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Extremely Rare 1970 Dodge Super Bee Spent Decades in a Backyard, Gets Saved

With around 56,200 units built from 1968 to 1971, the Dodge Super Bee isn't particularly rare as a nameplate. But when you narrow it down to certain drivetrain combos and options, a few hard-to-find models emerge. The Hemi-equipped Super Bee is obviously the rarest of them all, with fewer than 500 built over four model years. But 440-equipped cars are also scarce.
1970 Dodge Super Bee backyard find 6 photos
Photo: Shade Tree Vintage Auto/YouTube
1970 Dodge Super Bee backyard find1970 Dodge Super Bee backyard find1970 Dodge Super Bee backyard find1970 Dodge Super Bee backyard find1970 Dodge Super Bee backyard find
Granted, Dodge made a few good thousands of them, but certain combinations were ordered in very small numbers back in the day. For instance, Dodge sold only 106 Super Bees fitted with the 440-cubic-inch (7.2-liter) V8 and a four-speed manual gearbox in 1970. How many of these cars made it to 2022? I have no idea, but one of them was just saved from a sad life in a backyard.

Discovered by YouTube's "Shade Tree Vintage Auto," this Super Bee was forgotten alongside a couple more vintage Mopars behind a shop. It's in rough shape, but it's mostly complete and it looks far better than its sibling. And it still sports its original paint.

But don't let the Burnt Orange appearance fool you. That's actually the Go Mango hue after several years in the sun. The interior, on the other hand, appears to be of the Burnt Orange variety, which means that this Super Bee also showcases a rare color combo.

The video shows the car being dragged away from its resting place before it gets a complete walkaround showing what's left and what needs to be done. It seems that the Super Bee no longer has its original engine and gearbox, but the good news is that it already has a new owner that wants to restore it and put it back on the road.

A short-lived nameplate, the Super Bee was Dodge's low-priced muscle car and an alternative to the Plymouth Road Runner in the late 1960s. Based on the Coronet from 1968 to 1970, the Super Bee became a version of the Dodge Charger in 1971, its final year on the market.

Dodge's second-most powerful option after the iconic 426-cubic-inch (7.0-liter) Hemi, the 440 V8 was rated at 390 horsepower and 490 pound-feet (664 Nm) of torque in 1970.

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About the author: Ciprian Florea
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Ask Ciprian about cars and he'll reveal an obsession with classics and an annoyance with modern design cues. Read his articles and you'll understand why his ideal SUV is the 1969 Chevrolet K5 Blazer.
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