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

[crxnug]

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

 

[69 Runner]

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.

 

[Donny]

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

 

[Deleted member 214]

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?

 

[GOMOPAR]

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.

 

[696pack]

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.

 

[crxnug]

hes asking $25000 canadian

 

[crxnug]

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

 

[crxnug]

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/

 

[crxnug]

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

 

[beezee]

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

http://toronto.kijiji.ca/c-cars-veh...40-Magnum-Air-Grabber-Hood-W0QQAdIdZ153343200

 

[crxnug]

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

 

[sumbit]

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!

 

[GTXperience]

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

 

[thebankerstoy]

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

 

[crxnug]

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

 

[thebankerstoy]

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

 

[Deleted member 214]

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.

 

[crxnug]

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 ?

 

[696pack]

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.