69 charger for $2000? *update page 6*

[Pat1973charger]

Yeah but the more value in parts then I'll spend in gas

[70 sublime]

Get the pile(s) home and store all the good stuff
Look it over to see what you are up against
Cover it or tarp it up good to save what is left and keep working on the 73  

Before you know it another 2nd gen Charger will come along and you will have all the parts you need

[Stevearino]

It is really hard to look at what used to be a Charger and think it is a total loss and it can not be practically saved. But sometimes that is just the case. You can easily make yourself feel better once you inventory the usable parts then go on Ebay and proceed to see what people are getting for those same parts. Things like glass and window regulators and other trim pieces. I guarantee you will quickly see you have not made a bad deal on what you have scored in parts.

[Pat1973charger]

Drivers hinge post is gone, floors are gone, needs inner and outer rockers, all rails/crossmembers, roof skin, Dutchman, tail light panel, quarters and fenders, cowl, inner fenders. I think that will make it a solid body haha the rear rails are inside the trunk where the springs mount, they had 1/8 mesh tacked to te rails and a piece of tin over it for a trunk floor. Torsion bar crossmember ends about 8 inches from the left rocker and was patched with tin and pop rivits.

[hemi-hampton]

To answer you, no I don't have $30k to throw at a car all at once but I do have disposable income each month to buy parts, supplies and so on. I also take some pride in taking a derelict vehicle and making it into something again, but I'm sure many feel the same. I know some about chargers but I posted originally thinking if I passed on them it may a stupid move. I do have better pics they aren't much but they are in daylight I just can't seem to get them to post from my phone. Thanks for the replies guys!

Here's your chance to turn this thing into a thing of Beauty. LEON.

[Pat1973charger]

I'm just a little worried about how I'm going to make the rear end square again since the rails are basically gone and springs are up through the floor, actually on te left side the front spring box has gone up through the rear seat pan. The upper sill part of the Inners rockers is good enough I could level it side to side. Front left rail is completly gone from the firewall to the torsion crossmember and as I said the torsion crossmember is shot. How do i go about making sure all that is where it needs to be?

[hemi-hampton]

Do it the same way I did this one. LEON.

[hemi-hampton]

After Pic. LEON.

[Pat1973charger]

Leon, I'm glad you have faith haha. How do I support it is what I have to figure out trunk gutters are non existent so I really don't know what's holding the rear of the car. I needs the rockers on to be able to put the rails in and the leaf spring braces, but how do I hold the car up and square while doing that . I need to do some pondering.

[Charger-Bodie]

If you don't have a jig ,you replace one part at a time so the car can tell you where the part fits.

[Stevearino]

I know this might seem a bit radical but depending on the shape of the Coronet you  could do one of two things.
Either you could jig it up to use as a reference car or you could cut away all of the Coronet sheet metal and start replacing it with Charger sheet  metal.  So what if the title will say Dodge Coronet. At least you will have a solid driver that you don't have to piece together from scratch. Everything should work except the roof sub structure in the area of the "C" post.
The picture below is of the chassis cut out of my project car to show that you can scalp it pretty far and it will still hang together.

[Pat1973charger]

Coronet has no title but it basicaly needs all the same stuff just not as far gone, coronet it gone from the firewall forward though but I suppose it could act as a firewall rearward jig. As for replacing one part at a time that's howni thought but it's so collapsed in the rear that I am going to have to remove everything from the window frame back including trunk gutters and  tail panel they are rotted away from each other and aren't even retaining shape

[hemi-hampton]

Like Charger Bodie said, Jig or one peice at a time. e-mail me for further advise. LEON.

[Pat1973charger]

Will do Leon, like insiders just hard to build a jig since the frame already went through the floor

[Patronus]

Those rails will fit like a glove. You just wait till all them boxes show up, they'll fall into place!

[Pat1973charger]

Those rails will fit like a glove. You just wait till all them boxes show up, they'll fall into place!

I hope so

[Pat1973charger]

So this thing done in haha, glad I got all the parts I did with it because $2000 is a lot for a 69 serial number and papers. Father in law is a body man from the 70's wants to take te frame sheet from the manual and set up a jig with a datum line and basically set up te rails, put in the crossmembers, spring supports for rear, lower rad support and inner rocker panels. Then stay putting the roof structure from my 69 which is useable ( by useable you guys recall mopar4dons structure repairs or gers). I found a satellite with excellant firewall and inner fenders, the. Start adding on the amd stuff. What do you think? Are we nuts?

[Dreamcar]

So this thing done in haha, glad I got all the parts I did with it because $2000 is a lot for a 69 serial number and papers. Father in law is a body man from the 70's wants to take te frame sheet from the manual and set up a jig with a datum line and basically set up te rails, put in the crossmembers, spring supports for rear, lower rad support and inner rocker panels. Then stay putting the roof structure from my 69 which is useable ( by useable you guys recall mopar4dons structure repairs or gers). I found a satellite with excellant firewall and inner fenders, the. Start adding on the amd stuff. What do you think? Are we nuts?

You're not nuts, but are you that desperate? I spent 8k more in getting mine, but the bones are good (no need for a jig) and by the looks of it, you're going to easily eat up some of that 8k difference in structural parts and have A LOT more work that really needs to be extra precis for the car to be straight.

I'm not trying to be insulting, but I just think that you'd be better off to find another 69 and maybe keep what's good on that Charger and Coronet for parts, spares, or selling for resto funds.

If you go ahead and fix that one, I do wish you all the best and don't be scared to ask us for help.

Cheers

[Pat1973charger]

I know of a 69 charger a couple hours from me with no title, from why I can tell will need front and rear rails, floors (I already have) torsion crossmember and prob outer rockers, besides the normal quarters and so on. The benefit being it's still holding itself together and the roof, firewall and front inner fenders are good. He is asking 1500 for that body. There really isn't any other options around without traveling 16 or more hours and with a new baby and work thst bt an option.

[Dreamcar]

Do just use the VIN from the other car. There's a recent thread about that!

If I was you, Id wait. Keep looking in PEI, NB, NS, and Maine.

[Pat1973charger]

Your saying don't use the vin?

[Dreamcar]

Your saying don't use the vin?

Oops... Typo on my part. Don't use the VIN!

[Pat1973charger]

So it's ok in your guys opinion if I were to build basicaly a new 69 charger from scratch using mostly amd and what's left of my 69 I have but it's not ok to build one out of two and some and stuff? I'm not trying to make a 318 car an r/t, mine was nothing special in its day. The one near me for 1500 needs an upper rad support dash is gone so technically there are no vins left aside from maybe the trunk gutter. The guy told me he sold the title, fender tag and vin last year to someone who bought a Arizona body and brought it across the border as "parts" and now it has Canadian registration. I don't know seems I can maybe save a charger out of two that will surely be crushed but to purists I guess that's not right?

[Stevearino]

The vin thing is a legal issue and what constitutes a rebuild varies. I think if you use the firewall and "A" posts from the mostly unsalvagable charger as a start point you could in some places replace most of the rest of the car with the $1,500.00 body. At least that is what someone did with a high dollar rare Cuda that sold at auction later for a million plus. All they started with was what I described and the paperwork and it was considered a restoration. But just swapping vin plates is considered a major no no most places.

[Dreamcar]

If I understand correctly, even the firewall on yours is gone, so what you have is a useable roof structure and VIN and title, is that correct?

If yes, than I think many of us here would say that the VIN should die with that car and not be transfered to another body. Plus, there's the legality of it all to worry about.

Just my