This 1980 Dodge Colt is a bit rougher around the edges than I originally thought when I saw it listed here on eBay yesterday. I love these little cars, and if rust isn’t an issue, this one could be worthy of a one-car-garage refresh. Plus, this one has the famous Twin-Stick manual shifters! It’s located in Mullins, South Carolina, and they’re asking $1,999.
I believe this faded, dinged-up paint color is Maroon Metallic, according to this paint chart. It sure looks like it’s seen better days; it’s faded, scratched, and there are many dings and little dents all over this little car. It’s a shame, I don’t know how a car can end up looking like this without being purposely treated harshly. You can see that even the driver’s side mirror is missing, dang. There is no passenger side mirror, but it’s because it didn’t come with one as standard equipment.
The weird part is that I don’t see any rust anywhere, do you? If that’s the case, the rest of the body can be fixed and straightened, and this car can be brought back to life again. Dodge offered the Colt (a rebadged Mitsubishi) here from 1971 through 1994, and this is a fourth-generation car, made from 1979 through 1984.
The dash is as wacky as McHale’s Navy (what kind of ancient reference is that, SG?!), the steering wheel is cracked, and the seats look generally, well, not good. The back seat doesn’t look horrible, or at least the bottom part. The rear cargo area shows what the top of the back seat looks like. I’d strip this interior out to the floorboards and start over. Is it worth spending a couple of grand on a dash rebuild from JustDashes.com? Maybe not, but good luck finding one in a junk yard. The cool part here, of course, would be the unusual twin shift levers known as “Twin-Stick,” or what Dodge referred to as the world’s first eight-speed manual transmission for cars (page 10 of this brochure). It was standard on the hatchback, and Mitsubishi called it “Super Shift.” It is basically a four-speed with a high/low shifter, or one for economy and one for power. I know a few of you have had cars with this shifter, so hopefully you’ll fill in the blanks.
The engine has a lot of surface rust, but hey, this car is in South Carolina. This is Mitsubishi’s 4G12, a 1.4-liter SOHC inline-four with just 70 horsepower and 78 lb-ft of torque when new. Passing through the unique Twin-Stick manual to the front wheels, but sadly, this engine cranks but doesn’t start. Ouch. Drop a ____in it! Is this car worth a gamble at two-grand?
FINALLY, leave it to the master to bring us back to reality, even if it is a lowly Dodge Colt/Plymouth Champ. To be clear on the authors statement, McHales Navy show was based directly on the movie “The Wackiest Ship in the Army”, so there’s merit there.
The old 2 stick, by gar, that takes me “back to the old Mack”. Not sure of the “split-shift” capabilities, like the other “multi-stick” contraptions, GM Lightning Rods or Ramblers rendition, merely a fancy O/D is all it was. I can just see the job interview, “can you handle a Mack twin stick, boy? Well, I had a Dodge Colt once,,,YOU’RE HIRED”!!! Believe it or not, I got several trucking jobs that way. I believe these got outstanding mileage, but many just left it in “high range”. Nobody wants it, the 1 stick would throw most off, but 2?? $500 bucks tops, and I have a spare headlight from my Jeep for this. I never drive at night anyway I’d be willing to sell,,, $400 BUCKS,,,that’s right, who’s stupid now,,,sorry, haul it away, Joe,,
Had one of these little cars new 1980 and it was a good small car. I did opt for the dressed up version? It had the aluminum wheels and larger tires. Bright yellow paint with stripes with a hound’s tooth fabric in the interior. Got good gas mileage and the twin stick was great on a mountain road. Low range kept the engine in its happy zone, high range it was quite content on the highway. You could have 8 speeds but not really quickly. If I remember correctly they did have a turbocharged version and it was a rocket. These were uncommon then and I can’t remember when I saw one on the road.
Neat cars. Two levers is cool. Great write up SG.. and the brochure 🤌
Real secret to the good mileage probably not so much the twin stick, but the approx 1800lbs curb weight 🪶
Scotty, any car that spent time street parked in the city or on a college campus has the potential to end up looking like a golf ball, and cars like this were frequently used in those environments. I, myself, knocked the side mirror off a car in my college days riding my bicycle to class. I circled back to leave a note and discovered that the mirror had been held on with tape, so I turned back around and continued on my way.
My sister had a Plymouth Champ (with nicer trim inside), and for a teenager who learned to drive with the family land yachts, the quick, go-kart reflexes of her Champ were a revelation. It had no power, but it was a blast to drive!
There’s something about a sub-compact hatchback that really appeals to the functional side of me. 2-box design & FWD, about as simple as it gets.
This one looks pretty well-used, that front bumper looks like it’s taken at least one thumping. Probably the kinda vehicle you just get running, then continue to run it into the ground.
Nice one, Scotty. I bought an ’84 Colt GTS Turbo in the early ’90s for $700 “as is,” hoping that it was just the timing belt. That turned out to be true and $35 later I was tearing up the streets of Pittsburgh. In low range it would roast the original (not so great) tires all the way through first and second and they would squeal and grab in third. Eagle eyes will recognize my favorite tire by the tread pattern: BFG Comp T/A HR4s. Torque steer? You could easily change lanes by flooring it with the wheel held straight. My friend Tim christened it the “Turbo Death Trap.” At about 10 feet long, it made it a potent traffic squirter. It became my wife’s DD and she put 30,000 miles on it in one year, averaging about 30 MPG. Thanks for the memories!
Had an ’81, got t-boned, and I still have the drivetrain I pulled from it waiting for a project.
I had it’s twin, the Plymouth Champ (same year and trans) and I think this color is “ballast sand”. Great car. At the risk of sound like the old man I am – “they don’t make ’em like this anymore”.