How I got my Charger thread

[xp29f8b]

I figure we can share our stories on how and when we got our Chargers.

I got mine while I was in GTMO in 02. I was looking on line and found it in Renton, WA. I called my wife and she went down to get it. When she got there, a guy just left to go get the money from his bank to buy it. My wife already had the $$ in hand, so the guy selling it told her first come first serve . Since she had the $$, we got the car. Imagine how PO'ed the other guy was when he got back with the cash and the car had been sold. My wife spent most of the night getting it towed to the house. Needlass to say I was one happy camper when I got back home And yes I have a great Wife who is very supportive with my obsession

[TK73]

Was looking for a '70 Chevelle but couldn't find one in my budget range (CHEAP).  Ran across the Charger online and since I LOVE old cars (not just one brand) I grabbed it...

[BigBlockSam]

good story, i was cut off by a 68 charger r/t. then i followed him for a couple of miles . when he stopped at a deli i comfronted him. he thought i was mad that he cut me off. i said no, i just want to check out your car. "is it for sale" he said it could be for the right price . i called my wife and we met him at his house. we gave him a check for the full amount . like that he couldn't sell the car and came back the next day with cash. it's very impotent to have a supportive wife . Rene

[triple_green]

mine was in the Misc auto section of the seattle Little Nickels.

This is what it said:

24 bayliner
86 taurus wagon
68 Charger 383

I went there the next morning. I had $4000 in cash. I was ready to buy  a Charger, I had been looking for nearly two years. As we looked at the car for 20 minutes 5 other guys drove up. Some in old mopars. He didn't know what the car was worth, but he know he should get some offers to find out. He wouldn't take my offer, said he would call me back if I was the highest. Three days passed. I gave up. Came home from church on Sunday morning. There was a message to come get the car.

And the rest as they say is history. Oh yeah and lots of money and time......did I mention the lots of money and time part!

[RTPTRON]

I purchased my 1968 Dodge Charger RT 440 in early November 1998 but the process all started mid year.

About June of 1998 I started to think a lot about my life and the fact that I was turning 50 on September 9 and didn't have any real toys.  I was spending most of my time working in pursuit of more money.  I came to the conclusion that this sucks and that I should make some changes in my life.  In July I decided to share my feelings with my wife Kathy.  She said that a nice classic car would be cool and that I should go ahead and invests about $5K in something like maybe a 1965 Mustang.

I didn't see anything that really got my attention until late October.  I was traveling near Bellingham, Washington when I passed a small car lot way out in the sticks.  I spotted my 1968 Charger RT and had to have it.  At that time I had no idea how to decode the Vin number or even that there were such things as Fender Tags and Build Sheets.  The good news is that the car turned out to be an honest to God 1968 Dodge Charger RT 440 Automatic.  There were two other potential buyers there at the same time ready to buy.  To make a long story a little shorter, I bought the car even though it was way over my budget for the project.  Cool, I was a very happy man!

And still am!!!

[BigBlockSam]

   Oh yeah and lots of money and time

[xp29f8b]

There seems to be a common link between Washington and 68 Chargers. You 68 fans know where to look now.

[Hemidoug]

71 Charger...Guy came up to me when I was selling parts at an Englishtown swap meet back in 1980. Showed me pictures of a raged out 71 V code, said his wife wanted the car gone. He was asking 600 for the car and I figured that at worst I'd part it....I still have it 28 years later and it is on it's second (hopefully last) trip to the bodyshop as we speak! (actual picture down below)

69 Charger....Friend had it for 10 or so years...wasn't doing anything with it, was sitting outside rotting away. He went through a divorce and needed some money......a deal was struck and I ended up with it back in 90. Best thing that ever happened to that car BTW...it would be a pile of rust by now.

[draftingmonkey]

This might be the third run concerning this topic.... 

maybe since new members keep signing up it might be an idea to make this a sticky thread.

My story - 1978 graduated from HS.  Wanted to buy a new Dodge Truck but couldn't afford it.  Found out from a family friend about a 74'  Charger in western Idaho so went and checked it out.  Well taken car of.  Wife's car and driven highway miles daily to and from work.  Hubby was a mechanic so well maintained.  Got a full tank of gas and 4 mounted snow tires (brand new) thrown in on the deal.  Still remember the mileage 69, 669 miles. Had her ever since.  The '67 I found on Craigslist and anyone following the '67 Charger in Wisconsin thread knows the rest.
BTW finally got my new Dodge Ram in 2000 so I got my truck in the end.

[charger_mike75]

You guys are gonna hate me...  When I was 17 in 1993 I went to inquire about a blue '69. The guy said no but he knew where a '68 and a '69 were for sale. He drew me out a map and I went to check them out. I found the 68 sitting next to a barn and the 69 setting on jack stands in front of the shop. When I asked how much they told me $800 for both and all the extra parts they had. I turned around and sold the 69 and extra parts I didn't need and was out about $140   

[400/6/PAC]

Mine was actually given to me.
The girl that owned it had it sitting in her backyard for 12 years.
At first she was trying to sell it but I told her I did not want it.
She called me a few weeks later and said I could have it if I would come get it.
$100.00 for the tow truck.

[drdodge340]

A few years ago i post a rant on moparts.com that all of the 71 super bees I had looked at were either overpriced or junk/ sometimes both. 


A board member who was a member here too "nupe" replied.he had a 71 bee that was reasonable and not junk...as a bonus it was n96 ramchargerhood d21 4spd and it was my favorite color EL5 "butterscotch" pictures were exchanged a deal was made . This was in the fall come spring away i went to get it. Luckily he was in Maine only a 14hr drive away. I now have it tucked away in the barn awaiting it's turn at a restoration...problem is i keep buying more pickup trucks...

[Ghoste]

I've always been left with the impression that all of my cars somehow found me as opposed to the other way around. 

[paironines]

I think it was the summer of 1999 I didn't have a computer, just web TV, and I saw an ad on some obscure classified web site for a 69 R/T SE in Decatur, IL for a too good to be true price of $1500.  I called and e-mailed but noone ever responded so I assumed it was gone like all the others and kept looking. Then about a month later I was on the same site and I thought it was funny that the ad was still there but the price had gone up. So I called again and the guy painted a not too pretty picture of it but I thought I might as well go look. Turns out it was in really good shape and I bought it. I have since painted it back to its original B5.

[Atomic440]

Bought mine (1970 Charger 500) from my pre-school teacher in Nebraska in 1993 for $150    Was 13 years old at the time, worked all summer painting fence for it.  Took a minor tune up to get it running again...Burned up the original 383 in high school  , now has a 440 that thinks it's a 318    Slowly making progress....

[chargerman68]

got mine off ebay...looking for years finally found a car near me and it ran...called and emailed the buy to death and got a deal and he took it off ebay and i went up to la to drive it home.it was about 6 yrs ago..now

[BigBlockSam]

got mine off ebay...looking for years finally found a car near me and it ran...called and emailed the buy to death and got a deal and he took it off ebay and i went up to la to drive it home.it was about 6 yrs ago..now 

thats kinda how i got my roadrunner   

[1BAD68]

I spotted my 68 on CollectorCarTrader.com the day it was listed (Saturday) and spent all day trying to call the guy, finally got ahold of him at about 9:30 pm and told him if its what he says it is, then I'd buy it first thing in the morning. So me and a friend took off early SuperBowl Sunday morning of '05 and headed 140 miles south to where it was.
I looked it over and offered 500 less then he was asking, just then a truck with a car hauler pulled up and he said "let me see what these guys say first" 
So I said, allright here ya go and handed him the full amount $7500 which was still a great deal.
I drove the car back home 140 miles in February and never had a problem.

Here is the picture from the for sale ad...

[69bronzeT5]

71 Charger...Guy came up to me when I was selling parts at an Englishtown swap meet back in 1980. Showed me pictures of a raged out 71 V code, said his wife wanted the car gone. He was asking 600 for the car and I figured that at worst I'd part it....I still have it 28 years later and it is on it's second (hopefully last) trip to the bodyshop as we speak! (actual picture down below)

Thats funny man. The way the 71 was sitting reminded me of my 69 when we found it. Sitting in the middle of an open yard surrounded by houses.

[68RT4ME]

Recently told my story here on my '69. The '71 was an E-Bay buy sort of. I'd been looking tor a car for months. I wanted a '68-70 car but I saw the '71 listed then sold on ebay. About 4 months later, I'm still looking for a car and had booked a flight to Delaware to go see a '70 Challenger R/T. Not exactly what I wanted but I do like'em too. 2 day's before I'm leaving, I'm on ebay again and see the '71 listed for sale and see the guy lives 1 county south from me. I call him. He tells me he had sold the car but when the guy showed up to buy it, he changed his mind about selling it due to cold feet/sellers remorse.

Wife and I jump in the truck and head over. He now needs to sell because he's building a new house and has another project. A Challenger of all things...lol. He opens the garage and my wife looks at me and say's "Now that's a muscle car" I couldn't argue with that. We made the deal right there and then as you could tell he was still wishy, washy about selling it and off we went. Been workin on it ever since and was even able to get the '69.    . Needless to say, I cancelled my trip to Delware.

He's since seen the car at a show recently and was feeling low about selling it but happy that it went to a good home.

[Skyview69]

Bought my 71 in 1989 from a local autotrader magazine. That was my first car -I was 17 and I still own it.  Then about 4-5 years ago I was out in my garage installing some fresh heads on it and a guy drove up in a jeep.  He said, "looks like you're into old mopars..." and I said "yep".  Then he asks me if I want to buy a 69 Charger.  I'm thinking to myself...of course I want a 69 Charger but this guy probably wants 10K or more for it so I just said to him.."how much you asking for it?" and he says "Well I need to get at least $500 for it."  I said hold on...drove to the bank and met him back at my house 10 minutes later with the cash.  Then he drove me to where it was....5 houses down from me behind a barn under a tarp!!  it had a couple of flat tires from sittin around for a while....he pumped up with a portable air tank.  The he said..."Not sure if she'll start or not."  He jumped in turned the key once and she fired right up    I drove her home and parked her in the garage for some close inspection. It is a sunroof car with the numbers engine and trans  He said he wanted her to go to a good home.  fortunately she is in a good home but awaiting surgery and a good donor

[terrible one]

Bought my 71 in 1989 from a local autotrader magazine. That was my first car -I was 17 and I still own it.  Then about 4-5 years ago I was out in my garage installing some fresh heads on it and a guy drove up in a jeep.  He said, "looks like you're into old mopars..." and I said "yep".  Then he asks me if I want to buy a 69 Charger.  I'm thinking to myself...of course I want a 69 Charger but this guy probably wants 10K or more for it so I just said to him.."how much you asking for it?" and he says "Well I need to get at least $500 for it."  I said hold on...drove to the bank and met him back at my house 10 minutes later with the cash.  Then he drove me to where it was....5 houses down from me behind a barn under a tarp!!  it had a couple of flat tires from sittin around for a while....he pumped up with a portable air tank.  The he said..."Not sure if she'll start or not."  He jumped in turned the key once and she fired right up    I drove her home and parked her in the garage for some close inspection. It is a sunroof car with the numbers engine and trans  He said he wanted her to go to a good home.  Unfortunately she is in a good home but awaiting surgery and a good donor

Now THAT is a deal! 

[Skyview69]

Bought my 71 in 1989 from a local autotrader magazine. That was my first car -I was 17 and I still own it.  Then about 4-5 years ago I was out in my garage installing some fresh heads on it and a guy drove up in a jeep.  He said, "looks like you're into old mopars..." and I said "yep".  Then he asks me if I want to buy a 69 Charger.  I'm thinking to myself...of course I want a 69 Charger but this guy probably wants 10K or more for it so I just said to him.."how much you asking for it?" and he says "Well I need to get at least $500 for it."  I said hold on...drove to the bank and met him back at my house 10 minutes later with the cash.  Then he drove me to where it was....5 houses down from me behind a barn under a tarp!!  it had a couple of flat tires from sittin around for a while....he pumped up with a portable air tank.  The he said..."Not sure if she'll start or not."  He jumped in turned the key once and she fired right up    I drove her home and parked her in the garage for some close inspection. It is a sunroof car with the numbers engine and trans  He said he wanted her to go to a good home.  Unfortunately she is in a good home but awaiting surgery and a good donor

Now THAT is a deal! 

Great Deal!!  One thing I forgot to mention was that he drove by my house on two separate occasions in the year prior to me buying it.....as he drove by he saw me (both times) running out to the road and giving him a big  .  Well that is what paid off for me...That gesture did not go unnoticed and he did mention that to me and that is why he chose to stop by my house that day 

So...it pays off to look like a fool and run out to check out a Charger driving by!!

[rusty lee]

I searched for years for a 69 charger. I did not want any other year. when I was a teen I worked for a salvage yard the owner was a big mopar nut so I called him and he looked for one. now the story he tells is that his guy was driving along in the rollback as this woman is putting a for sale sign on the car. so he buys it on the spot. I check it out the wife approves I buy it. that was may 2006. I built a garage to house it while it waits for restoration.

[71charger_fan]

In the spring of '86, I was looking for a '68 or '69 Roadrunner or a '68 to '70 Charger when I saw an ad in the local paper stating "1971 Dodge Charger, no rust ever, $1100." I went and looked it over and found a '71 SE, 383-2V, auto, console, slap-stick, rallye cluster car that needed exhaust, battery, brakes, and a thorough clean-up. He had just brought it to Maryland from SW Nebraska and couldn't afford to get it through MD inspection. I had to sink about another $800 into it to get it passed and the wife made me sell my '70 Barracuda Gran Coupe project (or get rid of the Charger). Some lucky guy got the '70, with a factory installed Go Wing, for $250; I had just installed a new headliner too. Just as well, that E-body was really poorly assembled and the interior panels were crappy when new, they were really bad by 1986.

[bull]

There seems to be a common link between Washington and 68 Chargers. You 68 fans know where to look now.

Funny you should say that. I found two of the 74 Chargers built in '68 with the 383/2bbl/4spd combo in the NW. One of them was in the Seattle area and the other was in Milwaukie, Oregon. The second one is the one I bought after searching for nearly two years.

I grew up driving a '70 Charger but always wanted a '68 after owning one for a short time (I sold it right back to the guy I bought it from) so about 7 years ago when I started working at my current place of employment my interest in Chargers was rekindled. Many of the guys I work with ride Harleys and ater hearing how much they paid for them I one day thought to myself, "I could almost get a Charger for that kind of money." I found this site (well, the old version) and began looking. After several months of frustration by doing a national search I was finally told by a wise old sage that I should consult my local restoration shops since they are usually in the know regarding the location of classic cars. I placed a phone call to North American Muscle Cars and the owner there told me about two 383/4spd Charger he knew might be for sale locally. I never made it up to Seattle to see the other one because I fell in love with the one in Oregon. And right now it's in 1,000 or more pieces being restored.

[Brock Samson]

remember the old site's Member Map?.. the Wash/Ore/Canada area was thick with chargers... 

[The70RT]

To make a long story short, i bought it from my nephew when he decided to drop out of school for 1000 bucks. I got a loan when I was 17 and paid a 38.00 a month. Now it is costing me 15 times the amount to restore it.

[xp29f8b]

There seems to be a common link between Washington and 68 Chargers. You 68 fans know where to look now.

Funny you should say that. I found two of the 74 Chargers built in '68 with the 383/2bbl/4spd combo in the NW. One of them was in the Seattle area and the other was in Milwaukie, Oregon. The second one is the one I bought after searching for nearly two years.

I grew up driving a '70 Charger but always wanted a '68 after owning one for a short time (I sold it right back to the guy I bought it from) so about 7 years ago when I started working at my current place of employment my interest in Chargers was rekindled. Many of the guys I work with ride Harleys and ater hearing how much they paid for them I one day thought to myself, "I could almost get a Charger for that kind of money." I found this site (well, the old version) and began looking. After several months of frustration by doing a national search I was finally told by a wise old sage that I should consult my local restoration shops since they are usually in the know regarding the location of classic cars. I placed a phone call to North American Muscle Cars and the owner there told me about two 383/4spd Charger he knew might be for sale locally. I never made it up to Seattle to see the other one because I fell in love with the one in Oregon. And right now it's in 1,000 or more pieces being restored.

That's funny, my first Charger was a 68 that I bought in Coos Bay, Or. I ended up trading it back to the guy I was buying it from do to financial reasons. I was young and poor