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Current 73-74 Road Runner Values

plymouthman72

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Hey all,

My first car was a 73 RoadRunner and I am potentially looking at trying to find one after the holidays as a project. If I could find my old one I would but she is long gone and it needed a ton as it was.

I know that prices are all over the place depending on condition and what someone is willing to pay but I wanted to get a consensus on current values for what a "solid" project would be from the 73-74 veterans on here.

Assumptions:

- Frame rails are good
- Light to typical rust issues (that is known about, there is always more, haha)
- Some dents and dings
- Has fender tag but assume Non-Matching Drivetrain. If it matches that is great but I know that will change the value by a lot
- Drivetrain may or may not work but will assume a rebuild

I wouldn't be interested in a satellite clone so we can keep that out.

Mainly looking at 73 RoadRunners & even potentially some with the "GTX" package if they are even able to be found. There is not a lot out there at the moment and so I thought I would start the search here and get an idea on what my starting point would be.

Here is a picture of my first one right before I let it go in 07. Looking back at it, it's a lot rougher than I remembered.

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The 73-74 GTX cars are somewhat rare, so expect to pay a little more. There is a pretty big price gap between "drivetrain may or may not work" and beyond general condition, colors, drivetrain and options DO matter so I'm not even going to try.

Just start looking. They come on FB Marketplace around here all the time. The 73-74 RR can still be had a reasonable prices, so you will certainly find a good candidate for your project.
 
They are not really expensive cars overall. $30,000 gets you a nice one. Being paint is $15k and a drivetrain rebuild can go to $10k. Getting one in really nice shape is a much better idea. Buying a beat up car for $8k and spending another $40k on it vs. paying $30's for a well done car? Happy hunting.

And, even a well done car will need stuff. Plenty to still do to make it yours.
 
Beware. There are no available sheet metal parts. See pictures of my 74 how I bought it below. Looks nice right? Bought it restored. Less than 5 year restoration. Bought for $30k. Paint had a few minor areas that I wasn’t happy with so while doing repair work on the paint we opened up a whole can of worms. The guy who did the restoration was a Michael Deangelo of bondo. But he didn’t do a very good job of sealing pinholes and rusted spots, so the paint was starting to bubble and peel. The car is in complete restoration now. Completely stripped down. What I am finding out is that parts for 73/74 are very difficult if not impossible to find. 73/74 was a different design than up to 72 b bodies. Metal panels are non existent except floor pans. Everything metal is having to be fabricated. Putting some bondo back on the car will be unavoidable but necessary, however this time it will be sealed correctly. Being as a 73/74 is now over 50 years old don’t expect them to be in good condition under a shiny paint job. Here is a link to my project thread. Oh and it’s going to be way more than $15k for paint and $10k for parts (if you can find them).


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Buying a shiny old car is scary without knowing the back story. As Dan mentions, these cars are hard to find parts for and they are notoriously prone to rust. Being that you want a true RR or GTX and a fender tag, I would think it would depend a lot on its original engine, a 318 car will be a lot less than a 400 car, let alone a GTX. I haven't seen a solid 73-74 needing to be restored that wasn't in the teens, sure a rusty one whether it's "fixed" (see above post) or needing fixed. They are out there, I bought a rust free 73 last year that has never been painted or molested
 
There is a "ground up restored", well, at least it's been painted, 74 RR, originally a 318/four speed, now a 360 that's been for sale for weeks and weeks on FB down to 27K now with no takers.
 
Beware. There are no available sheet metal parts. See pictures of my 74 how I bought it below. Looks nice right? Bought it restored. Less than 5 year restoration. Bought for $30k. Paint had a few minor areas that I wasn’t happy with so while doing repair work on the paint we opened up a whole can of worms. The guy who did the restoration was a Michael Deangelo of bondo. But he didn’t do a very good job of sealing pinholes and rusted spots, so the paint was starting to bubble and peel. The car is in complete restoration now. Completely stripped down. What I am finding out is that parts for 73/74 are very difficult if not impossible to find. 73/74 was a different design than up to 72 b bodies. Metal panels are non existent except floor pans. Everything metal is having to be fabricated. Putting some bondo back on the car will be unavoidable but necessary, however this time it will be sealed correctly. Being as a 73/74 is now over 50 years old don’t expect them to be in good condition under a shiny paint job. Here is a link to my project thread. Oh and it’s going to be way more than $15k for paint and $10k for parts (if you can find them).


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Your thread is actually got me back in love with 73 again (not your suffering but the car itself) I went through the restoration pains on my 72 so I know exactly what you are going through.

Your thread is also why I wanted to buy a project vs finished because you never know how the restoration is and I want to do it myself. The body panels are my biggest fear in getting one because I had enough troubles with the 72. Thank you so much for sharing the pics. I know it sucks to restore it but I love your car.
 
I know it sucks to restore it but I love your car.
Thanks. I love this car too. I could have sold it and cut my losses, b that’s how much I like the car. It’s going to be back better than it was.
I went through the restoration pains on my 72 so I know exactly what you are going through.
That’s surprising because most everything I search for is for 68-72 b bodies and 71-74 E bodies. I would think 72 would be plentiful.
 
There is a "ground up restored", well, at least it's been painted, 74 RR, originally a 318/four speed, now a 360 that's been for sale for weeks and weeks on FB down to 27K now with no takers.
When it gets down to $5k let me know. I need fenders and other parts.
 
My cousin bought this 30,000 mi car for mid 20s quite a while back. Numbers 400 auto buckets,, he's had probably 6-7 of these. Buy a nice original if you can.
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Thanks. I love this car too. I could have sold it and cut my losses, b that’s how much I like the car. It’s going to be back better than it was.

That’s surprising because most everything I search for is for 68-72 b bodies and 71-74 E bodies. I would think 72 would be plentiful.
I may be over exaggerating some but the 72 is a one year only on some body panels (fenders and quarter marker locations plus the unobtanium grill and rear swar bar perch) that made it harder for me. Most everything that say 68-72 are for the earlier b bodies and 71-74 e-bodies (at least that was my experience). At the time, I could have least bought quarter (71s) and lower fenders patches where you have nothing. Thankfully I didnt need that much though. The shop I took ended up doing their own fabrication on most pieces.

Based on what you are going through, it's definitely easier compared to the 73-74 for body panels.
 
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