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‘69 Daytona Left To Rot In A Barn Could Fetch $180,000

By Dustin Hyde
Someday, all of the classic muscle cars stashed in country barns will have either been found or rusted away. Until then, you can only hope to be as lucky as the Alabama man who found one of the rarest Dodges ever rotting in a shed.

The car in question was a 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona, a vehicle sold mainly to meet NASCAR rules, with just 503 built. Powered by a 440 Magnum V-8 conservatively rated at 375 hp, and sporting the massive wing that defined the early superspeedway Mopars, the Daytona was a force of reckoning at every stop light.
According to Alabama restorer Charles Lyons, the second owner of this particular car bought it in 1974, and had some flames painted on the fenders for showing off in Florida. Over the years, he drove the car less and less, and it’s been sitting motionless for several years, slowing turning to rust with a topping of moss on the rear wing.
View photo
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But that neglect kept the Daytona pure; it’s still sporting almost all its original parts, from engine clamps to shifter knob, and an odometer reading just 20,553 miles. With the skyrocketing value of rare Detroit muscle, and the premium collectors put on originality today, Mecham Auctions expects the slumbering Daytona to fetch between $150,000 and $180,000 when it crosses the block this January at the sale in Kissimmee.
Whomever buys this will face an immediate dilemma of spending lots of money for a delicate cleaning, or even more money to restore it to showroom standards. Whatever the answer, we hope the result includes putting a few more miles on the odometer. A flying wing gathers no moss.

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From the auction notes






































































9030

• Engine
  440 CI
• Trans
  Automatic
• Color
  Red
• Interior
  Black

[HR][/HR] ESTIMATE: $150,000 - $180,000
Many car enthusiasts hope to someday find an untouched barn find, to rescue a classic car and preserve it. We are proud to announce that this very opportunity will be part of the treasure presented here, which features not only an exactly-as-found vehicle, but one that is among the most visible and high-demand in today’s marketplace. This car is a 1969 Charger Daytona showing telltale signs of decades of storage and mild paint changes, but complete with numbers-matched driveline and many original pieces. The unique history of the car is that the first purchaser was a local judge who bought it for his wife. It was only recently purchased from only its second owner in rural Alabama, who had owned it since 1974. As built, the car was painted R4 Charger Red with white tail graphics; it retains its original wing, front fender bubbles, wide windshield edge trim, and nose cone. At one point, light scallop edge door paint and flames were added to this car’s surface, all which now show a historic patina. The car’s actual mileage is believed to be the 20,553 now seen on the odometer. The Dodge 440 Magnum engine, which was only offered in the Daytona and R/T versions of the 1969 Charger, is original to the car, complete with many never-replaced peripherals. Behind this is a 3-speed TorqueFlite automatic and 8 ¾ differential. Again, none of this has been altered since the car was retrieved. What makes this Daytona especially appealing are its interior options, which include headrest-equipped bucket seats, factory-chromed floor shifter in a center console, dash cluster with clock/tach assembly and more. Door-mount stereo speakers were added to the factory radio at one point, and the interior has been stabilized but remains as found. To homologate the Daytona body for NASCAR, Dodge was required to build 500 units; they built just 503 of these cars. The story of its discovery was recently relayed in the pages of “Mopar Muscle” magazine, and you will have the possibility to take ownership of this true time capsule, either to preserve in legacy or restore to like-new condition.
[h=3]HIGHLIGHTS[/h]
- Glenwood, Alabama barn find
- One of 503 produced
- Two owner car
- Matching numbers 440 CI engine
- Automatic transmission
- Original Red paint with White wing
- Custom flames painted on nose cone
- Black bucket seats and center console
- Featured in November, 2015 issue of Mopar Muscle

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Sometimes the oil in a car that's not been run turns to sludge.
I hope they drop the oil pan and change the oil before even attempting to start it.