Not many 68s and 69s around these days?

[xs29bb1]

I travel a lot for work, so I pick up a Hemmings catalog or something similar just to look through and see what's out there while I'm on the plane. Obviously there's the long laundry list of Mustangs, Chevelles, and Camaros, and there are literally a few dozen say 67 Vettes for sale (most of which having been fully restored) and even a lot of split windows. 

There's even a fair number of Buicks, 442s, Road Runners, Bees, Cudas, and Challengers, but man I just don't see many (sometimes ANY) 68 or 69 Chargers.

And for whatever reason, whenever I do see a 68 Charger, 8 times out of 10 it's a highly modified car that barely looks like a Charger anymore. 

Am I the only one seeing this?  Why aren't there more restored 68s and 69s around?  They weren't necessarily rarer than a few of the other cars that I see out there all the time.  And I don't remember it being like this even a year and a half ago.  Anybody got an explanation, or am I just imagining this?

[1974dodgecharger]

Look at sales during the era you will see why the charger is coveted, beautiful, and rare compared to the other 2 auto makers.  I believe mustang made/sold like 400k in 68 and only 90k chargers.  That's off top of my head, guess estimate.

Mustang was also cheaper vs chargers....either way its a beautiful car as James may would say ,the mustang became marlon Brando while the charger was James dean.

[myk]

They were rare when they were new, they were rare when no one wanted them in the late 70's, 80's and 90's when I got mine, and they're even more rare now.  So rare in fact, that a VIN number on something little more than a hulk of rusted steel that once held a Hemi/4 speed combination will sell for a small fortune...

[Ghoste]

It could also be that the people who booger them up are the ones who never truly loved the model to begin with and the people who do aren't inclined to sell them.  Ignore the Hemmings ads and stay with this crowd.

[Baldwinvette77]

i only ever saw 2 on the road, compared to maybe 70? mustangs, dozens of camaros...

[Dino]

I restored cars for 15 years and much of my customers did not have a specific car in mind to own, but wanted a nice classic.  With that mindset, if any decent classic is okay, would you buy the rare and expensive to restore Charger or the readily available with affordable parts Chevelle?

We love the Chargers but this is not a universal thing.  I rarely get a thumbs up from people when I drive my car, when I do it's usually a truck driver.  Most people I work with 'like' the car but would much rather have a Mustang or Chevelle.  Just as with anything good taste, the real good stuff is for the minority.  The majority of people will buy the crap the neighbor has.   

[xs29bb1]

Oh yeah, I get the differences in production numbers. Certainly Mustangs, Camaros, and Chevelles are more prevelant.  But look at a 67 Vette.  This is now a 60-120k car... And there's so many of them for sale

I see a 60s Vette around town every few weeks.  I also see Road Runners, Challengers, and Cudas.... But I never see another Charger. 

I mean, that's fine by me, but I'd think that since Chargers are desireable, more people would be restoring them and trying to sell them like they do with the Cudas, Challengers, and the like - and since everyone can't afford 90k cars, the market for restored 67 Vettes would be smaller.

I guess bottom line is that Chargers aren't really rarer than Challengers, Cudas, or Road Runners so why are there so many more of them around? 

[Dino]

Oh yeah, I get the differences in production numbers. Certainly Mustangs, Camaros, and Chevelles are more prevelant.  But look at a 67 Vette.  This is now a 60-120k car... And there's so many of them for sale

I see a 60s Vette around town every few weeks.  I also see Road Runners, Challengers, and Cudas.... But I never see another Charger. 

I mean, that's fine by me, but I'd think that since Chargers are desireable, more people would be restoring them and trying to sell them like they do with the Cudas, Challengers, and the like - and since everyone can't afford 90k cars, the market for restored 67 Vettes would be smaller.

I guess bottom line is that Chargers aren't really rarer than Challengers, Cudas, or Road Runners so why are there so many more of them around? 

Maybe area specific?  I live close to Detroit and have never seen a Cuda.  I've seen one Challenger and one roadrunner and as far as I can tell I'm the only one around driving a Charger.  I keep tripping over the GM and Ford cars though.   

[1974dodgecharger]

Same in Phoenix, I see vetted, mustangs, Chevys very rare I see mopar.  The only car I swear people see around my neighborhood is my charger lol and they think its beautiful compared to other classics they seen.

When they start a convo, they usually say, wow I heard of them but don't see them in real life.

Oh yeah, I get the differences in production numbers. Certainly Mustangs, Camaros, and Chevelles are more prevelant.  But look at a 67 Vette.  This is now a 60-120k car... And there's so many of them for sale

I see a 60s Vette around town every few weeks.  I also see Road Runners, Challengers, and Cudas.... But I never see another Charger. 

I mean, that's fine by me, but I'd think that since Chargers are desireable, more people would be restoring them and trying to sell them like they do with the Cudas, Challengers, and the like - and since everyone can't afford 90k cars, the market for restored 67 Vettes would be smaller.

I guess bottom line is that Chargers aren't really rarer than Challengers, Cudas, or Road Runners so why are there so many more of them around? 

Maybe area specific?  I live close to Detroit and have never seen a Cuda.  I've seen one Challenger and one roadrunner and as far as I can tell I'm the only one around driving a Charger.  I keep tripping over the GM and Ford cars though.   

[4cruzin]

All I know is when we went to the MOPAR nationals this year, there were 4 or 5 1968 chargers for sale in the car coral and no others . . . . We couldn't believe all the 68's!   I don't know anything about production numbers but did they make more 68's than the other years?   

[Ghoste]

1973 was actually the highest production year.

[Lord Warlock]

Chargers, at least the 2nd gen ones, have always been a rare sight on the roads.  Especially the RT models.  Even back in the 70s when i got mine, I never ran across more than a token few, you had to go search to find them.  I went to lots of shows throughout my 20s and 30s, and was lucky if i saw 2 or 3 chargers at a show that had 5000 entrants.  When it dwindled down to 1 or less, I stopped going to big shows.  Now, about the only time you see a charger is on TV or in the movies, and they always manage to kill it for some reason, just can't let people have pristine undented examples.  Maybe the fact that they do look aerodynamic is why people keep trying to get them airborne, they really do perform better with 4 tires on the pavement, and they handle quite well for a large heavy car.

However, its rarity is one reason why I held on to mine all these years, the goal was to have a car that almost noone else drove, so it would stand out amongst the horde of mustangs, camaros and firebirds.  I have no interest in collecting cars, or buying investment cars, they rarely work out for large profits, unless you find a hemi or an extremely rare example.  I normally just buy a car, pay it off, then store it and buy another.  Over time they accumulate  and get more expensive to fix.  

[Cooter]

Rare don't ness. Mean popular, and popular don't ness. Mean rare.
Everybody, even some diehards here, would love to own a 1967 427 Sting Ray if for nothing else than for the same reason as owning a Hemi car..because its 'look at me my junk is worth a fortune'.. Nobody buys this car because it handles so well, or because it's comfortable.

Charger same thing, only less numbers built.

[69chargerboy]

Look at sales during the era you will see why the charger is coveted, beautiful, and rare compared to the other 2 auto makers.  I believe mustang made/sold like 400k in 68 and only 90k chargers.  That's off top of my head, guess estimate.

Mustang was also cheaper vs chargers....either way its a beautiful car as James may would say ,the mustang became marlon Brando while the charger was James dean.

I believe Richard Hammond made the quote.. 

Just bustin your chops 

[Ghoste]

Whoever made it, it's a good one. 

[will721]

They are indeed rare. I've been looking for one that I could afford for years. Truth be told, I've been drooling over these cars since I was very young. Yet I've only seen a hand full in person, and I can name every single one of them. There are three general lee clones that roam around my area together, I've only ever seen them on the road. There was one overly customized 69 a local expo center about 5 years ago.  I remember seeing one years ago at a small local show. My favorite though was Del Worsham's 68, which we seen when one of his mechanics let us in his private shop outside of indy. Triple black car, gorgeous. He also had a tank.

Only ever seen a few local second gens online. They usually are in one of three categories. Old restorations at extremely high prices, rusted out basket cases whose owners think they are worth their weight in gold and occasionally overly customized cars that for some reason have even higher prices than the original ones. They are becoming increasingly rare as well.

The idea of collecting cars in a garage to collect dust irritates me. These cares aren't really all that rare. It just seems like most of them are kept in collections since they are worth quite a bit of money. Once summer comes around I see all kinds of other cars. Mustangs all over the place, theres usually atleast a dozen Camaros at every show. Rarety vs value is usually the cause. I see much rarer cars that just aren't as valuable more often then I see second gens. Theres a few guys in town with original 50s gassers that are driven all the time.

That's why I joined this board. I love second gen chargers. Visiting here I can have all the eye candy I like. Not to mention learning more about them then I ever would watching tv or reading magazines.

[JB400]

I think part of the reason is there has been a muscle car boom outside of the US.  Just look in the Netherlands Registry.
http://www.charger.nl/

There is 51 69 Chargers, 54 68's, and 22 70's registered.  Who knows how many are unregistered  While this amount may be small, multiply that by every country in Europe, and then throw in a few other countries like Australia, and you'll get a good idea of where some of these cars are going.

Also, I believe that owners are just holding on to them longer than normal.

[Back N Black]

The majority out there love the mustangs and camaros, that's why you see them everywhere. Not everyone thinks the Charger is the BEST muscle car ever. I have friends that don't like my charger at all, its been refered to as a land yacht, boat, tank......

[Dino]

The majority out there love the mustangs and camaros, that's why you see them everywhere. Not everyone thinks the Charger is the BEST muscle car ever. I have friends that don't like my charger at all, its been refered to as a land yacht, boat, tank......

Same here.  Of all the dozens and dozens of people I work with, there are maybe a handful that like it.  Not love it, like it.

[xs29bb1]

I think part of the reason is there has been a muscle car boom outside of the US.  Just look in the Netherlands Registry.
http://www.charger.nl/

There is 51 69 Chargers, 54 68's, and 22 70's registered.  Who knows how many are unregistered  While this amount may be small, multiply that by every country in Europe, and then throw in a few other countries like Australia, and you'll get a good idea of where some of these cars are going.

Also, I believe that owners are just holding on to them longer than normal.

This is a great point  I know the B-bodies have become quite popular in Australia and other countries.  I've been told (with no exact numbers to back this up) that E-bodies are more desired in the US, but outside the US it's the B-body.

If there is a disproportionate number of B-bodies leaving the US, that would explain why it seems there are less and less of them for sale here every few years

[Dino]

More Chargers were trashed before they saw their first birthday than were ever exported.

Disclaimer: I have no data to support my claim yet I doubt that those relatively few cars going overseas would make the Charger a rare sight to behold on US roads.  We are talking  handful to Oz and a handful to Western Europe.  The few you find in the rest of the world would be the equivalent of a good day of shooting doh.  Insignificant. 

As was stated previously, they were rare when they were brand new (again relatively).

How many were crashed by teenagers?  How many were taken to the junk yard and how many lived to see 10 years?  If you lived in the north part of the country, chances were it never got very old. 

Also, how do you know how many are left?  For all we know, we all have a neighbor with one.  Seeing how many members here use the car as shelving or other dust collection device, who knows what's out there?  Not everyone with a Charger spends time on this board either.

Shows may be an indicator of classic cars left, but it's certainly not a means to get solid data either.  I put a few thousand miles on my car every year, yet you'll never see it at a show.

[John L]

I must live in a strange area. Within a 1.5 mile radius I can count 3 Chargers, a 68 & 69, and my 70. A 2 owner Superbird, Hemi GTX, 69 Road Runner, and a 71 Challenger. Three of those cars are on the same street as I live on.

[Dino]

I must live in a strange area. Within a 1.5 mile radius I can count 3 Chargers, a 68 & 69, and my 70. A 2 owner Superbird, Hemi GTX, 69 Road Runner, and a 71 Challenger. Three of those cars are on the same street as I live on.

I think that would have been rare in 1971 downtown Hamtramck!

[HeavyFuel]

So...

Who would like to venture a guess on how many exist today?  And by "exist", we should agree that it's basically a car that is driving, or would be driveable with a reasonable amount of work/$$......not some total basket case roosting in a shelter belt.

Has anyone with good data and an analytical mind come up with some kind of ballpark figure, based on facts and variables like production numbers, attrition, shelf life, desirability, price of scrap metal, horsepower, "Cash for Clunkers"..........whatever?

Let's take '68 models.....roughly 90,000 built.  Do we think that there are 5,000 left?  2,500?   Maybe a thousand?   

[Dino]

So...

Who would like to venture a guess on how many exist today?  And by "exist", we should agree that it's basically a car that is driving, or would be driveable with a reasonable amount of work/$$......not some total basket case roosting in a shelter belt.

Has anyone with good data and an analytical mind come up with some kind of ballpark figure, based on facts and variables like production numbers, attrition, shelf life, desirability, price of scrap metal, horsepower, "Cash for Clunkers"..........whatever?

Let's take '68 models.....roughly 90,000 built.  Do we think that there are 5,000 left?  2,500?   Maybe a thousand?

We have done this a few times in the past, but without any real figures it's all guesswork and the numbers are all over the place.  Heck, we can't even agree on the value of a car and we're supposed to be the experts.