Saved a 1970 Charger From The Crusher...

[CornDogsCharger]

I posted this on my Facebook page but figured I would post it here as well. I got wind of a Charger that was recently hauled in to a local scrap iron recycling yard. As soon as I heard about it, I went down there to see if it was true. Sure enough, it was!  When I pulled in, I could see it sitting off in the distance about 75-100 yards away. All I could tell is that it was a '70. On my first attempt to look at the car, I was quickly turned away. I decided that I would call and ask to speak to the manager. I expressed to him that I just needed the car for parts.  He told me to come down there and he and I could discuss the car. Right off, he asked what parts I needed off the car. I knew where that would get me... I didn't want it for parts, I have plenty of parts... I just wanted to get the car out of there and keep it from getting crushed.... because otherwise, he would have let grab a few parts and be on my way. So as we walked up to the car, I told him parts that I knew would be a pain to remove in the yard.  I needed a rear end, suspension parts, steering parts, various brackets, etc.  He told me that they never sell to the public and all of their steel goes to the iron place next door. So after some persuasion (he really didn't want to let it go) we worked a deal for the car. So I was like a kid waiting for Christmas morning. I just knew, when I got back, it would have been crushed.

Yes, the car is rough.  It has been off the road more than it was on the road. There is a 1982 tag inside the car and I believe it has been off the road that long. But the good thing about it, it's pretty much all there!  Who in their right mind would haul in a mostly complete big block '70 Charger in this day and age?!?!  I don't really have plans for it, I just wanted to save it from being crushed.

Justin
"CornDog"

[darbgnik]

Nice save! 

[BDF]

NICE SAVE! 

[XS29L9Bxxxxxx]

Who would crush such a car?  I bet it only brought $400 to person who brought to the scrap yard

[CRW-FK5]

Cool.  What did you end up paying for it?

[JR]

Awesome, good work man.

[CornDogsCharger]

Cool.  What did you end up paying for it?

Less than I should have. I'll leave it at that. Haha. 

[69rtse4spd]

Nice save, get ahold of Don the 70 registry & give him the vin & fender tag info. .

[Baldwinvette77]

I saw this on Facebook, I thought it was staged, Good job man! 

[crj1968]

I'm surprised the owner would consider crushing it at all....You'd think a dude in that line of work would have a clue. 

Anyway good job man !   

[Baldwinvette77]

After zooming in on the 2nd picture there seems to be a beige classic car in the pile behind it on the right, did you happen to catch what it was?

[4406pack]

Will the car be for sale at anytime?

[ACUDANUT]

Cool.  What did you end up paying for it?

Less than I should have. I'll leave it at that. Haha. 

What's the big secret ?

[Kern Dog]

Yeah, come on Corn Doggy! The seller surely is NOT a member here. Even at $1500 it still may have been a great deal for the unique 1970 specific parts. How is the grille?

[lukedukem]

What's the trim going across the top. Did it have half a vinyl top
Nice save.

Luke

[cbrestorations]

if he wanted to say how much he paid for it he would have, some things are fine to keep private

[Sublime/Sixpack]

It's great that you were able to save it from the crusher. And at the very least there's bound to be some usable parts on it.

[CDN72SE]

Pretty cool, you don't see that very often I'm sure in 2017.

[tan top]

 

[Johnnymopar]

WOW!  This still happens in 2017.  Good save.  You did not just save it from the crusher, that's a car shredder you just saved it from becoming little bits of steel ready for the furnace. 
I worked at a shredding facility and have heard many stories of the crazy old days.  Especially in the mid 70s to the early 80s when these were just rusty gas guzzling old cars.  The worst was when one of my customers told me they pulled a hemi out of a black Challenger and sent the rusty body to the shredder back around '82.  They probably got about $25 for the scrap.   

[PlainfieldCharger]

That was the best junk yard save I have seen   Great Save!!  Post some more pics when you get her home

[cdr]

    AWESOME save, hard to believe it made it to the scrap pile in 2017!!! FRIGGIN AMAZING !!!     

[white]

Glad to see it was saved!

[cooldude]

Good job saving the old car!

And yes, its scarry to think that there are people out there who are just plain dumb enough to even think about crushing a car like that.

Probably one of those guys who walks around with his head down, oblivious to everything, stupidly staring at his cell phone all day. 

[Charger_Fan]

Great save!
I can tell the back end is rotted pretty good, how is the rest of the car?

if he wanted to say how much he paid for it he would have, some things are fine to keep private

I agree!

[Bob]

Is that a half vinyl top?

[sdweatherman]

Kudos on getting that car out of there! Either it was abandoned on someones property and got evicted, or someone owned it and was told it was going to take more money than what it would be worth to restore it - so they came out ahead with $300 scrap.

Not a Charger - but I pulled this one out of a salvage yard north of town 4 years ago by telling the yard owner that I needed the dutchman, rear floor pan, and some other sheet metal. Convinced him that it would be easier to cut and pull those parts in my garage than starting a fire in his yard - and oh by the way - I need some of these suspension parts to throw under it so I can roll it off the trailer into my garage. If you look close - there is a hole in the roof. All the power sunroof parts were still on the car! After a little love and a donor car, its not looking half bad.

So getting them out of purgatory is not impossible if you can work the right angle and have a little luck on your side.

Scott.

[Baldwinvette77]

another nice save!, what was red car next to it in the yard?

[Lennard]

another nice save!, what was red car next to it in the yard?

You think he remembers that after 4 years?  

[sdweatherman]

another nice save!, what was red car next to it in the yard?

You think he remembers that after 4 years?  

I do! Looked that one over close too. 1973 318 3spd Roadrunner. Sunroof too - but aftermarket. Pretty rough and rusty and missing lots of parts like my car. Biggest kicker was that it did not have its fender tag. Scott.

[Lennard]

Wow, I don't even remember what I did last weekend.  

[Kern Dog]

Wow, I don't even remember what I did last weekend.  

Drugs ? 

[Lennard]

Wow, I don't even remember what I did last weekend.  

Drugs ? 

Never in my life have I tried drugs, consumed alcohol or smoked anything. I doubt you can say that. 

[alfaitalia]

Wow, I don't even remember what I did last weekend.  

Drugs ? 

Never in my life have I tried drugs, consumed alcohol or smoked anything. I doubt you can say that. 

Well you might not live longer than the rest of us.......but it sure as hell is going to feel like it!!

[Kern Dog]

Wow, I don't even remember what I did last weekend.  

Drugs ? 

Never in my life have I tried drugs, consumed alcohol or smoked anything. I doubt you can say that. 

I am impressed. I was actually joking, trying to mend a fractured association with you. We have had tensions over silly things so I thought a silly ball buster comment might be in order.
I just like to make jokes.
What did you do this weekend .....besides drugs? See the joke? To  someone I'm on better terms with I would have said....What did you do last weekend.... besides little boys?
I'm not a drug user either. I tried smoking cigarettes but wasn't good at it. I rarely drink any booze.

[Lennard]

I got the joke. Back to the original topic... great that another charger has been saved!  

[dual fours]

Glade you were at the right place at the right time and the scrapper gave you the time needed to acquirer it. Did you buy it as Salvage or does it have a clear title?
More pictures would be awesome, thank you.

[darbgnik]

I think more pictures are in order, now that you have it. We're all hanging in suspense here. 

[paironines]

Was there a title to the Charger? That would be too lucky.

[ACUDANUT]

if he wanted to say how much he paid for it he would have, some things are fine to keep private

It would help the rest of us trying to buy car from a junk yard. it's not asking for the winning lottery numbers for next week. what's the big deal ?

[F8-4life]

Well its under 500 bucks so really who cares? Its his business.

[lukedukem]

Is that a half vinyl top?

I saw that too


Luke

[Kern Dog]

if he wanted to say how much he paid for it he would have, some things are fine to keep private

It would help the rest of us trying to buy car from a junk yard. it's not asking for the winning lottery numbers for next week. what's the big deal ?

This issue is one that I try to let go but it always annoys me. People are excited to go online to tell about some great deal that they got but clam up when people ask about the price.  What do you have to lose, people? Really? Do you think others will create voodoo dolls to torture you out of jealousy??
If you want to keep the purchase price a secret, keep the whole thing a secret. Showing your score to people is fine but it is rude and selfish to shut down when people ask for more info. These forums should be about helping others and sharing information.

Hey Joe, how did you do with your traffic ticket in court?  Oh, I won the case. How did you do that?  I'd rather not say.
Hey Joe, I heard that you asked out the Prom Queen. How'd that go? She said yes. Really? How did you ask her?  I'd rather not say.
Hey Joe, Your brother told me that you had Cancer. Sorry, man. Not anymore. The Dr cured me.That is GREAT! How did he do it? I'd rather not say.
Hey Joe, I read online that you bought a car from a Junkyard...a 70 Charger! I've wanted a 68-70 Charger for years. What did it cost? I'd rather not say.

[CornDogsCharger]

Sorry guys... didn't mean to leave everyone hanging, or seem like I was avoiding the subject... I've just been busy this week trying to get a car ready for a car show this weekend.  I also didn't realize that so many people would be adamant about knowing what I gave for it.  As some have mentioned already, and I'm sure many others agree, it's really my business what I have invested in it.  If I wanted to share an exact dollar amount, I would.  I don't walk up to the house of a total stranger, knock on the door and say "Hey, I really love your house... how much did you pay for it?".  Not that I'm trying to hide anything, I just don't feel that it is relevant.  I will say this... all of us can roughly figure out what the recycling place gave for the car.  So he wasn't going to let me have it for that amount... because there was profit to be made on his end, from a business standpoint.  I have enough invested in it that I feel like if I were to sell it, it would be worth my time and effort to get it out of there before it was turned into a piece of angle-iron.  

Here is how I found out about the car... and how I worked the deal... if you're just wondering so that maybe yo can do the same thing.  A friend of mine sends me a picture of some firefighters using the "jaws of life" on a car.  Close to where they were working, you can see the side of the Charger.  My friend (who is an A-body guy) said "Hey, looks like a B-body, thought you might enjoy it".  So I quickly call him and ask what he knew about the picture.  He tells me that his friend posted it on facebook.  His friend teaches at one of the local fire academies and apparently, they planned a training session at the recycling yard and asked if they would sit some cars to the side so they could come down there and use them for training.  Luckily, they Charger was not used.  So, as I mentioned in my original post, I tried once... this was on a Monday at closing time, and the manager was supposedly in a meeting at the time.  So, Tuesday morning I call the place and speak with the manager.  He tells me to come down one day and we could talk about the car.  My lunch break was coming up, so I ran down there during that time and he showed me the car.  From the very start... he told me that they do not sell to the public, and I knew he would just try let me get a few parts and be on my way.  I told him that I really needed the car for parts.  I could tell that he felt it would be a hassle to let the car go out... being that they've already inventoried the weight and then their numbers would be off.... but I just told him, if there was any way to get the car out of there, I could really use it.  He thought for a minute and then asked if I had another similar size/weight vehicle with the drivetrain... and if so, I could basically trade scrap for scrap.  I would weigh in when I got there, unload, load up the car, and weigh out... and whatever I brought in had to be the same weight or more and could not be less.  I told him that I did have a car.  He said that if we were going to do it, I needed to do it quick because they couldn't promise that something wouldn't happen to the car.  I told him that I worked M-F 7:30-5:30.  They close at 3:30 but are open on Saturdays til noon.  He asked if I could do it Sat.  I said that I could.  

So.... I had some junk bodies that I could scrap but I had a few things going against me.  The car needed to be pretty complete with drivetrain.  I didn't know what the Charger was going to weigh in at so I just figured 3800lbs.  I needed the vehicle to roll and make it easy to load by myself in the dark... and I needed to do all of this QUICK... and get it done after work in the few days that I had left.  My first thought was, I can just buy a ragged out Crown Vic (or something similar) with a blown up engine for a few hundred bucks.  I looked all over craigslist and couldn't find anything.  Time was ticking and it was coming down to the wire.  So on Thursday night, I drug up a 1965 Oldsmobile F-85 station wagon that I had as a future project.  It killed me to do it, but it was the only thing I had that I was willing to let go in trade for the Charger, and it met all of the requirements... it rolled, it was mostly complete, and I could make it weigh about the same.  The only thing it lacked was drivetrain.  I had a '79 318/904 that I bought for another project and ended up not using it.  It was said to be a running engine, but I never tried it.  I hated to let that go to the shredder too, but I felt it was for a worthy cause.  As it turned out, the station wagon was a lot rustier than I last remembered and it needed a lot of sheet metal... but I still hated to do it.  

So I dropped the engine/trans in the engine bay and filled the car with a bunch of extra scrap metal that I had, and loaded up the car on that Thursday night.  I called the boss and asked if it would be okay if I came in a little late on Friday morning.  He was up to speed on everything and he was okay with it.  So Friday morning came, I weighed in, unloaded the wagon, loaded up the Charger, went back across the scales, and not only was I leaving with the Charger, they paid me an extra $31.25 for the additional weight that I brought in.  haha

Details on the car.  YES, it is rough.  Both rear rails are GONE.  It will need quarters, floors, cowl panel, probably the fenders, etc.  But the car could be saved depending on how much you want to sink into it.  The big block is locked up... probably has been for years.  I haven't checked to see if it's numbers matching or not.  I will though.  At some point, someone  installed a have vinyl top.  I have not looked to see if the car originally had a vinyl top or not.  It is originally an N-code 383 B5 blue with blue interior car.  I did not get a title with the car because remember.... I ""bought it for parts"".  There is not a fender tag on the car either.  I have already been hit up more times than I can recall... locally and online... but yes, I do plan to sell the car.  No, I do not have a price in mind as of right now.  I want to clean it up more and give it a good evaluation so that I can give an honest description of the car's condition.  I have already cleaned it up some and put a set of rollers on it since the rallies that were on it would not hold air.  Here are a couple more pictures... I will post more but I'm having a hard time uploading photos to my photobucket account.

Justin
"CornDog"

[Kern Dog]

Are you going to sell it to that guy in Ohio that makes General Lee  jump cars?
(Please say no.)
Thank you for the explanation. In this case I can clearly see how it is difficult to asses an actual cost to buy since it was a trade deal.
Regarding the comparison you made to asking a homeowner of the price they paid: If the Homeowner walked around the neighborhood talking about what a great deal that they made, it would surely make others curious enough to ask. Nobody here sought you out asking about the car. YOU posted about it. Thank you for doing so, this is a nice thing to hear of.
Thank you again for the long response and the pictures. 

[darbgnik]

Keep us up to speed on how the actual condition turns out to be. I've seen a lot of Chargers on here that have been rescued from far worse condition than this one looks. And it's complete!

I would mention to any prospective buyers on here, interested in this car, that his time will be included in the sale price, including searching for title information, which would add value.


Oh ya, more pictures, there's never enough!

[lukedukem]

really good job saving this one. i would like to know the story on how this car came to be a the junk yard. do you know how long it was there.

I think sacrificing the olds to save this charger was a good move. maybe not if your an olds wagon guy, and i suspect there's some out there.
here's to the olds that saved the charger  

RIP (this is not the actual car but one i found online, i'm not even sure its the right year, lol)

[CornDogsCharger]

really good job saving this one. i would like to know the story on how this car came to be a the junk yard. do you know how long it was there.

I think sacrificing the olds to save this charger was a good move. maybe not if your an olds wagon guy, and i suspect there's some out there.
here's to the olds that saved the charger  

RIP (this is not the actual car but one i found online, i'm not even sure its the right year, lol)

Wow!  That's actually pretty close to what it looked like... but nearly as good as the one in the picture. I will post more pictures.  Photobucket is giving me grief and is very slow all of a sudden. Anyone recommend another image host to post pictures? 

Justin
"CornDog"

[darbgnik]

I've had pretty good success downsizing and uploading directly to this site.

As a hint, I find if I take a pic on my phone, text it to myself, then save that one, the texted pic is close to the 200k limit, but still full size. the text compression work well I find..... so if I have to reduce it's size slightly using windows paint, it doesn't turn tiny.

[bigdsul]

That car is in better condition than some of the piles of rust on eBay or Craigslist that have sold for a fair price. Sure there is a lot of bad but with a donor car this one could be saved and brought back. Hopefully this one can be saved and brought back to its former glory.

[RCCDrew]

Great story!  You're making me want to go reinvestigate the clapped out V code Cuda close to my house!

[CornDogsCharger]

Great story!  You're making me want to go reinvestigate the clapped out V code Cuda close to my house!

What are you waiting for... go save it!! 👍 That's would definitely be a great save regardless of the condition.

Justin
"CornDog"

[Ryan.C]

I could use that front clip for a future daytona project 

But seriously let me know if you part it 

[dual fours]

Hey CornDog when you find most of the numbers, Dash vin, radiator support, drivers door label, trunk lip, please let these guys know.     http://1970chargerregistry.com/
This is so cool to fall in to it the way you did. Glad the Charger never met up with the Jaws of life, a HURST product.
Don't forget to look behind the rear seat for the Production Broadcast Sheet.

[Laxy]

Awesome find and you really jumped through the hoops to get it. Top work.

A decade or so ago I saved a couple of aussie Valiant sedans the day they were meant to be crushed (luckily they were happy to sell whole cars), one ended up 99% rust free and fairly rare - it's being restored by a mate here.

[GordonGriggs]

Great Story! I am so happy that you worked so hard to save a charger. Even if it can not be titled it can still be used for a drag race car.  Or even fixed up and kept in a garage for someone that always wanted on but can't drive anymore. Lots of other uses I am sure that do not include jumping it.

[qwick68]

Very cool and good score, good for you

[lukedukem]

i guess its for sale now. but it is not offered on this site. 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1970-Dodge-Charger-500-Hardtop-2-Door-/262973163646?hash=item3d3a6c087e:g:G3gAAOSwdjNZD9IX&vxp=mtr

Luke

[hemi-hampton]

Amazing what a junkyard POS can get nowadays. LEON.

[F8-4life]

Should have vaccumed out the interior & soaked all the vinyl in armor all.
Re-mounted the original wheels and cleaned the glass.
Maybe stick some red craft paper in for the taillights...
It would be at 3 grand by now probably lol!

Hmm, don't forget the tire shine & chrome polish too!

[Baldwinvette77]

Should have vaccumed out the interior & soaked all the vinyl in armor all.
Re-mounted the original wheels and cleaned the glass.
Maybe stick some red craft paper in for the taillights...
It would be at 3 grand by now probably lol!

Hmm, don't forget the tire shine & chrome polish too!

All you really had to do was mention fast and furious in the ad a few times 

[Kern Dog]

i guess its for sale now. but it is not offered on this site. 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1970-Dodge-Charger-500-Hardtop-2-Door-/262973163646?hash=item3d3a6c087e:g:G3gAAOSwdjNZD9IX&vxp=mtr

Luke

The guy writes a good, honest ad. Best of luck to him.

[cbrestorations]

im high bidder on that pos lol

[hemi-hampton]

im high bidder on that pos lol

Why would you bid on a rust bucket when you can get a rustfree Nevada desert car from your area? LEON.

[lukedukem]

i guess its for sale now. but it is not offered on this site. 
http://www.ebay.com/itm/1970-Dodge-Charger-500-Hardtop-2-Door-/262973163646?hash=item3d3a6c087e:g:G3gAAOSwdjNZD9IX&vxp=mtr

Luke

The guy writes a good, honest ad. Best of luck to him.

He sure does, and i wish him luck as well. Just wondering why not offer it on here first or at least update the thread with a link. We already have one guy interested, and he could've avoided the eBay route if he posted on here. I'm just very thankful he was able to save this car from that crusher.

Luke

[VegasCharger]

The guy writes a good, honest ad. Best of luck to him.

Why can't most eBay and Craigslist ads be like this one. Great pics and an honest write-up.

[DanielRobert]

That's a nice, honest ad. Whether you like the car or not. He was telling it like it is and if you don't think its for you, you don't bid. As for the "how much did you pay for it?' thing....I do think that it's part of the story to put a price on things for perspective( and, really, it's not that big a deal to tell someone what you paid FOR A CAR , yes, A CAR) but, totally support his privacy in the matter.

[cbrestorations]

im high bidder on that pos lol

Why would you bid on a rust bucket when you can get a rustfree Nevada desert car from your area? LEON.

try finding a rust free desert car...real hard to find, plus i like turd buckets, they make awesome ratty racecars toys

[VegasCharger]

try finding a rust free desert car...real hard to find, plus i like turd buckets, they make awesome ratty racecars toys

[Charger_Fan]

The guy writes a good, honest ad. Best of luck to him.

The ad is very well worded & he included tons of pics, I would feel very comfortable bidding on this car.

It's going to be interesting to see what it bids up to.

[darbgnik]

i guess its for sale now. but it is not offered on this site. 

Luke

Probably because everything linked on this site is derided as over priced? Rather than post it here to have everyone tell him to bury it in a landfill, he just wanted to see what the free market would give him for it?

That being said, in my eyes, it looks like a parts car. With  not many useable parts.

[hemi-hampton]

im high bidder on that pos lol

Why would you bid on a rust bucket when you can get a rustfree Nevada desert car from your area? LEON.

try finding a rust free desert car...real hard to find, plus i like turd buckets, they make awesome ratty racecars toys

Their are plenty of rust buckets in my area (Detroit) I'm sick of them. I won't even buy a car now or in past 20 years unless it's a solid rustfree car. My Rusty Bengal Charger being a exception. LEON.

[F8-4life]

i guess its for sale now. but it is not offered on this site. 

Luke

Probably because everything linked on this site is derided as over priced? Rather than post it here to have everyone tell him to bury it in a landfill, he just wanted to see what the free market would give him for it?

That being said, in my eyes, it looks like a parts car. With  not many useable parts.

2x I'm also on a classic 2t moped site & have seen this happen quite often.

[70 sublime]

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/262973163646?ul_noapp=true

1970 Dodge Charger 500
1970 Dodge Charger 500 Project Car N-Code Big Block 383ci 727 B5 Blue
                       
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dukescollector01 (664 )
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Item condition:Used
"Needs Restoration."
Ended: May 14, 2017 , 22:16
Winning bid:US $3,350.00
Approximately C $4,596.87
[ 26 bids ]