1969 Charger R/T potential purchase

[bhemi]

Hi I'm new here. I'm looking at a green/black 440 4spd all number matching 1969 R/T. Good doors, hood, trunk lid. Bad news is quarters, trunk pan, floors and probably rear frame rails are shot. It's never been modified. Has build sheet and fender tags. Dana 60 3.54 posi. Good grill and decent interior.

Would you pay $14-16k for this car?

[tan top]

 hello & welcome    ,   have you got any good detailed pictures of the car ?

[JB400]

If it was me, no.  Cut your prices listed in half, then I'd consider it.  You can buy decent running cars (older restorations) for not much more than that.

Welcome to the forum

[Ghoste]

Welcome to the group.  Its hard to say without seeing it, it sounds high for a project but it may not be either.  Four speed car and documentation are good things.

[Dino]

Most all 2nd gens have those issues although shot rails make it a bit worse.  When rails are done, so is much of the sheet metal. 

A non molested car with those options is pretty valuable so all will depend on the actual condition of the car.  Unmolested is worth a lot in my book though.

Post all the pics (or link) you can so we can give you a better answer.

[Ghoste]

And if you decide not to get it, let us know as well, you're still welcome here.   Record those numbers on the car too.

[69charger2002]

R/T's bring strong money. But if the car needs rear rails, no way i would pay over $10k for it EVER, unless it was MINT everywhere else. You can figure a car that has gotten to the point of needing rear rails will need a lot of work, and an easy $30k+ restoration. If you pay $15k for a car needing a $30k restoration, if your budget can afford it you would be far better off buying a $40k restored R/T car that you can enjoy now.  
Trav

[F8-4life]

You can look at it a couple ways.. if you indeed want a project then it sounds like a great car. 440 RT 4sp dana 60 is as good as it gets.
Most projects now will need metal work in those areas, so it really depends on whether you want to weld it up or not.
If your looking for a rust free project it will likely be awhile before you find one.
If you want less work then pass on it.

[Troy]

How much do you want a 69? There just aren't a lot of 4-speed R/Ts floating around - especially with complete documentation. AND, there are very few factory 4-speed cars with a matching drive train. Apparently it's easy to blow the engine at the track...

All of those things increase the value to someone who cares about those things! Anyone who doesn't care about them sees the rust repair first.

I'd want to know if all those "good" parts are truly usable. Sometimes just having the parts is important (seats, grill, most trim - especially pot metal, headlight vacuum components, side mirrors, etc.).  *IF* the interior is "usable" you've saved a couple thousand. On the other hand, if you have to replace it all then you can really only count the value of the cores. Throw in $1,000-1,500 for a good grill, $400-500 for front seats, $200-300 for gauges, $100-200 for a dash, $100-300 for dash bezels, $300-700 for a console, $300-500 per fender, $400-500 for a hood, $1,500 for glass, $50-400 for a radio, a few hundred for tail lights, $600-1,000 for a decent wood grain steering wheel, and so on. It's amazing all the little things that can nickel and dime you later on (hood hinges, wiring sockets, lug nuts, special trim screws, transmission linkage and gas tank seals, shifter handles, dome lights, etc.). If a good portion of the original stuff is usable it will be a HUGE savings later on.

Breaking it down by parts the transmission, bell housing, linkage, and rear end would be about $2,500-3,000 to replace. A complete, date coded 440 about another $1,000. Now, make those numbers matching to the car and you pretty much double the price.

Nearly every car in my part of the country is going to need quarters, inner and outer rear wheel houses, rear valance, valance corners, rear cross member, and a trunk pan. Most will need front fender, windshield channel, and rear window channel rust repair and the front valance will be mangled. Some may need rockers or transmission cross member repair. *Assume* you need that stuff for anything - base model or R/T. So now, you're looking at adding rear frame rails to the parts and labor budget. How much does that detract from the total value of the car?

Would I pay $14-16k for a car needing a large amount of metal replacement? No. Not unless it said "HEMI" on it. Would I value it at $3-6k like most projects? No. Not for a 4-speed R/T with paper work and numbers matching drive train! Does the color hurt the value? Yes. Probably a little at least. I think something below $10k would probably be a good deal - especially if you can do a lot of the metal replacement or get decent rates from a body man (it's waaaaay cheaper here in the Midwest by the way). If the seller is at $16k I doubt they'll come down that far unless they (or their wife!) is tired of looking at it.

Troy

[myk]

Just based on your description of the car I wouldn't pay half that amount, no matter the pedigree of the car; "shot" frame rails is only sign of bigger trouble ahead...

[Ghoste]

I's still like to see pics.  It could be worth buying.

[six-tee-nine]

I'm kinda with Troy here.

If you dont care about what year its and if its an R/T or not, the buy a good condition rust free small block Charger and swap to 440 4 speed whenever you want.
If this is something special for you and you can handle the job of rostoring it or have the funds to have it restored then talk the seller down as much as you can. If you still want it real bad when his price doesnt go down anymore then you shall have to pay my friend.

Maye the asking price is a bit steep but dont think of a #'s matching 440-4speed-Dana60 that you'll buy it for peanuts even when its crunchy in the back....

[Troy]

The OP didn't even say that it required rear frame rails - just that it "probably" did. Before deciding against the car or tanking the value, it's best to find out for sure.

In the last year I have seen at least two full Charger "rolling chassis" on this site and one on eBay for sale (mainly from people dropping a body over a "new" Charger chassis). You can't even buy the repro metal for what these sold for! Lop off the back end and sell the front and you'd have very little tied up in pre-fitted factory metal. Does it take some skill to get it under a car? Yes. Is it impossible or prohibitively expensive? No. Not when you're talking about the production numbers/desirability of a 69 R/T 4-speed. It is NOT for everyone so, before jumping in, make sure you're one of the people who find it important.

Troy