Dukes of Hazzard police car

[marshallfry01]

I've been thinking about finding a 77-78 dodge Monaco 4 door to make a Rosco car out of.  I can't find these things anywhere hardly! I found one on craigslist already finished like a patrol car for $8,500. I found another on ebay that is all original in very good condition for $5,000. In my opinion that is a little high for what I consider a grandma car.  Where can I find one of these cars at? Would it be realistic to find a decent driver for less than $2,000?   ... We are not dealing with chargers here.....

[Mike DC]

  
These days it's hard to find anything that is complete & drivable for much less than $2000.  People pay that much for a raggedy '96 Taurus if it's mechanically good enough to run for a year.  

By the time somebody has put a few ounces of work into storing it & maintaining it at all, and the body condition is decent, that adds more.  And anything in the realm of American 40yo RWD V8s with chrome bumpers . . . then everyone knows it's at least worth more than a '96 Taurus in any condition.  There's $4000+.  

You can hardly paint anything for much less than $1000 in bodywork supplies nowadays.  That's even with the cheapo paint brands and that's just the materials alone.  The price of a finished Hazzard County car climbs.  




The other thing is, those 70s Fury/Monacos are rare in decent condition.  '69 Chargers aren't rare, they are expensive.  (See which one is more common on Ebay tomorrow.  Repeat every day for a year and see what the difference is.)  If money is no object you can find dozens of '69 Chargers for sale any time you want.  Not true for the Fury/Monacos.  

Even today there is little demand for them and people have never stopped carelessly throwing them away.  It's been 25 years since anyone carelessly threw away a decent '69 Charger.  If you want to restore one with damage then your parts sources amount to J.C. Whitney & Rock Auto.  They are hard to fix beyond mechanical damage, which lowers the survival rate farther.        

 

[Baldwinvette77]

http://www.kijiji.ca/v-cars-trucks/oshawa-durham-region/1977-dodge-monaco/1061630953?enableSearchNavigationFlag=true

heres 2 running and driving 77's for 2500$.. unfortunately... they are 2 doors.. (never thought id say that before)

[F8-4life]

Mike dc pretty much nailed it.
Try to find a original 440 police cruiser!
These cars got destroyed in every movie since the mid 70s.
They didn't get much respect even on the screen and in life.
I have a 76 coronet wagon from washington- 360 9 pass no woodgrain, and it is very original and rot free.
I paid $2700 in 2012 and at the time realized it was buy it now situation or not ever find another.
I drove it home and love it.
I do think these cars are going to finally start being appreciated ($$) more as people realize they are unique and overall one of the last great mopars imo.

[F8-4life]

http://orangecounty.craigslist.org/cto/5027961124.html

http://elmira.craigslist.org/cto/5023915117.html

http://scottsbluff.craigslist.org/bar/5021057430.html

http://knoxville.craigslist.org/cto/5022582112.html

[Road Dog]

Actually use probably get any of 4 different cars and various years from Monaco to Ambassador.

[Ponch ®]

shoot, try finding a decent Diplomat or Gran Fury. Try it.

[hemigeno]

Are either of these still available?  (the f/s ad was from back in January... )

http://www.forbbodiesonly.com/moparforum/showthread.php?85581-Pair-of-Plymouth-Fury-Cop-Cars-75-and-a-76-400-4

[RallyeMike]

The bigger challenge is finding any repro parts like interior. Better to start off with a decent car.

[tsmithae]

I know it's not a Monaco but it's something.

http://chicago.craigslist.org/nch/cto/5034343666.html

[Brock Lee]

There was a period about 5 years ago we had a string of these cars pass through. It was like every 3-4 weeks we would find another clean, straight car. Bought 7, all under $2K, only a couple were big blocks. But it seems that well has dried up again. I think many that own them think they are worth scrap and get scrapped. Cash for clunkers may have thinned the heard a bit as well.