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Rare 1970 Dodge Challenger With 440 Six-Pack V8 Is Plum Crazy Perfection

1970 was a great year for muscle cars. They were impressively powerful, regardless of the brand they came from, and they were available in a variety of flashy colors. Mopar's "high-impact" color palette was by far the coolest, thanks to eye-catching hues like Panther Pink and Plum Crazy.
1970 Dodge Challenger 8 photos
Photo: hotrod4rd/eBay
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I actually like Panther Pink more, probably because I dig the idea of having what's considered a cute, "girly" color on a powerful coupe, but Plum Crazy is a close second. And that's why I think this purple 1970 Dodge Challenger is the definition of muscle car perfection.

But it's not just the Challenger's aggressive design and the fantastic Plum Crazy hue that make it perfect. This is a mint-condition example that spent the last 30 years in a garage. It shows 38,000 miles (61,155 km) on the odo, and the paint, as well as the chrome elements, are almost flawless. It's the kind of muscle car that's been babied rather than raced on Route 66.

The interior looks just as fantastic. There's some minor wear and tear, including a small split on the passenger seat but no cracks on the dashboard and door panels. The wood trim on the steering wheel and center console adds a bit of class.

Under the hood lurks a 440-cubic-inch (7.2-liter) V8 engine. Now I know what you're thinking: how can a 1970 Challenger be perfect without a Hemi? Well, the Hemi is indeed the most celebrated Mopar engine, but this 440 is nothing to sneeze at. Fitted with 3x2-barrel carburetors, known as the Six-Pack, the 7.2-liter packs 390 horsepower, only 35 horses below the Hemi. Not bad!

This engine, as well as the presence of a four-speed manual transmission, makes this specific Challenger a rare car. That's because Dodge built only 135 of them in 1970, out of a total production run of 13,600 for the year. What's more, it might be one of the very few such configurations finished in Plum Crazy, perhaps even less than a dozen.

As you might have already guessed, the near-mint condition and the car's rare configuration translate into a high price. The 1970 Challenger is auctioned off on eBay, and, as of this writing, bidding is at $60,600. With more than 24 hours left, it could end up higher. But there's a "reserve not met" status, too, a sign that the owner isn't willing to part ways with the car for $60K. I wouldn't either.
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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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