Mopar of the Month October 2007

1969 Dodge Coronet R/T

440 Magnum 4-Speed 3:54 Dana

Owner: Andy Wade

Location: Bancroft, Ontario

September 2007's Mopar of the Month. A 1969 Coronet R/T, 440 4-speed 3:54 Dana car. This is a numbers matching R/T, with original engine, transmission and Dana rear axle. The car is finished in the correct T3 - Light Bronze Metallic, and to my knowledge, retains all of it factory sheetmetal including both quarters and trunk floor.

The 1969 Coronet R/T came standard with: wheel lip mouldings, wide rocker mouldings, chrome exhaust tips, bumble bee stripe, 150 mph speedo, light package, bucket seats with headrests and the chrome pedal dress up. This R/T was assembled with the following options, power steering, power disc brakes, Track Pak (18 spline "Hemi" tranny, chrome HURST shifter with woodgrain shifter knob, 3:54 sure grip Dana rear axle, 7 blade torque fan, 26 inch radiator, and dual breaker distributor), AM radio, wood grained steering wheel, tach, 3-speed wipers, tinted windshield, drivers side remote mirror and console. The super cool Ramcharger hood was added to this particular R/T, replacing the standard Power Bulge hood. The hood itself is very clean, the underhood ducting appears to be in great shape, never repaired, and installed with the correct fasteners.

The odometer shows 84,000 miles, but I have no information whatsoever that confirms (nor refutes) the mileage to be original. All the gauges work properly, except the tach, so that needs some attention. The car is rust-free throughout, the undercarriage and frame is solid and rust-free, showing only road grime as the undercarriage is not detailed. The T3 paint is very nice, and the car is super straight, with no damage or waves. Paint flaws are limited to a little chip-dent - maybe 1/8th of an inch - on the top of the drivers 1/4 panel behind the stripe, as seen in the pics. A couple tiny bubbles are evident on one of the hood scoops - see pics, but are really hard to see unless you press your nose on the hood. Basically it is a nice drivable paint job that shines well, and looks to have been wet-sanded to a nice smooooth finish. The only other cosmetic flaw is in the rear bumper - it looks like a dents was banged out prior to rechroming, and there's a little ripple in that area, although nobody ever notices it.

The original #'s matching engine was rebuild to bone stock specs, with all-Chrysler parts,and the bore is at .030 over. This engine starts instantly, and idles as nice as anyone could hope for. The clutch is a brand-new Centerforce unit. The carb is a Carter with a manual choke mounted just under the dash. The engine runs super nice, and strong, does not smoke and runs at normal operating temps. The original 18 spline 4-speed shifts well with no strange whines or anything, and the shifter handle has excellent chrome with a new wood grain ball. The 3:54 geared Dana 60 works perfectly, with no growls or howls at any speed. The car has nice, correct style exhaust with an H-pipe, and Dronemaster, I mean Flowmaster, mufflers.

The car has the original 054 radiator, the inner fenders are clean and untouched, although I haven't date-coded any under-hood accessories, it looks to be a nice largely original engine bay. The car has brand new 15x7 and 15x8 Magnum 500 wheels with excellent BFG's - 275-60-15 and 225-70-15 tires.

The interior is re-done with Legendary covers and door panels and is very, very nice. The car looks gorgeous with the buckskin colored interior, it just makes the car. The dash is is great original shape, showing very little wear, and a mint dash pad. The carpet is old but in good shape, and was left as-is. The only interior cosmetic issues are a cracked rear console (see pics), and a missing shoulder-belt clip that retains the belt properly.

Externally, all the trim, chrome, door handles, antenna, lenses are in great shape, new in appearance. The grille looks NOS and is the correct argent silver finish. The tailpanel is a nice original, undamaged and showing little sign of wear.

As to the driveabilty, the car is simply excellent, one of the sweetest 4-speed drivers I've ever driven. It drives straight, pulls strong, has no squeaks, rattles or sinister noises, and leaves no doubt that this car could be driven anywhere, anytime.

Soooo, there you have it - a good quality, nice paint, 440 Dana 4-speed car, numbers matching, rust-free, that is an absolute joy to own and drive.