Update 9/25/20 – This optimistically-priced Charger has now been listed here on eBay with a $35,500 starting bid. Hmm, should be interesting to see how this goes…
From 9/19/20 – This 1969 Dodge Charger S/E is for sale here on craigslist in Fresno, California. The seller is asking $35,000 for this B5 Blue beauty. Why so much for a project? I have no idea. Take a look and maybe you can enlighten us…
This Charger is equipped with a 383 cubic inch V8 engine and two-barrel carburetor. It’s highly optioned with power windows, AM/FM 8 track player, air conditioning, and rear window defogger. There are no pictures under the hood or of the bottom of the car in the ad.
As you can see the car is a project and unrestored. It appears the rear window is removed. The odometer reading is 75,808 and the seller believes he/she is the 4th owner. The car was originally equipped with a white vinyl top and a blue interior. The Charger is said to be driveable.
The 383 cubic inch V8 sends power to the rear gears via a column shifted automatic transmission. The seats are ripped and the interior will need a complete restoration.
The seller’s ad states that the car was in a wreck at some point and several body panels have been replaced. I don’t want to say too much but reading the seller’s description of the work he/she has performed could be considered rambling. Read the description and let me know what you think.
This car has potential. This seller has issues.
It’s a 69 Charger. 383. AC. PW. Not rusted out. Needs a lot. Should be a worthwhile project, but the asking price is batsh$t crazy.
5000 would be top price for it are less, it wasn’t a popular model, it will take 20000 plus to restore, then it might bring the asking price if restored to factor specs.
Agree that the seller is nuts and needs to be accountable for himself. He also apparently can’t be bothered to take enough good pics. The thing needs tons of work and might be worth a shot at perhaps a third of the asking.
10% of the asking price and it’ll go away.
More than that and it had better have more going for it than what is being said.
A third of the asking price would be overly generous!
way too many zeros for this!
$20K at most. 2bbl with column shift, and needs complete restoration. But someone will pay close to asking just because they can. Anyone that takes this on will be upside down methinks…
@Superdessucke, You can use 401K money for stuff like this? Gosh, what a stupid idea. That alone could maybe explain the crazy uptick in values of these cars. When the post WWII generation dies off, this is going to fall to much much lower values. Kind of like people in the early 2000s using extra money to build McMansions instead of putting away for retirement. They say the house is an investment they can live in and enjoy then sell for huge profit. Some younger Boomers I know did that, boy are they in for a harsh awaken. Just when they are about to retire, millions more are going to be in the same boat and want to sell too, flooding the market. Some of us oldsters lived in a better America, where we were unionized and got full lifelong pensions and health care, but a lot of folks these days do not. What are they going to do when they put their eggs all in one basket and that basket falls to the ground and shatters?
You can borrow from your 401k before you retire, yes.
“….the gauges work…” except clock, fuel, temperature and oil
Asking price of vehicle when new was probably $4100.00 is a more realistic price for this relic. And that is high considering what you have to pay for replacement parts and labor even if it is your own!!!
Fresno’s a lively place.
It is certainly a distinct sensation, no doubt about it.
Why is the price so high ? One of these two things, the owner screwed up when he posted the ask, or two many nights watching “Barret-Jackson” !
It’s probably worth 8-10,000, but that’s way to much in my mind, of course I remember these being in the $500 – 1,000 in this shape back in the early 80’s.
The 80’s are over. Not many around now. Get used to high prices, they aren’t going anywhere.
No dynacorn – yet.
I remember as a teenager in the late 80’s my dad buying mopars like this charger for 500all day long a cherry one was 6500 max my dad bought a ton of the beatersi mean a tone and always said in about 20-30 years these parts will be like gold I remember him buying a 70 super bee 383 bubble hood scoop in great shape just painted had the bumble bee stripe but with out the super bee circle in the stripe cause the Mopar quite producing them and the after market hadn’t caught on yet but the interior wasn’t bad but could be redone but the purchase price listed was only 2500 obo my dad bought it for 1800 now that same car would be 20000 if not more with the low production #’s of the 70 superbee but all the beaters he was buying drive my mother crazy she would say the back 40 acres looked like a junkyard I couldn’t disagree with her however 10 years ago when my dad was getting 2500 for the inner frame and facia if the rally dash with the tic took Tak or 3500 for the Dana rearend and customers actually having a biding war that turned into a fight for a70 superbird 440six pak that was stock with original carbs that he had sitting for 15 years maybe 20 but I believe he got 80000 for it and the motor wouldn’t even turn she began to look past the junkyard prices have dropped some in the past 5 years it still amazes me what the prices still are though that charger is priced way to high at 35 you’ll have to put at least 30 Into it and the it will be at it’s top dollar if not more but if your keeping it but even so it’s still good to have some meat on the bone for a Rainey day the chargers really shot up when the original dukes TV show destroyed so many then when the movie was made in 05 they killed even moyre that’s way chargers are so high in price even though thier production was a lot well any way sorry about the book you brought back slit if memories talking about how cheap they used to be thanks
$35k for run of the mill Charger? It’s going to take at least $20k to restore it. Realistically it’s $18k buy at the most in its current condition. In experienced buyers have wrecked the opportunity to buy affordable restorable vehicles.
You can always go down on the asking price of something, but it is difficult to raise the price. Next listing will be $25,000, then $20,000, then $15,000, then $10,000, SOLD!!!!! for $8,000 at best. I just don’t see the big money for a daily driver, that needs just about everything.
You hit the nail on the head Steve R! I agree with your view as well. The car is worth what someone is willing to pay…period! No, they’re not priced like they were in the early 80’s because that was nearly 40 years ago! Don’t like this Charger? Then move on to the next. You will find that none of them are cheap “like they used to be”.
Hahahahahaha! No.
Shoot, put some seat covers on it, some clear sheet and Gorilla tape on the back window and drive that mutha!
Did you read Superdessuck’s comment? He says people are emptying 401Ks for this stuff. If true, to me, that explains almost all the increase in prices. Sure, after 50 years, there will be some increase in prices due to supply and demand, but the past 10-20 years things have gone off the wire crazy. What are we to do when these idiots planning on big returns in another 10 or 20 years suddenly are dirt poor when they want to retire? Freedom is a double edged sword, you are allowed to be as risky as you want, but what if some people are too dumb to have the choice be theirs? Kind of like the citizens of this fair land who protest that wearing a mask restricts their freedoms, but when they get deathly sick, they are first in line for a vent. We all have to pay then, I feel the taxpayers will be on the hook for these goofy 401K people too unless we want to see them begging on the street corners.
People make stupid decisions all of the time. What is your solution? Do you have one, or are you just interested in complaining, that’s what makes a lot of people happy, if you are one if those guys too, good for you.
Why do you take it so personally that a seller across overpriced are car you wouldn’t purchase regardless of the price?
Here is a quick lesson many on this site haven’t figured out, sellers don’t set actual prices, buyers do. A seller can only ask, someone comes along with cash to determine actual value.
Steve R
@SteveR, Yes sir I have a solution. Do not allow a 401K for something this risky. Why should I as a taxpayer give out pretax dollars that do not go for a more secure investment? Many here have railed that it is just rich guys goofing up the prices. I must admit, I have often felt that as well, but common sense negates that there are not so many of them as to make a difference. 401K emptying by regular fellas makes sense to me as to the bump in prices. Change the 401K laws to allow less speculation, might see a good reduction in car prices, allowing more to get into the game. Okay, going to have a nice cold one out on the back porch. You could join me if you want but please wait to start drinking until you get here. Don’t want our car talk hindered by a drunk driving incident. How far are you from eastern Ohio? Have any favorite brands of adult beverages? Might even fire up the grill for some sausages. Man, sounds like fun. SteveR, bring your best automotive arguments, I’ll be waiting.
Not even worth $10,000.00 in todays shape.
Ratty, overpriced Charger. Why is everybody getting so bent outta shape?
Or you could buy the Chrysler 300K for $9750.
Nuts!
Hear. hear.
As for folks criticizing the asking price of a car, so what?
As you pointed out things have gotten pretty crazy in the asking price department of vintage cars.and BF is like a bunch of folks sitting at the table in the diner discussing everything from the price to the condition of the car. It’s what we do.
Superdessucke omitted the most important criticism: It’s a slushbox! THAT is a no no. Non-negotiable.
Ummmm $35k? No, that would be a no. Lol maybe, maybe $12-14k.
As I’ve said many times, you don’t get ALL of the money if you don’t have ALL of the car. You can find a decent driver for that kind of money. This ain’t Barrett Jackson.
Does the back window come with the sale?
Hay wait a minute. I do not know where you were 50 years ago but these were really good cars believe it or not. How many 50 year old cars do you find commanding prices like this. Also since you are such an authority on vehicle quality name something from the “ERA” that was such a QUALITY PIECE!!!!!!!!
Sorry George, it’s not even the best quality car from that era. Very good in a straight line with a 440 or 426 Hemi, but my 1969 Pontiac Grand Prix SJ with a 428-370 engine was a much better car overall. And Dodge didn’t start winning in NASCAR until they brought in the Daytona.
Steve Bush, You know nothing about NASCAR history.
Yes I know NASCAR history and that Dodge and Plymouth won tons of races over the years prior to and after 1969-70. Just to clarify, I meant that the 1969 Charger wasn’t particularly successful on the high banks so Dodge brought in the 500 and ultimately the Daytona and did well in 1969 with 7 wins although David Pearson in the Ford Torino Talladega was that year’s champion. In 1970 Bobby Isaac in the K & K insurance Daytona won 11 races and the season championship. In 1971, NASCAR limited the aerocars to 305 cubic inch engines, which severely limited their effectiveness and ultimately eliminated them.
I’d love to see NASCAR create a new vintage racing class featuring the old cars running crate motors. It’s a fact that people haven’t been coming to the tracks for years now and the TV money and sponsors are drying up.
Go back in history and look at all the wins King Richard Petty won with Plymouths per Nascar records: Chrysler 300c 44 wins,Plymouth 190 wins, and Dodge 217 wins. Rest my case go look it up in Nascar history wins.
I’m sure Steve is kidding. Richard Petty was before and after the wing car era, a winner. The Daytona and Superbird were almost unbeatable in 69′ & 70′, when the rear spoilers were introduced. Not sure of the whole story, but NASCAR says No with the High Spoilers, but I think it also had something to do with the Elephant “426” Hemi. Either case Chrysler, says good buy to NASCAR for several years. At this time The King moved on to FORD and was also a winner. This is proof that the driver is proven to be highly instrumental in wins and not just the builders. Note: These Wing Warriors were not the same cars you could buy from your local dealers. They were almost twice the Horse Power, I beleive around 800 HP.
NASCAR has always struggled with attempting to “even things out”. Mopar left the series after NASCAR rebuffed their desire to replace the LA motor with the modern Hemi. NASCAR feared a repeat of history. The league is now a glorified IROC race.
The winged warriors were banned after 1970 because they were just too fast. The tire technology was not keeping pace with the aero cars from Ford and Mopar and it was getting unsafe. Charger Daytona driver Bobby Isaac famously qualified for a race in 1969 at 212mph!
Ford was the Nascar Grand National Champion in both 1968 and 1969. The semi-hemi Boss 429 powered Cyclone Spoilers and Torino Talledegas were not struggling with the 426 Hemi. But the aero wars of the late sixties definitely led to the restrictor plate racing of the seventies. The Ford & Mopar rivalry of this era is legendary!
You are correct Bryan, but my input was about Richard Petty. Would like to add to yours by stating, The Boss 429 used in NASCAR ,I believe was a Aluminum block and Ford had the required number of blocks on a shelf to be a legal motor to be used. Story tells it later on, that the blocks were not complete running motors, even empty internals.
No doubt about Richard Petty…a Nascar legend with 200 wins! It was the Plymouth Superbird that lured him back from Ford for the 1970 season. He didn’t drive a Dodge until mid-1972 in a Charger.
The Nascar Boss 429, like the Nascar 426 Hemi, featured cast iron blocks with aluminum heads. The Boss 429 was Nascar legal because they put almost 1,400 of them under the hoods of Mustangs in 1969 & 70. To further satisfy Nascar they made street editions of the Spoiler II and Talledega. Nascar ruled that the super-slick Ford/Mercury and Plymouth/Dodge aero cars for 1971 season were to be cursed with engines no larger than 305CID! Ford and Chrysler decided to pull the plug on factory support during this time.
The seller describes the car as ”excellent”. That’s where the pricing issue starts. The car is ‘fair’ at best
Anybody notice the “body work” around the rear window??
I guess this seller likes wasting his own time.
$35k is wishful thinking, but it looks better overall or should I say better potential than most of the 68-70 Chargers we see here.
Certifiable. Not the car, the seller.
#1: I would not walk across the street to look at this car due to the owners attitude! Also the car is overpriced for what it is as others have noticed also.
Mopars are like 32 Fords. You didnt pay to much, you just bought early.