The second I spied this 1966 Dodge Charger, I thought to myself, “Looks like L.A.” and sure enough it is. I’ve spent a bit of time, over the last ten years, in southern California and there are lots of interesting, old cars squirreled away in narrow backyards and alleys. It really is a mecca for such finds as the climate is perfect for body preservation and emission inspection rules don’t apply to ’75 and older models. Today’s find, a first-year, first-gen Dodge Charger isn’t exactly all together but it is an interesting study regardless. Tag along and I’ll show you what’s here.
The Charger was big news in ’66 and sold well with 37K copies. The virtually identical ’67, however, with sales of less than half of the inaugural year, was a big disappointment for Dodge. No worries, the uber-successful, and collectible, ’68-’70 edition more than made up for ’67’s shortcomings. The seller tells us that his car has, “No rust on body” but there is photographic evidence of surface rust here and there. The body is a bit banged up and with the trunk lid raised, you can see what was probably the original “Dodge Silver Poly” hue that has since been refinished in what is now a faded red. Other observations are the disconnected hood, broken taillight lens, and rust penetrated, bent rear bumper. Unfortunately, there are no listing images of this Charger’s front or passenger side.
There’s no mention of what originally powered this Charger and the VIN isn’t provided so that will remain an unknown. But…there is a Hemi engine on board, in this case, a 2008 Dodge Charger powerplant so it’s likely to be either a 5.7 or 6.1-liter variety. The listing mentions that the engine is “not connected” so it’s a non-runner. The transmission type is not stated.
The interior’s gray upholstery shows surprisingly well and the seller refers to it as “original leather” but I imagine it’s vinyl. The notable aspect of the interior is the full-length, front-to-back center console that separates the front and rear bucket seats. The dash and instrument panel seem to be complete and intact but the LA sun has done a number on the rear shelf.
While not holding the market value of the second-gen Charger, a first-gen example such as this ’66 edition is a worthwhile discovery. The circumstances with the engine, however, are troubling. I generally eschew these types of projects and prefer to focus on cars that still possess their correct engines, running or not – there’s no telling what you’ll end up with as far as this modern Hemi engine goes. As previously stated, the seller states that it’s “not connected”, if it ever were, and that could be a substantial undertaking – assuming that the engine is worth connecting. You can review more, here on eBay where this Dodge fastback is available for a BIN price of $4,800, OBO. Tell me, what would you do with this Dodge?
I remember back in the day when “fastback” became a hot selling point for muscle cars with all the companies jumping on the bandwagon by adding a sloping roof to whatever they had. Barracuda, ,Marlin, Charger etc.
gippy, Even the Mustang ended up with a fastback in 1966.
Even full size cars got in on the fastback craze , the Galaxie and Impala were two of them and the mid size Torino
It’s amazing the interior seats are in such good shape.
The 08 Hemi is a 5.7, the 6.1’s have a beautiful intake manifold that you can’t miss. I guess for 5k you can’t really go wrong. If the 5.7 runs well you could probably get 5k just for that. I have kind of always liked these first year Chargers but unless you are super familiar with them this looks like a lot of head aches…and money…and surprises..GLWTA
The 5.7 Hemi’s don’t bring that kind of money anymore, they’ve been on the market for long enough and in so many models that you can get takeouts with warranty for a bit over $2,000 plus shipping from salvage yards.
The cars probably worth it’s asking price if it’s complete, not rusty or wrecked. It appears to be a good foundation for a clean sheet project.
Steve R
awesome find Barn Finds !
im traveling in SoCal with an empty trailer.. maybe not for long
Interesting and rare example. I do see what looks like a fender tag, it’s shame that we don’t have more pics. The car has a 3-on-the-tree. I respectfully disagree on the interior description, I think it is a black interior, which was fairly common, not gray. The interior looks fairly complete, which is a big win as there are a lot of parts and many of them are hard to find. I do find it interesting that the Dart below it asking over triple the sale price of $4800. Having owned several late 60’s Darts, I voted with my feet and still own my 67 Charger, which is much more car than the Dart.
It’s sold.
Very ugly car. 68 thru 70 are among the best looking ever built.
it was more the intergration of aerodynamics than fashion.
some ol saying :
win on race day, sell on Monday.
As designs progressed, it became more function over form.
Yes, style is what all the kids in the click are hip, but function is what leads.
late 40s sedanettes, 52- Hudson, 63.5- Galaxie, 65-Impala, 66 Charger, 68- Torino, 69- Datona, 73-Colonades, 77- Caprice, 86-Monty Carlo Aero . . all winning race cars with at least one thing in common.