Your thoughts on the 1978 + 79 Dodge Magnum

[Manfred318]

I like 'em
I seem to remember a guy had one for sale around here 4 or 5 years ago it was the GT 360 white with red interior. He ended up selling it for $900. I called to tell him I wanted to buy it but it was already sold. I was a day late and a dollar short

[Dave22443]

Here's one for the East Coast guys:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1979-Dodge-Magnum-XE-with-T-Tops-Solid_W0QQitemZ230147811896QQihZ013QQcategoryZ84155QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

And another for the West Coast guys:
http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/78-Magnum-XE-Beatiful-California-T-top-Car_W0QQitemZ120138044639QQihZ002QQcategoryZ84155QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[Magnumcharger]

Finally, here's a picture.
And I got it for....drumroll......a hundred bucks.

Just read in Mopar Collectors guide where a guy was asking $12K for an original T/A 340 block, bare.

It's because of prices like that, and $2500 quarterpanels, that I'm gravitating towards the cheaper side of this hobby of ours!

[Charger-Bodie]

i personally think they are pretty cool cars and i also used to own one it was a 78 white with red int. 400 (which i replaced with a 383) and auto on the floor . i think that if any of the late 70 mopas will get more valuable its the magnums especially a GT .

[no318]

Finally, here's a picture.
And I got it for....drumroll......a hundred bucks.

Just read in Mopar Collectors guide where a guy was asking $12K for an original T/A 340 block, bare.

It's because of prices like that, and $2500 quarterpanels, that I'm gravitating towards the cheaper side of this hobby of ours!

A hundred bucks!!!  You lucky dog.  How do you sleep at night!

[JimsSE]

I just put some Goodyear OWL tires back on my GT to make it look more like it came from the factory.  I'll get some pics posted on my website soon...it makes the car look completely different.  Mine's an L code E58 with "T"s too so I guess there were at least 2 made.  Actually, I saw another one in a Mopar mag from years ago.  So I guess we're up to three.  The guy in the mag said there was like 163 GT's with the E58.  He actually commented, "How many of those came with "T"s" too.  Seriously, I figure out of the 1670 or so GT's the number of E58 and "T" is probably around 50 or so.  Just a guess, I haven't found anything in writing to document the numbers.

Check out the website for some "before" pics.

Jim

[The70RT]

I just don't ever see anyone repoing many parts for them. I think the Volare and Aspens have a better chance of being collectibles before these ever will. Dont get me wrong The Magnums look ok to me but they made so few and you better buy a couple more (if you can find them) for parts.

[Magnumcharger]

Funny how you should say that....
A few years ago, I ran across another Magnum in a junkyard, and stripped it for usable parts. Same thing with another 79 300 I found.
So I'm already ahead of the curve with the parts gathering process.

[Ghoste]

Sadly, there was a yard near me that had an entire Cordoba and related B-bodies from that era section.  A few years ago they crushed everything in the yard to sell the scrap to China so Wal-Mart could have more falling price alerts.  I bet they had 20 of those things and all pretty complete. 

[Magnumcharger]

Well, we all would love to have Hemi Daytona Chargers, and Panther Pink Sixpack Challenger convertibles, but the sad truth is most of us will never find those cars at anything close to a reasonable price tag.

1966-70 Chargers are now 37-41 years old. 
Chances of finding them in your local wrecking yard? .....Getting slimmer all the time.
And the price of parts? Don't get me started!!

Every day I hear people complain about the diminishing "pool" of collector cars that they can afford, and have fun with!
I propse to these people that there are lots of Chryco-related options, and they could be right under your nose!

[Lowprofile]

I was thinking, I haven't seen one in person now in about 20 years

I love THAT car! God, I remember that Hot Rod/Car Craft Project Car! I used to carry that issue around in my backpack in highschool!! If I could find one, I'd build it EXACTLY like that!

Thanks Pete for the flashback!

[aussiemuscle]

i like the magnum from "JUNKMAN" the movie. one of the bad guys was driving one

[89MOPAR]

  Nice score MagnumCharger, especially at that price .  Shoot that price for just the flares is a steal.  Best of luck restoring it !
   The longer I'm in this hobby / pursuit  the  less I gravitate to the 66-74 B-bodies when at a show, and more towards the weirder, harder to find cars like this one.
 
 

[SchaefMan]

I really used to think the Magnum was hot. From what I remember, though, they were more a Luxury car than a performance machine. I drove my brother's Cordoba, and it was sort of boat-like in it's handling. I had an '80 Cordoba, myself, and I believe the evolutionary equivalent of the Magnum at that time was the Mirada...I wanted that, too... It was totally comfortable to drive, but again, not a powerhouse.

What I also recall was, the '80 Cordoba sufferered from some of the same quality deficiencies that the K-cars did, but I am not sure about the '78's and '79's...

I would not turn a Magnum down, in decent shape, but my first love is still the '68 Charger, and I need to pursue that dream first.....

Bob

[Magnumcharger]

  Nice score MagnumCharger, especially at that price .  Shoot that price for just the flares is a steal.  Best of luck restoring it !
   The longer I'm in this hobby / pursuit  the  less I gravitate to the 66-74 B-bodies when at a show, and more towards the weirder, harder to find cars like this one.

Thanks!
The price still doesn't beat the '69 Cuda I bought a few years back...$50. And it was a running, 340 automatic fastback!
Here's a picture of the wheels I just got from a fellow dodgecharger.com member, in advance of buying the Magnum!

[TeeWJay426]

Personally, I like the Magnums.... in 78 & 9, they were proably one of the better styled cars available. It definitely sounds like you bbought it right. And it may not be a 2nd gen R/T, but that's why you got it for a song.... it will be a nice cruiser when done, and you will stand out in most shows, as there won't be a lot of Magnums around competing for attention!

[89MOPAR]

  Hey MagnumCharger - are those 15 x 7 " rims   or 15 x8 " rims  ?
I could use a spare set as well....

  On the 66-74 thing - I love 'em, they are the bread and butter of bad-ass Mopar! ;  however they are so prevalent at car shows it's nice to see different

  The Magnum in the JunkMan Movie took a hell of a beating as well - good bad guy car 

[nakita7]

Very cool and under-rated cars. You did well.

[Ghoste]

Here you go.

[pettyfan43]

Just an FYI, under the skin the Magnum/Cordoba has more than a passing resemblance to the 73-74 B-Bodies. Big block Cordoba/Late Chargers are CHEAP and it is EVERYTHING you need to swap a big block onto a 73-74 B-Body. EVERYTHING bolts right in, replace those rubber insulators with the new urethane pieces or the police car service kit like I used for F-Bodies, you just reverse the mounting position. The bigger brakes and rear sway bar work like a champ as well.

And the donor car I have for my 73 cost me a smooth 100 bucks, not a bolt, nut or washer missing!

[Argos_Chargers]

BTW my daily driver is a '79 Magnum!  It's the nicest daily driver I've had since I used my '70 Charger back in the '90's

[Steve P.]

Ok, so they are not on the top of the (GOTTA HAVE IT) list that everyone has in their head.. Big deal.. I love them and I am seeing more and more of these style cars coming out of the woodworks... 

I bought a 76' Cordoba last year for my younger daughter, (Crash), to drive. I figured it is a mopar. Has plenty of steel all the way around so maybe the next time she plows into a pond, steel gate, chain link fence or is rear ended by another truck she would be safe.. Anyway, she loved it in the pics. but said it was way too big when I brought it home. So, I have been watching Egouge ever since and I see more and more of this body style all the time.. They still aren't pulling big money, but I think it will come around eventually.

I drove my Doba around for a day during the spring. Damn fine ride. Tons of  up. Even had a Chrysler dealer looking at it.. 

I say if you like it who cares if others do or don't. By it for you...  I don't care for Rustangs, but millions do..  That is the great thing about this hobby. You do what you like with what you like..

You get a yes vote from me anyway...

[Magnumcharger]

  Hey MagnumCharger - are those 15 x 7 " rims   or 15 x8 " rims  ?
I could use a spare set as well....

Those are the 15 x 7 size, original to the Magnum GTs.
The 15 x 8 size was exclusive to the Super Coupes I believe.

I've been looking for a set of these wheels for years, and just about jumped out of my skin when I saw them on a Charger, posted on a thread on this website.
So I contacted the owner, inquired as to their avaliability and found out that he was in the process of buying replacement wheels at that time.
Lucky for me!
And because the wheels were obtainable, that prompted me to look into the avaliability of the Magnum GT, which was about to become soup cans.
And the rest is history.

[Brock Samson]

how about some pics of these boats?..   

as i've mentioned before there's a guy in the area who has a two tone silver blue Daytona, in bone stock original shape, seems they should be pretty receptive to a bump in H.P. and torque, they will accept a B.B. without difficulty no?.. I'll take mine in tripe black,.. wait, does that mean it'll be dusty before i'm through detailing?..        

[Steve P.]

Many Doba's and Chargers And Magnums came stock with 400's... Big blocks are no problem..