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That's a bummer, sorry about that.

- Wade

Cudino,
It could have been white.
Guy had owned it for many years. may have an old pic of it.
It was a chance in a lifetime to get it. 71 Hemi Challenger conv,
John

OK, now I know which car you're talking about.  I think you mean a "70 rather than a '71, that's what threw me off.  While Hemi Cuda convertibles were built in both 70 and 71, Hemi Challenger convertibles were only built for one year, 1970, and there is a purple one living in the KC area.  Only 12 of those built as well, although there's rumors of a 13th.  Although the owner occasionally considers selling, you might be happy to know that it actually never got sold, even today it is still owned by the same fellow (Dwain) who first bought it off a used car lot in the mid '70s.  I guess this must be the car you are thinking of, nice car, Dwain painted it purple decades ago but it was originally Sublime green.

- Wade

For Mopar fans, was Hemi 4 speed, mango, black interior needed rest, numbers match, came from Ut. Should be in their history books.
Guess 1 0f about 50, low number of 4 speeds as I recall.

Hi John,

Your Hemi 4-speed Daytona was very rare.  There's been a lot of debate as to how many of those were built, and there's some paperwork that shows as many as 22, but in reality I think the number is closer to 15.  I'm doing a little digging to see if I can find your old car, which was very likely EV2 Hemi Orange in color.  If I turn something up I'll let you know.

I missed the V code plum crazy or panther pink challenger Conv, white int 440 6 barrel car that was hit in the rear by Columbia Mo.
Seems panther pink, as it was 1 of 1 I think. I think it was a matching number, hit real hard in rear as I recall.

If it was Panther Pink I know that car very well, there is only one like it known to exist.  It is the first car painted in Panther Pink (FM3), and debuted at the 1970 Chicago Auto Show.  I don't know of it ever being hit, but I believe early in it's life it was stolen, stripped, and left in a ditch, before eventually being restored to its former glory.  Here's a link:
https://pantherpink.com/fm3004.

Another for your notes, was 2nd last bidder on the plum crazy 1971 hemi conv in KC Mo.
That Galeon, or Gallon guy that holds the records of important mopar cars, shared quite a bit with me,
There was a concept hemi car that was not in his factory records, fortunately it had its build sheet>> real odd build. Matching number. Number 10 as I recall on serial number. Arizona

You've definitely been around some nice cars.  I think you're referring to Galen Govier.  I'm not sure about the concept Hemi car, but I am well-versed in the Hemi Cuda and Challenger convertibles.  Is it possible the "71 Hemicuda Vert you tried to get in KC was white instead of plum crazy?  There were only 12 made, and the only purple '71 was up in Canada.  But there was a white one that originated from the KC area, and interestingly enough it was/is also a column-shifted Auto.

- Wade

Hi Gary,

'71 V-code Challengers are very rare.  Chrysler only produced big-block E-bodies (Challengers and Cudas) for 2 years, 70-71.  At 246 US shipments in total (127 4-speeds, 119 Autos) your 440-6pak "V-code" Challenger R/T was very rare, especially compared to 1970 production totalling nearly 2000 (1640 R/T and 296 RT/SE V-codes).  They didn't actually make an RT/SE model in 1971, that was a 1970-only offering, but for 1971 they did carry over the "Formal Roof" option that essentially made a '71 R/T into an RT/SE.  This is likely what you had, or perhaps you meant you had a '70 model instead of a '71.  Anyway, only 105 of the all the 1971 Challenger R/Ts built were also ordered with the Formal Roof option, about 1%, so finding one of those 119 1971 440-6 Challenger R/T Autos that also got the Formal Roof Option would be pretty rare.  And similarly, instead of a '71 if your car was actually a '70 RT/SE V-code, of the 296 built for US only 161 were Autos.  Either way it was very unique, sounds cool.

E-Body Cudas and Challengers are hot right now, especially 70-71s, and so are 68-70 Chargers.  These cars have always been in demand, and now is no different.  I wish I knew a good Charger for sale, I don't, but in particular if your friend is looking for an original car (as opposed to a clone or customized car) you can PM me and I'll forward any info I hear.

- Wade

I agree with everyone's replies.  There were approximately 700 Hemicudas built in 1970, and while not exciting today the column-shift configuration was fairly common.  As mentioned, the car's options can have a great impact on value, and the Fender Tag will show much (but not all) of this information.  Does the car have a Buildsheet (aka Broadcast Sheet)?  Or has anyone ever looked?  As with a lot of things in this hobby Fender Tags have been faked for years, so additional paperwork (ideally a buildsheet) is really desirable.  Plus, the buildsheet (or order form, or window sticker) shows features that were not included on the Fender Tag, since the tag was only used to show options that required body-modifications.  If the owner hasn't looked the most likely locations for finding a buildsheet are under the back or bottom springs of the front and/or rear seats, and/or wedged up behind the glovebox.  Hemicudas were all built at the Hamtramck plant, who generally left these buildsheets in these areas during assembly, so it is common for Hemicudas to have this document if the original interior is still intact and rodent-free.  So you may find several duplicate copies, or may find none, or may even find one for a car that was next in line in production that just happened to use the same type of seats, luck of the draw.  All 4-speed Hemicudas got Dana60 rearends, but Autos came standard with the 3.23:1 open rear 8-3/4, with other ratios or the Dana60 available as optional axle packages.  Service Replacement Warranty blocks will have a tag riveted to the lower side of the block, and will have a blank (non-stamped) VIN pad just above the oilpan, facing the pass-side wheel.  If the block is indeed a Service Replacement it will have this tag, otherwise it may be a more common over-the-counter unstamped warranty block.  The Auto trans will also have a VIN pad on the passenger side.  For E-bodies only the last 8 digits of the VIN will be stamped on these pads.  As mentioned above, these last 8 digits will also be stamped into the backside of the Radiator support (facing the radiator, to the right of the radiator cap) and on the top of the cowl on the driver's side.  There will also be a full VIN# on the dash VIN tag and on the driver's side door decal.  Here's a site with some great information and examples: https://www.e-bodies.org/buying-your-first-e-body/vin-numbers/

Go-Mango is indeed a cool color, and was extra cost, but the column-shift and non-original motor do hurt, along with a Bench Seat if so equipped.  If the car does not have a buildsheet or documentation other than the fender tag that will also hurt.  If the car has a lot of options that will help, but only if it has documentation to support those options.  Sounds like the body is in good shape, but understandably condition and originality also helps or hurts.  I love these cars, and by description it sounds like this is an intact car that needs some TLC.  However, with the column-shift and non-original motor I think this car will be at the lower end of the $125K-$175K scale, and the only way it could move up higher is if it had great docs and/or great original condition.

As mentioned, pictures of the car, and especially of the Fender Tag and any other documentation, will really help.  Good Luck, and keep us posted!

- Wade

Very true, however those two Superbirds were both Hemi cars, which was pretty rare considering only 135 Hemi 'Birds were built.

If the administrators prefer maybe this post should be moved to the '67 GT350/GT500 forum?

- Wade

Didn't think about that, but it is a distinct possibility since the description at right looks like it says "Fast Back".

- Wade

Hello All,

Came across some very cool documents posted on a Mopar site by Alex Brady.  Alex got vintage documents from the son and grandson of Elk Valley Dodge Chrysler Plymouth in Sutton West Virginia.  Included in these documents was the Used Car Inventory sheet attached here, from September 30th 1971.  I assume the column on the right is their internal cost, but that's just my guess.  Of note, this sheet shows the dealership had in stock a White '67 Shelby Cobra, that appears to be a Repo with a value of about $1216.  Unfortunately no more info exists about this car, but considering white '67 models after review of the registry I think the most likely candidates would be late 427 Cobras, perhaps CSX3266 or CSX3280.  Other possibilities are CSX3181, CSX3204, or CSX3191, or perhaps others that were not originally white but were repainted white prior to 1971.  Anyway, I figured you guys would like to see this, and hopefully you can identify which car this was.

- Wade

Yep, exactly right.  Take 2 identical 50 year old Shelby's, one still owned by its original CA owner, the other just bought yesterday.  The new CA owner will have to pay at least 5x more each year for tags.  Ugh.  At least there's the Historical Vehicle option...

- Wade

I believe the replies above are referring to the yearly registration fees, not just the first year.  In CA, at least right now, the yearly "tag" renewal fees are based on the purchase price (or value, if received as a gift) of the car when the new ownership title is issued.  Then, as mentioned above, the CA DMV has an automatic depreciation rate, so each year this yearly renewal fee will go down a (very) little based on this depreciation schedule.  I haven't heard that CA will change this from "purchase price" to "market price", but it seems unlikely since the "purchase price" method is so tightly connected to this system now.  As mentioned it is not uncommon for an owner to have to pay thousands of dollars a year just to get new tags.

But, for anybody in CA who is not aware, CA does have a specialty plate called "Historical Vehicle".  There is a special filing process for a Historical Vehicle, but I think it is just $25.  To be considered a historical vehicle the car needs to be 25 years old or older, and of "historical significance", which nobody at the DMV really questions.  The real benefit of getting these plates is that the yearly "tag" registration fee is just a flat-rate of $109/yr (went up from $106/yr last year), rather than being a % of the purchase price.  The only side-effect is that Historical Vehicles may only be used for parades, car show events, or other similar specialty activities.  All my collectable cars are under Historical Vehicle status, since they are generally driven rarely and I greatly benefit from the low flat-rate. 

With Historical Vehicle you will get new license plates, unique to HV status.  If you have original/old CA plates that you want to keep then DO NOT surrender them to the DMV, and be sure to keep old registration and Title paperwork with the original plate# on it.  As long as you have paperwork showing your car used to have those original plates on it, and as long as you physically have both front/rear plates, then you can later get them reassigned back to your car (meaning to go back from HV plates to your original plates) without too much hassle.

- Wade