"I [blank] The Dukes of Hazzard!"

[HAZZARDJOHN]

I loved it, Obviously. My '70 will be the next General Lee when I get a place to work on it. 69' Front clip and all.  The show is a Piece of Americana that I love. Does it suck that so many cars died because of the show, A little bit, but it was such a small percentage and these were just used cars in 1979-1985. If you ask me the reason these things are so expensive is because of the popularity from the show.

I having seen the movie, I don't support them wrecking any chargers for that trash, But I think HLPAG does worse than the WB could ever dream of doing.

As far as the show itself, What's not to like about it? You have a show where no one gets seriously hurt and no matter what the conflict they are all friends at the end of the day. I could sit my kids down in front of the T.V. and not expect them to become corrupted. Uncle Jesse is the man. Daisy was beautiful and did it without being a slut *cough*Jessica Simpson*cough*  There was always something to instill family values in you in the end. Not to mention the best car ever made was a star! What's not to like?

~HJ

[squeakfinder]

my favorite episode was when two shady characters came to town and cooked up a scheme with boss hogg, And Uncle Jesse waits until an hour before the mortgage is due on the farm to pay it, but has to use it to bail Bo and Luke out of jail for some bogus charge against them,
and Daisy serves a basket of fried chicken in some sexy outfit to lure Enos away from the line of duty, so Cooter can bust them out, Which leads to a chase between the Dukes and Rosco on the back roads of Hazzard, The boys make a big jump, Rosco wrecks, the Dukes call the FBI, stop the badguys, pay the mortgage on time, are cleared of all charges, and have a drink at the Boars nest.

Remember that one, thats my favorite!

Jason

Yep that sounds about like eevery episode.

[MGBRingo]

I liked the show back then.  I still catch an episode once in a while.

DOH has done a lot to increase the value of our cars and has made them more collectible.  That is a good thing for those who purchased one long ago.  Not so good for those seaking parts now.  But you can't have one without the other.  High priced cars means high priced parts.

[squeakfinder]

eevery?

I liked 68 69 Charges before Holywierd made them famous (I'm barely old enough to say that). I liked the show back in its day but that big screen movie is something I wouldn't recommend. There's to much nudity and fowl language. Hey, I thought this was a kids show.

Anyway 28? more Chargers bit the dust to make the movie. Not worth it IMO.

[69chargeryeehaa]

i watched the dukes every friday night curled up on the couch.  now i have a 69 charger, probally my favorite car because of the show.  i'm slowly making it a general, people think that we're hacking the cars making them generals? it's just paint, stickers, horn, antenna, wheels, bolt on pushbar.  totally reversable eaisly.  you either love it or hate it.  i'll tell you, i've never got any more thumbs up in any other car i've ever had, and i've had alot of really nice cars, and my car is not a full general lee, i have the horn, it's orange, and i have a magnet mount antenna on the trunk lid, that's it, but it's still recognized a mile away, and it's priceless.  it pains me to watching them wreak these cool cars on the show, but you have to remember back then, a dodge charger was just a plain old car, nothing special.  like a 88 mustang is today, but in 20 years a 88 mustang will probabally be a gem too!!!  rant out

[KMPX2]

Loved the show hated what they did to all those cars.

[THE COLONEL]

i watched the dukes every friday night curled up on the couch.  now i have a 69 charger, probally my favorite car because of the show.  i'm slowly making it a general, people think that we're hacking the cars making them generals? it's just paint, stickers, horn, antenna, wheels, bolt on pushbar.  totally reversable eaisly.  you either love it or hate it.  i'll tell you, i've never got any more thumbs up in any other car i've ever had, and i've had alot of really nice cars, and my car is not a full general lee, i have the horn, it's orange, and i have a magnet mount antenna on the trunk lid, that's it, but it's still recognized a mile away, and it's priceless.  it pains me to watching them wreak these cool cars on the show, but you have to remember back then, a dodge charger was just a plain old car, nothing special.  like a 88 mustang is today, but in 20 years a 88 mustang will probabally be a gem too!!!  rant out

Think about this also.  During the series, out of the rumored 350 (give or take a few) cars they destroyed,, only accounts to not even 1% of all the Chargers built in 68 & 69.  I feel there are more people destroying Chargers that let them sit on their property for years upon years, chasing you off of it with a shotgun, telling you they are going to restore it.  Those are the people that really make me mad.  Then the car gets neglected too long and it turns into a good parts car if that.

[Arkgl01]

I always liked the dukes of hazzard and I loved the GL, best memories I have are with my mom and we would watch it every weeknight. Now she is gone and those are some of my best times we had... I like it too cause your kids can watch it and you dont have to worry about what they will say next!!

Mark

[69fourspd]

I am with a few others.  If I didnt watch the show as a kid, I wouldnt have the passion for the car that I do now. 

[chrisII]

its a shame that cars were destroyed in making the dukes , then and now. but i agree that it increased the populairity of these cars. now as for daisy i loved her then and love her now. i believe thet jessica did a much better job than most give her credit for, and i am more partial to skiny blondes anyways

[Mike DC]

             
I just wish people would stop blaming "Dukes" for the fact that they can't afford a '69 Charger.

The car was popular before "Dukes."
It's still popular without the orange paint. 
Chargers are no more expensive than E-bodies or even many other B-bodies.  It's rediculous when there's a decent Charger being offered for $23,000 and buyers are blaming it on the 15-year-old "Dukes" fan next door with $1500 saved up.

---------------------------------------------------------

The wrecked cars?

Meaningless.  Statisically meaningless.
They could have wrecked ANOTHER 300 Chargers and it still wouldn't have made a noticeable difference in the numbers surviving today. 

That's the truth.
It's not Dukes's fault that America pissed away many tens of thousands of decent Chargers in the 1970s & 80s.
               

[Dave22443]

I liked the show, and my kids today are big fans of it.  I also like the fact that I can let them watch it without worring about them picking up too many bad habits.  But it does have some drawback.  While riding in my '68 a few months back, my son said from the back seat, "Daddy, make it go Yee Haw!"

"Yee Haw?" I asked.  "Yeah, way up in the air!"

"Uh... no son.  I don't think so."

It's funny to watch him now and remember what I was like as a kid.  To him and to me at the time, I never realized that there was ever more then one GL.  To me, the car was indestructable and I liked it.  Looking back at it now, I have a love/hate relationship with it.  I still like the show, and I can understand the popularity of the car because of it, but watching it now I can't help but think to myself, was it really nessesary to destroy so many?  I mean, wouldn't the show have the same effect by having fewer jumps?  Like maybe just one spectacular jump per show instead of five mostly lame ones?  I mean, instead of rushing across the county, burning rubber, sliding sideways and blowing through fences, all with the wheels on the ground, we get, "Hey, lets test out these new shocks" and pop, there goes another Charger, usually with no real added benefit to the show.  It was like, hey, we've got 5 more GL's to use up in this episode.  What do you want to do?  Oh, I don't care, as long as you just wreck'em. 

[squeakfinder]

I'm gonna get myself knocked off this site. I don't think the 68 69 chargers were that expensive in th 70's and early 80's. If my life at the time would have permitted I would have been buying them up left and right. What about all the cars that were destroyed by the idiots trying to copy there hero's on the TV show. Most of the 17 or so Gen Lee's left over from the show were 68's converted into 69's. What does that tell you? I've had two 68's. I bought my first one about 9 years ago for $700. The car had allot of damage on the quarter panels. Not so much from rust, they were buckled down write above the wheels and and had about 80 pounds of bondo on them. Well I fixed the car (3 year project) and replaced the quarter panels, sold it a couple of years ago. It was several months ago I was watching an episode of the Dukes and there was this seen where the car was just hitting the ground after a jump. I caught it just for a split second the quarter panels buckled just like on my car.

[Mike DC]

What about all the cars that were destroyed by the idiots trying to copy there hero's on the TV show . . . I was watching an episode of the Dukes and there was this seen where the car was just hitting the ground after a jump. I caught it just for a split second the quarter panels buckled just like on my car.

That's exactly my point.  The cars were not valuable at that time, and it's unfair to apply a modern set of rules to actions done in 1979.

(And by the way, the Chargers' rearends buckling on impact was greatly increased by the 650 pounds they typically added into the trunk of the jump cars.)

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I mean, wouldn't the show have the same effect by having fewer jumps?  Like maybe just one spectacular jump per show instead of five mostly lame ones?

There are actually some DOH episodes without a single Lee jump.  Even later in the series. 

The smaller hops of 3-4 feet upwards didn't kill the cars. 
Some 2nd-unit cars were mini-jumped repeatedly.  (No rollcage, no trunk weight, no 5-point harnesses & safety gear.)  It was just:  "Grab your nuts, buckle the lap belt, and jump the car."  A Charger was usually retired after it had fallen at least 5-6 feet vertically, and the quarters/unibody had bucked somewhere. 

They threw a lot more cars into the air during the Vance & Coy shows, when "Dukes" viewership was totally bombing and Warner Bros was trying to keep people watching.

         

[squeakfinder]

Yeah I know. The weight was put into the trunk to keep them from nose diveing. The car I had didn't have any other damage on the back end ( bumper/taillight area). The floor hump also had a tare accross it.

[8WHEELER]

I bought my red 68 in 1978, before the DOH came out. I thought it was a drop dead cool looking car.
The DOH did not make me like chargers any more or less in any way. I think one of the biggest things
driving up the prices of our cars in a way is  Barrett Jacksons, people see a car sell there and now believes
all cars of the same make and model are worth that kind of money, I hate BJ.

Do I like the DOH? I did back in the day, it was a corny silly show that actually showed people having fun,
and for the most part making things right that were wrong, don't see that to often anymore.

I just never could, and never will, see why people like seeing a muscle car flying through the air. It does
nothing for me at all. I am not saying anything about the number of cars involved, I will let others argue
that one, I am sick of hearing about it.

Dan

[Wakko]

I remember watching the Dukes when I was 7 years old and saying " I want one of those!" and not even knowing what it was.  One day during one of the close ups I saw CHARGER written and finally knew what it was.  For years I wanted a Charger just because of the General.  Well, it never went away and 23 years later here I am.  I love the Charger...both GLs and non GLs, 68, 69 and 70. 

Anyone know how many Firebirds got wrecked in Knight Rider?  I don't hear anyone bitchin' about THOSE cars.   

Viva El Dukos!

[Steve P.]

The chic and the Charger made the show. I'm not sure any of the cast even had names. As far as I could tell they made one or two hours of film and just re-aired it every week. Didn't they?? 

[Ghoste]

As far as wrecking them for cheap thrills being statistically meaningless, if they wreck a single one, it means something to me.  I had a 69 Charger at the time and I saw parts go up in price virtually overnight because of that show so I for one, think it had an immediate impact on our cars.  Is DOH responsible for high Charger prices?  No, I blame that more on the B-J circus than Dukes, but they certainly help.  Even though the 15 year old kid next door may not be buying one anytime soon, he is part of the hype that keeps the desire high.  Do I think that's all bad?  Hmmm, not really, I guess but I do think it's a bit of a mixed bag.
I agree with the Colonel that the shotgun guarded Chargers rotting in fields are a bigger crime than DOH but reading about homicide doesn't make me want to let al the shoplifters off.
Although I voted for "hate" and posted as a hater because someone asked where are they now, I am probably another one of the ones who thinks hate is a strong word.  It was family entertainment and it was no worse than "Three's Company" or any of the other stupid shows out then.
I stand firm on my condemnation of the movie and Dukesfest though.  The Charger destruction in those events is pointless.

[6pkrunner]

  I feel there are more people destroying Chargers(all flavors of Mopars)[/size] that let them sit on their property for years upon years, chasing you off of it with a shotgun, telling you they are going to restore it.  Those are the people that really make me mad.  Then the car gets neglected too long and it turns into a good parts car if that.

I cannot count the Mopars that I have seen rot to nothingness from around 1976 to present that the owners have said "Nope, I'm gonna fix 'er up someday." and watched a wrecker pull the car out of the mud rotted to pieces 10-15 years later. While there were quite a few common hi-po Mopars, others were some high ends cars that would bring small fortunes today. 1969.5 6 pack Bee, 1967 Hemi GTX, 1968 Hemi runner minus engine and more 440 R/T Chargers- Coronet R/Ts- GTXs, 383 runners/super bees, 340 Darts Demons Dusters than I could ever shake a stick at. But as said in several posts above, they were just common cars - nothing special. Except for the idiots like me who loved the cars since day one.

[THE COLONEL]

Anyone know how many Firebirds got wrecked in Knight Rider?  I don't hear anyone bitchin' about THOSE cars.   
Viva El Dukos!

Give it about 10 years and the same comments will be made about the Trans Am also.

[HAZZARDJOHN]

I hear your arguments on the prices and I disagree a little, I think everything you said is true, but the you can't discount the show for putting these cars on the map. The reason I have a charger is cause I watched the show, the reason my friend Jake bought a charger was because I got him watching the show. I am Not a mopar guy. I have no desire to own an E-body, or a demon, or just about any other mopar other than a 67-69 barracuda. There are alot of people out there like me who are gearheads and want a piece of their childhood back. Wether or not they paint their charger up like a General Lee, they bought the car because the show was the catylist, peaking their interests in these cars. 2nd Gen Chargers, at least your run of the mill low option cars, are about 10 grand more in value than comparable cars of that era. I think that the show had a lot to do with that. Just my opinion.

~HJ

[71440bee]

I seriously doubt the show had any major impact on Charger prices today. 68-70 Chargers would be expensive with or without the show. They are just plain cool cars. The only thing the show did was make people that were really not into Mopars take notice of the car and want one for the novelty. I tell you I got really sick of non car people asking me if I was going to turn my 70 Charger into a Duke's of hazard car. If it would have been any other car in the show the same talk would be going on about it. All the other Mopar B-bodys are expensive. Actually any performance Mopar is expensive. Especially 4spd and multiple carb or Hemi cars. It would be this way with or without DOH. Also agree the BJ and Ebay have driven prices way up. People see others with deep pockets spend stupid money on a car and figure well mine must be worth that. It will correct it's self one of these days and there will be some sorry individuals.

[HAZZARDJOHN]

... All the other Mopar B-bodys are expensive. Actually any performance Mopar is expensive. Especially 4spd and multiple carb or Hemi cars. It would be this way with or without DOH.

That's why I stated run of the mill Chargers, Not R/T's or Hemi cars. I can go out an buy a decent 69 Satellite today for 8-15k. That is comparible to the other makes. There is no way on the open market I could get a decent running driving 318 car that needs little to no work to be streetable for that amount. My Impala Convert is a little rarer than a 318 charger and it is valued at 20k in it's current condition. I Have had offers of up to 7k for my rusted hulk of a charger. I believe it has alot to do with the market, caused by people like me who grew up with the show and now can afford to get a car.  That is a Flooded market and less cars than their were in 1979. Not so much because of the show, but just time and lack of people taking care of their cars. Your right a Hemi 4spd Charger 500, would be valuable wether the show happened or not, But there is no way people would pay as much as they do for a turn key 318 car, if the show didn't happen.

~HJ

[694spdRT]

Let's assume that the Dukes show was never produced. How many of those 300+ cars would still be around today? I would guess that had they not been bought by Warner Brother's many would have met a crusher anyway due to accidents or wearing out.  As mentioned before others probably would have been left to rot away behind barns. I remember going through junkyards in the mid 80's down in Florida and there were everyday driver 2nd gen cars being brought in that were still fairly solid. Some were involved in accidents and others were considered just another used up old car to be parted out or crushed.

In 1985 I bought everything I could carry out of a '68 383 car including the complete grill for $20. I remember a nice '69 SE 318 car right next to the '68 that should not have been there, but it needed a quarter replaced and a full resto. At the time you could buy decent running big block Charger's for $2,500 and it was not considered worth fixing.

I do think that many Charger's were pulled out of backyards and fixed up by Dukes fans back then and even now that otherwise would have been left to rot away. So even if they did get painted orange they were still saved. I know of two rotted out 318 cars in my hometown that I considered "parts" cars that were saved and are now running around. After seeing those cars I think most guys would have parted them because of the 318 status had it not been for the Dukes connection. So while it does make me cringe when the General lands hard in the original show, I think the sacrifice may not have been totally in vain.