70 Challenger, good project or walk away?

70 Challenger base model, 383 Auto, A/C car but none of it remains, has R/T badges but not an R/T. Good enough paint but has rust in the lower quarters, wheel lips, and fender bottoms. Floors and rails are good. Looks like a quick flip from in the past that is now having the rust come through.

It has a 572 Indy Hemi in it with a built 727 reverse manual valve body and Dana. I can only assume it has been driven hard. I see a tubular bars that may be frame connectors. It needs lots of patch panels, and the drive train may be tired by now.

Whats it worth now? Whats it worth when done considering the drive train thats in it?
What is a shop going to charge to repair the rust and re paint it?

!st year Challengers are fairly coveted and this one is pretty much complete so in fair condition 4,000.00 to 40,000.00, Good condition 40,000.00 to 56,000.00, Excellent condition 56,000.00 to 82,000.00. Median value would be around 55,000.00
So with that in mind you can get an idea on what YOU think its worth.

If your looking to have it rust repaired and paint done properly. If you dont have the skills. It wont be cheap

slimt said:

If your looking to have it rust repaired and paint done properly. If you dont have the skills. It wont be cheap

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Yep. I know that. Need to put a ball park number on the "wont be cheap". I can prep it for the body shop. Pull interior panels, remove bumpers and trim, that work I will do. Welding patch panels, killing the rust behind the panels, and finish paint is not what I want to do.

How much is "wont be cheap"?

Local mechaanic built same with the modern Hemi, I call it a mechanically great car an driver quality on the rest of it. He has had guys offer him a brand new Ram for it.

I bet between 10 to 20 on paint pending what is expected. Or you could keep as driver quality with your body and prep Im sure theres shops that would do a decent job for under 10 . Or just drive as is. From the pictures it looks used. But not abused.
I would love to own one. I just cant justify the 50 plus for a non original car.

I like it. Drive as is for at least a season?

Classic beauty! Don't sell it, please.

I am making a list for my prospective "next car". I keep coming back to this one.

Next thing, I need to talk to the owner on the phone. Is the Hemi still good or have issues? Was it drag raced or street driven? Other mechanical issues? He was very forthcoming about the body. Almost like he got caught in a skim and spray himself.

383-2 Challengers aren't super common.

I'm guessing 383-4 non R/T Challengers aren't either.

Either way it's a factory BB car so that's a bit of a bump, value wise over a 318 car.

Running, driving Hemi has to be worth close to $30k by itself. The car doesn't look bad as is. $40k - $50k wild *** guess.

Paul_G said:

Yep. I know that. Need to put a ball park number on the "wont be cheap". I can prep it for the body shop. Pull interior panels, remove bumpers and trim, that work I will do. Welding patch panels, killing the rust behind the panels, and finish paint is not what I want to do.

How much is "wont be cheap"?

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Figure on 10 large for a nice base/clear paint job and needing very little bodywork. You could double that price if the rust repair was extensive & whatever else was found once the paint is removed.

I have had a BUNCH of ebody's
440 sixpack, hemi and 383 cars.
nothing cheap about fixing one up ---- period.

I have done one or two just like what you have and it ended up a nightmare at the body shop once they started digging into it.
be sure you have a good 50K to play with. decent paint job alone will run you 10K at the minimum.

i would run as fast and far as you could - look for a solid car and make it the way you want.

Bill

whatever rust is visible
you can count on, there's probably;
10 times more underneath those areas "usually"

what about the car is it you like ?

is it a bucket list car ?

like you said you keep coming back to it, you must like it
is it the big ol' 572cid Hemi, you like ?
(you can rebuild if need be, far less than body & paint costs)

what attracted you to the car ?

Obviously or I assume,
that you're not all too concerned about matching #'s ?
or it not being a real R/T or you wouldn't be asking
about that car...
IMO/personally I don't care about #'s matching,
in a car like that one...
It is what it is, someone built to suit car...
No harm no foul...
I'd be far more concerned about the quality of parts used
& quality of the install, how the car looks at a 1st glance...

Now here's the tough love part...
if repairing price/costs is a huge concern ?
I'd walk away now...

If you intend to make it a showpiece or near-perfect
I'd say a min. of $20K on-top of the purchase price,
IMO that's a $50k car, mainly because it needs repair
& non #'s matching, but the big Hemi is a selling/buying point (to me)
then add a min. of $20k + Easily (maybe to $40k)
paying someone else to do the work/rust repair/body & paint
or even mechanical work...
It's going to be a money pit, if that's the path...

But;
it also appears to be all there
but;
you could also drive it & enjoy it now
do repairs a lil' at a time & enjoy it, in the meantime...

if the sellers' price, is low enough to allow for repairs ?

Now;
if it's not a car you plan to flip or "profit off"
(I doubt there's much, if any profit in that car)

Then IMO it's not as big of a deal, if it's a car you plan to keep
& drive for a while & the price is right for your budget ?

If the car i something you truly want ?
do what you can when you can, when funds allow it...
Drive it & enjoy it...
Far too many people get into projects based on cost
never have any fun with the cars, end up being a burden...
or they bail on them at a loss
Far too many can't afford the extra "real" costs
to pay someone else
or they don't have the knowledge to repair them, themselves...
IMO for those types,
#1 get/find a car with less body & paint needs
#2 less mechanical needs
#3 a car much closer to being done,
you can do lil' details finish
#4 a car that's all there,
all the lil' **** really adds up fast
#5 save a lil' more & spend more on the initial purchase
Far less time (months or years) in paint/body jail or machinist jail
have more time enjoying it, more bang (enjoyment) for the buck...

It does have a big Hemi in it
But;
caveat, Not knowing the whole story, background
&/or have all the views of the chassis & underside of the car
suspension, shocks etc.
But;
IMO it doesn't really look purpose-built "like a drag car"
IMO looks more like, just a resto-mod with a big Hemi
a few add-ons for performance, car used to cruise or go to local shows
especially not with them wheels & tires either

sorry for the short book, that's just my thoughts on it
good luck

Budnicks said:

whatever rust is visible
you can count on, there's probably;
10 times more underneath those areas "usually"

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I like '70 Challengers. It's an Arizona car?...maybe hidden rust isn't too bad. Drivetrain looks interesting. Overall, I see the appeal. I would just drive it for awhile after purchasing it. Awhile is like 2 years to learn and love the idiosyncrasies. Do the necessary body and paint afterwards if you like it. Otherwise, sell it and move on.

On the other hand you could get a 2021 Challenger Scat Pack optioned like you want it. You might even spend less than what the '70 will cost you in the long run.

What I like about this one is how it is built. 700hp Hemi. That is the draw. Full interior car, looks like a lamb, till the Hemi starts up. He also has a full Hotchkiss front suspension package NIB. Goes with the car. The body is the issue. Mechanical not an issue long as the engine andtrans aren't toast. That just alters the price. I want a driver not a show car. I have a show car already. Not as much fun as showing used to be.

Paul_G said:

What I like about this one is how it is built. 700hp Hemi. That is the draw. Full interior car, looks like a lamb, till the Hemi starts up. He also has a full Hotchkiss front suspension package NIB. Goes with the car. The body is the issue. Mechanical not an issue long as the engine andtrans aren't toast. That just alters the price. I want a driver not a show car. I have a show car already. Not as much fun as showing used to be.

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That big ol' Hemi
IMO is near 1/2 the value of that specific car...

All your replies on the mark I think. I built these two within the last 6 years and they both had no body issues whatsoever. I sold them for $45k each before things started to ramp up to where they are now.
I don't think I would give $50k for this one until I seen her naked. So maybe figure $20k for a body job, $10k to fix repairs that will be needed (maybe an engine refresh, Hemi's are a nightmare when you tear into them after somebody that doesn't know a thing about them was in there).