyond basic Dart/Valiant were preferable. I can validate that statement as we had a new ‘76 Volare Premier wagon with the 225 but otherwise loaded. It was a horrible car and broken so frequently that the Plymouth dealer kept a fleet of loaner cars for customer use at no charge. In 1976. At a Plymouth dealer! Regardless, we frequently had these loaners and they were usually Duster’s, occasionally with the 318. A 318 Duster wasn’t fast, but between the light weight and the torquey 318, plus the skinny bias plus these inexpensive cars came with, Smokey burnouts were a stab of the accelerator away! And brake torquing could result in a slow controlled one-wheel peel for about 100 yards with copious smoke! I absolutely hated that Volare but the V8 Duster was fun, I’d have lived some wheel time in a 340 or 360 Duster!
Auction update: bidding ended at $3,200 and no sale.