mopar pg 46

By the looks of things, the car was abused for the first few years of its life and ended up being abandoned

in the Ft Dix area (the engine was seized). The car was sold out of the impound to the person that parked

it in his backyard to rot away. I came across the car sometime in 1984 while on a junkyard expedition.

I spotted the car in the backyard and thought nothing of it until I saw the rear spoiler and decided to take

a closer look. When I went to the front door, a woman answered. When asked if the car was for sale and if

I could take a closer look she stated that it was her soon to be ex-husband's car and she was on his back to get

it out of there. Sensing an opportunity, I went back to take a closer look. As I walked to the car, heart beating

through my chest, I saw what a diamond in the ruff it was! Original 440-6pack 4spd, Dana (yes, it was still

there!), air grabber, hidden headlights, front and rear spoilers. The car had two sets of data tags and the

broadcast was still under the upturned back seat! The only thing that was missing was the engine and trans

(not surprising). When a recovered my composure, I went back and got the guys phone number and she told

me that if he didn't get the car out within the next week or so, she was going to call the junkyard.

The following pictures are of a 1971 440-6 Charger R/T that was discovered in the backyard of a person

in southern New Jersey. The pictures were taken sometime in 1984. This particular Mopar was saved

from the scrap yard and restored by me quite some time ago and is currently undergoing a second

restoration (concourse). This car was originally sold out of Grand Spaulding Dodge to a person in the Army.

I told her not to do anything until I talked to the owner and she agreed. The next day I called the guy and

he said no he wasn't interested in selling the car, he was going to restore it (yea right!). Disappointed, I hung

up the phone and didn't give it a second thought. A couple of weeks later with curiosity getting the

best of me, I called the woman back to see if he came and got it yet. She said no and she was calling the

junkyard that weekend to haul it away. I told her I would give her 500.00 for the car and to my surprise she said I

could have it if I got it out by the weekend! I couldn't believe my luck! I had the trailer hooked up and headed

down to pick up the car the next day.

When I got there, I couldn't get the car on the trailer fast enough for fear of the ex showing up.

When I got to the door to pay for it she handed me the title and said that her ex had agreed

to the sale and needed the money for child support (smart lady!). I got the car home and started the restoration

on it a few months later. In about 1996, I was able to get my hands on ALL the original paperwork

from Grand Spaulding Dodge. The documentation included the Original window sticker, bill of sale,

Chrysler shipping invoice, order sheet, and even the 3 x 5 card that sat on the salesman's desk! Now that all the documentation has been reunited with the car, I have decided to do a concourse restoration on it.