looking to buy this 68 Charger rt, need mopar experts advise

HI , Im thinking of buying this 1968 dodge charger rt, im new to mopar so i needs someone who is somewhat of a mopar expert, what condition would you say this car is in from the pics, and what is it worth, does not have #,s matching engine but has 1969 440 in it, all original metal.
any help would be much appreciated
http://s50.photobucket.com/albums/f312/HYPURR1/FOR%20SALE%201968%20CHARGER%20RT%20GREEN/?albumview=grid

Welcome. I didn't look at all the pics, but the bottom of that car concerns me. It looks like there has been some frame rail repair on the driver's rail, and the entire bottom of the car (including the rear end, U bolts, and lord knows what else) have been coated with some crappy undercoat. And that kind of thing scares me.

Well, overall, it looks like a fine car. I've Media Blasted many B Body MOPARS and I can tell you that some areas underneath the car are weak, and compromised. The center member where the Torsion Bars are held secure will need to be replaced if you want to do it 'right' and correct. However, doing that act will require a LOT of labor, and, undoubtedly you will find other areas that are 'bad' and need to be replaced/repaired. But, the car is 41, coming on 42 years old! The good thing is there is replacement parts for these cars now, 10-15 yrs ago, there was not. I would not pass on buying this car, it's a very nice car, and looks very good...but, it's 42 yrs old, nothing that old is perfect, I know, when I hit 40 I saw a decline in everything :)

There is some rust, and any car that has been modified from stock with aftermarket gauges, that funky shifter grip, cool can, tranny cooler, headers, etc. can give you grief trying to figure out what is what. That said, it depends on the price. If the seller is asking money like it was a numbers matching trailer queen, walk away. What's he asking?

Agrees with everyone above, there've been some "repairs" done under there, and it looks like they have been camoflaged some, but the pictures were put there so they could honestly say " the pictures showed the repairs before he bought it." Lots of semi gloss black spray paint to help it look better too.

If you're up to fixing the fixes, and the price is right, I'd still say get it if it's a car you love, but be ready to put some more money into it.

I noticed in the pic of the fuel pump, that the adjacent area looked wet, and the tie wraps looked pretty cheesy too, typical shade tree mechanic stuff. There looked like a lot of cover-up going on, with the undercoat and paint. Since you're in Toronto, and I assume that's a Canadian car, then I suppose the rust looks about normal. If you're prepared to do some rust work, and it's a decent deal, go ahead and buy it. I'd compare it to some others on the web to get an idea of the value though.

The first and most important question would be what is the V.I.N.? You said you are new to Mopars. Did you know that a Charger R/T has a V.I.N. that begins XS and that the 5th digit indicates the engine. The only two engines offered in a 1968 Charger R/T were the "L" code 440 or the "J" code 426 Hemi.
I did not see a V.I.N. plate in the pictures.

Others will tell you that the next most important thing is the original fender tag located on the inner fender under the hood on the driver's side. it is about 4"x2" and has the sales codes on it for many of the original options as well as the S.O." that should match the radiator core support and the trunk lip.

All 68 Charger have the same dash and interior. Someone could have just put R/T emblems on the car so check the V.I.N. first.

hes asking $25000 canadian

hi, i checked it is a rt "L" code

one of the options was to trade this car for the charger, a 1984 porsche 911 slantnose conversion
http://www.flickr.com/photos/29612968@N03/

also how hard would it be to find a date coded block ( numbers matching) that is correct for this car

It,s not a 68 but close to Toronto and worth checking out .

http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-cars-vehicles-classic-cars-1972-Dodge-Charger-Rallye-Matching-440-Magnum-Air-Grabber-Hood-W0QQAdIdZ153343200

the 72 doesnt do it for me, love the 68, and 69-70 style better

It looks like alot of undercarriage rust has been covered up with the black stuff. I think with a little more time spent looking you could find a Southern car that maybe didn't have as much rust underneath. Just a quick search on Hemmings I found this http://www.hemmings.com/classifieds/carsforsale/dodge/charger/897075.html Good Luck!

I will look at it later when I have more time but am loving what I believe to be GG1 green.

Not knowing you, or being able to see the car in person, makes it tough to give you a recomendation on this Charger, but unless you have very good to excellent sheet metal and welding skills, along with the fact that this would be your very first Mopar restoration project, I would be very careful about what you buy. The work that LOOKS like this car needs from looking at the pictures you provided, leads me to think that this Charger will need lots of work that is not easy "weekend projects" kind of work and if you will need a shop to do all of the work for you, you are going to most likely have some serious money invested in this car. Is there a chance that you could give us the full VIN number and a clear picture of the fender tag so that we can see what this car really is and what options were on the car originally? It's impossible to give you a value on this car without the above information.

Richard

i just found out fender tag is missing, owner said it was missing when he bought the car. i think i will pass on it as im sure that would bring its value down

i just found out fender tag is missing, owner said it was missing when he bought the car. i think i will pass on it as im sure that would bring its value down

A missing fender tag is a bad thing when you're trying to restore a car back to original specs and any future buyer will take that into consideration when you try to sell the car at a later date, BUT if the car still has it's original build sheet, you would still be ok. If both of those items are missing, I'd pass on the car unless you were going to turn it into a custom car, or a race car, which at that point, all of the original documentation is pointless.

Richard

I'm not an expert on prices, but I think the price is too high for a non-numbers-matching, no-fender-tag car that has been "modified" and has rust issues. If you REALLY like the car and the seller drops the price dramatically, might be worth thinking about.

the car has the "L" code in the vin so its a rt. after doing some research there are a few place that make replacement fender tags, do those look original ?

the car has the "L" code in the vin so its a rt. after doing some research there are a few place that make replacement fender tags, do those look original ?



Yes, they CAN be made to look like an original, however different plants coded the tags differently and some used a different font. Without a rust readable original or the B/S you will likely not be able to reproduce one that would be accurate to what was the original.

Also, I agree that the asking price for the codition of that car is too much. By the time you do the necessary work you will be buried in it financially. You will be much better off finding a completed car for more money.

But, much enjoyment is gained from doing the fix ups!!

But, much enjoyment is gained from doing the fix ups!!

I agree, but you don't want to start out at that price level and then STILL have to put that much or more into the car to make the car right again. I don't care HOW much someone loves a particular car, someday it's going to change hands and you don't want to lose your a$$ in the process. It you can get a car like this Charger for a fair starting price and THEN put the time and money into it and still have a car that you can at least break even on when you sell it, that's the smart way of enjoying the hobby in my opinion. This seller is still thinking that prices for these cars are where they were a few years ago, and they aren't, so he needs to come done on his price. Once again though, without more information on this car, it's impossible to figure out what it's worth. By the way, it was mentioned that this Charger was an L code car, so it's an R/T, well it should also have XS29L8 at the start of it's vin tag to be a real 1968 440 powered R/T.

Richard

the vin on the car starts with XS29L8B

But, much enjoyment is gained from doing the fix ups!!


Not for me.

The only time I ever enjoyed fixing or restoring a car was when I knew in the end I was going to reap the reward of being in the car for less than I could have bought a done one for. Otherwise why go through all of the work when I could have been driving and enjoying the done car during the time it took to restore the other.

I get no satisfaction out of grease scrapped knuckles just from the pleasure of the work, I have better things to do with my life that bring me much more pleasure.

here is more info about the car from the owner,

The last body and paint work to this car was done 16 years ago. It is all original metal with no replacement quarters, fenders, door skins etc. The work was done with the methods and materials that were available @ that time.
It was not a high dollar restoration done back 16 years ago , it was more like a mediocre job with a color change from yellow to the dark green that it is now
The floor has a patch in it on the drivers side pan .

I've had the seats and rug out of the car recently and the floor is soild with no other patces of holes - no work required unless you wanted to cut out the drivers side patch and install a proper panel. They are available now. The trunk is original and there are NO patches in it or required . That's amazing to me for a Canadian car and especially a Charger that was prone to leaking water aroung the bottom edge of the rear window into the trunk......my so called southern 68 Charger "show car" has had a replacement trunkpan installed, the other one has not and doesn't need it.
Body panel alignment is good, yes there are patches and fill in the rear quarters (usually a B Body Mopars' rear quarters needed work within 5 or so years to that area)
The car came originally with a vinyl top which was removed and the holes for the bottom trim pieces were filled. The fill has cracked and shows. The car's not junk or a rust bucket.......the rails , front and rear are solid as is the TB crossmember and rear shock tower. The front end has been rebuilt, the exhaust and gas tank are a couple of years old.
Trim is very good for a Canadian car , The door handles both inside and out had very few pits but I did just replace them with some of my southern ones that are very good with "0" pits. I also replaced the window cranks with good southern ones. I just had the pass side rear quater repainted due to a little damage from the inside caused when a previous owner took off with having the battery secured. I also just had the vinyl stripe installed and a new front windshield install (all about 1 month ago). Like I said, the paint and bodywork is 16 years old and should be redone.......or not. It's a driver quality car, not a show car.

the rear spring hangers were "strengthened".they were not rotten. This car had over 500 HP in it at one time and it's wise to strengthen those area's or risk ripping the frame apart.
the undercoating on the car is from the factory.....that's what kept the car so good underneather. All I did about a month ago was spray 6 cans of semi gloss paint on the bottom of the car. I did all area's except where I considered the worst and only bad sections to be and that's on both outer sections of the torsionbar crossmember.

Dude, go with what you feel is right, don't pay attention to the nay-sayers, although they mean well, buying this car, and any car is an emotional event -- time to recognize that. If you like it, and have the $$, buy it! There is ample material out there now to restore these cars. The prices will go back up, I bought my GTX in 2000 for $900.00 bucks; and it was a running/driving car.

Often times potential buyers make decisions based on the fact that the car is geographically close to them, in a comfortable price range, is within their capabilities to repair themselves, etc. They will often overlook things that are not necessarily in their overall best interest, but that is not for us to determine but for them.

If you are truely interested in a Dark Green Charger R/T, then the odds are in your favor as it was one of the most sold colors when these cars were new. Who know how many have been color changed over the years as it has never been a good resale color.

If you have the time and wherewithal to wait and shop nationally then there are likely better values for what you seek.

You simply asked about THIS particular car and what others think about it. We often get side tracked with comparisions.

My answer strictly based on your description of this car is that it is overpriced, and of course that is based on what i have seen for sale in the current market place.

696pack has a very good point in his post above. Looks like you have some choices to make! Let us know what you decide.

the plan was to trade me porsche 911 for a car or cash( link earlier in post) .today i also got a trade offer for a 1973 cuda, waiting for more details on that, just want to get a equal value trade for what my car is worth (about $25000-30). and while im still learning about mopars this forum has been a great help. i dont mind travelling for the right car as i have picked up a few cars as far as georgia

I wouldn't pay $10,000 for it. If the engine compartment was original looking, the top of the grill wasn't fiberglass, the motor was original, that tach and shifter were removed, the interior of the doors was black, and there was a fender tag, $20,000 would be pushing it.

I inspect vehicles for a living. From the photos I have spotted so many indications that tell there are a multitude of sins lurking under every inch of that car. I just imagine what I could find in person.
Hold on to your wallet with the $25,000... and run. I am serious.

Lots of scary looking stuff here, my guess is a couple very soft rear frame rails/floor sections and some very poor restructuring. The seam sealer in the rust hole on the one shot of the frame rail is a classic butcher job. Seeing the poor quality of work that is obviously freshly done would only make me question the rest of the body. 25K is alot of cake for a car that needs to be gone through and I see a ton of things that need correcting, too long a list to mention. If you are considering this car, pay a good body tech to have a look, it'll be the best $ you spend on the car!

if, i were to consider this car price would have to come down or in a trade he would have to add something or money to the trade, my porsche is worth at least $27000.i talked to a friend of mine owns a classic car restoration shop and he has question marks about the car but the only way to judge for sure is in person or have a pre-purchase inpection service, but even then who would you trust as you dont know how knowledgable they are in regards to this,
the seller just a numbers matching block to the proposed trade, is this a #,s matching block for vin #XS29L8B319430
hard to see clearly but it looks like
25384307


sellers email.

I'm willing to trade you car for car..............yours either with the old tires on it , for mine with old tires on it. We would both like each others good tires so I get your new tires installed on your wheels and you get my Magnum 500's and tires as shown in the pictures. Fair ? Seats, we both get the original seats that came in the car. In my case , you get the green seats and I'll leave the nice black door panels in the car. They are from my black car and are in the green car now. I will give you the 1967 dated numbers matching 440 block, crank and pistons. I will also give you my black seat covers that are on the seats in the car now. I want those frames , they are original, dated and tagged for my black car. The green set are original,dated and tagged for the green car.........they should stay together. My black car originally came with a white interior and I'm going back to white seat covers and door panels. You can have the covers when I'm ready to install the new white covers, ........ you get the 440 (needs rebuild - not damaged and standard bore) and the blk covers, I get your spare parts...........seems fair to me ? Split on the expenses , you bring your car. A new reproduction fendertag can be made up for $250 and is done right here . They are based on the obvious options, features, known facts, original place of sale........This car was originally sold new in Montreal and is one of aprx 8% of 68 Charger R/T's sold outside the U.S........That makes it into the "Rare" category just to start things off. Did you notice the factory pass side mirror or the tinted windows in this Canadian car........ Very seldom seen in a non-a/c car and especially a Canadian car. This is also a factory frt disc brake and rear defrost car...... Mopars are collectible based on rarity - this car's rare and should be restored to factory colors (in my opinion)

here are some pics of the floor

Why is there black crap all over the floors?

It looks like there is Fiberglass resin hidden underneath that black paint stuff, don't know for sure, but in my younger, dumber, days I admit I used that stuff to fix many floors/fenders...hell everything!