When asked by someone what they think iconic American cars are, many of them will says some type of muscle car that came from the 1960’s or 1970’s. These cars are legendary vehicles and are still highly sought after in today’s car market. Muscle cars are really good at two things: looking awesome and going very fast in a straight line. Make no mistake, these cars are not Porches or typical “track” cars, however they are still great. One of the most iconic muscle cars of all time is the Dodge Charger, primarily the models produced in 1969. While the charger is still produced by Dodge to this day, the classic ones still retain a lot of their value especially given the fact that cars depreciate in value so quickly. These cars today are valued anywhere between $100,000 to $300,000 dollars depending on the condition. So what makes these cars so special?
When the Charger was first introduced in 1965 it was a semi-popualr vehicle. When Chrysler went forward to make the second generation of this vehicle they provided consumers with a variety of options, that weren’t typically seen at the time. When the second generation of these vehicles came out there were 5 different models all with a variety of options. There was the standard Dodge Charger, the special edition “SE” Charger, the R/T Chrager, the “500”, and the “Daytona” versions of the Charger. The 500 and Daytona were reserved more for NASCAR racing (Ford and Chrysler were in a “cold-war” arms race for the best NASCAR vehicle at the time). The cars were outfitted with a variety of engines depending on the model/what options customers wanted. The base engine was a Chrysler Slant Six engine which did not provide that much power to the vehicle. The other models of the Charger had a variety of V8 engines outfitted in them, the nicest one being a 425 horsepower V8 “Street-Hemi” engine that was produced by Chrysler. This engine launched the car to 60 miles per hour in 5.7 seconds; it really is something to drive an older muscle car that offers virtually no sound proofing, requiring you to nearly yell when sitting or driving the in the car. The transmissions outfitted in these cars were either a 3-speed or 4-speed manual transmission, and the “TorqueFlite” automatic transmission. While the car had one body shape, there were a variety of options for consumers to choose from.
The Dodge Charger also became very special due to its appearance in NASCAR and certain films and TV shows, most famously the Dukes of Hazzard. A modified 1969 Charger that was used in the show was auctioned for over $10 million dollars. The Charger saw 19 NASCAR victories during its use on the track and it became a well known racing vehicle. The Charger also packed a lot of power for money; the top-level vehicle cost around $4,600 dollars in 1969 (about $30,000 dollars today when taking inflation in account). Since the car looked cool, had a variety of options, performed well, and was used as a race car it became very special and a highly sought after car.
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