70 Super Bee

Hello -

I just saved a 1970 Super Bee from the crusher. The body is absolutely trashed and rotten. The entire drivetrain and interior are intact. I don't know Mopars so I need some help figuring out what I have. I think it is a 440 4 bbl. 440 is stamped in the block in front of the single 4bbl. intake. It is an automatic with power steering, floor shifter and console, buckets seats, no tach. I have the vin #, can anyone tell me how to be sure it is a 440 and how it was originally equipped? I will be parting this car out, I need the $ for another project and a new baby on the way. Any help would be appreciated, Thanks

Put the VIN into this Java applet on this page, I know it says "Challenger VIN Decoder", but I've correctly decoded other Mopar cars with this applet. It works.

http://www.davediana.free-online.co.uk/svin.htm

This might mean the car came with a 440-4, but you can't be sure that the 440 that's in the car now is actually the one the car came with, you'd have to check the tags on the block against the other tags on the car, like the dash VIN and the fender tag.

Thanks -

I plugged in the VIN and it turns out that it was originally a 383 "High Power" (code N). I'll check the block #s as soon as possible. I don't know if the 440 stamped in the top of block in front of the intake means anything or not. The engine appears to be original and not modified. The only thing missing is the air cleaner. Thanks for the link, www.71superbee.com has a good vin decoder as well. Now on to find out what a 383 high power is...

That same page I sent you to tells you where you can find the identification pads on the engines. That's what you should check.

A 383 high-power is a wicked engine...

The previous owners could have very easily slipped a 440 in place of that 383. Whichever engine it is, you should tear it down and find out what the deal is, maybe rebuilt it and sell it, or use it. These are good motors.

Thanks Again. I hope to bring it home this weekend. I will be parting out the entire drivetrain and anything under the hood. Radiator, power steerting, etc. are all there and in good condition. The interior has bucket seats and console that can be saved. All the glass is good too. Other than that the car is absolutely trashed. Every body panel is smashed or severly rusted or both. Anything else specific to the Super Bee that I should know about?

umm, before you go parting it out you might want to try to sell the car complete. you might be sureprised. you would probably be able to get more for the intire car than if you parted it out. all you need to do is advertise. there are many people looking for cars like that and when its something liek that people will go to great legnths to fix it.

Yeah, someone might be able to use that whole thing. Maybe someone already has quarters and a front clip for it, and floor pans and whatever else it needs. Someone might be looking for this car, you should really advertise it before parting it out...

I'll think about it. It would defintely be easier. Since the original engine is already gone, I figured parting it out was not such a sin. I suppose you can fix anything but this is bad. I just got some pics but they are too big to attach here. If someone wants to see them I can email to you. Sorry, still new at this forum stuff...

Send me a pic or two at [email protected]

That car is very savable! Don't part it out! From what I can see, the only thing it might need is a hood. I was expecting to see a car with rotten quarters and fenders and A-pillars, but this car looks very healthy! You could still get quite a bit of money for this car I'm sure. I don't know what the frame looks like or anything, but definitely all the body panels are reusable...

I think you should fix that car or sell it to someone who will. There's no sense in parting out a good car like that...

Can one of u guys resize the pic and post it?

I'd need an FTP client to put it on my webspace, but this computer doesn't have an FTP client. I can't post it without that...

If I lived in Maryland, I'd make an attempt to go pick it up and give it a new home. It looks like an easy resto.

Too bad those hood scoops aren't still on there. This must have been a Ramcharger car I would think...

Well, it depends on what you consider easy I guess. I have done one rusty car from the ground up and will never do it again. This car needs the hood and deck lid which is rusted in two pieces. The trunk is completely rotten and I suspect the floors are as well. It's been sinking into the ground so I'll be surprised if the frame isn't rusted. I live in the rust belt and everything from here takes it hard. I'll know more when I get it pulled out of the weeds on Saturday. I might try selling it on eBay or take it the Chryslers at Carlisle. If everybody thinks this car is so salvagable then what should I ask for it???????????

Well that's just it. You gotta find out what the frame looks like. What I mean to say is, maybe you can sell the car as a whole to a person who has a 70 bee frame sitting in his garage, waiting for a donor car like yours. If anything you could take the quarters and front clip off for another car, but then again, I've seen frames get repaired, and new trunk floors get put in. Floor pans are nothing, and a hood and trunk lid should be pretty easy to find. Just try and sell it as a whole. If this car was in Canada I'd offer 3 grand for it, if it was an actual 440 car.

Let us know what you find when you pull it out of the weeds. I'll help you resize pics and stuff again if you want.

Thanks I'll let you know what happens. I know $3k is significant and I would make some money but it is not originally a 440 car. That would mean I might get $2k for it. After getting it towed and storing it, then it's hardly worth the effort. I'm not sure if I'm going to get the title for it either. The guy is "looking for it". I need to make as much as possible on this to dump into my project. That way I can keep going on it. With my first kid on the way, the funds for my toys have dried up.

I hear that. If it's gonna cost you to pull this out and be done with it, in the end you're probably better off finding parts somewheres else, from another person or another car...

there are ways of getting the title without the previouse owner giving it to you. you can file for a lost title. i dont know totaly what it involves but we have does it a couple times including on my 68 chevelle you see in my sig. you need stuff like a bill or sale(just something signed by the previouse registered owner saying he sold it to you and stuff) and that might be all you need. but then you go to the DMV and then after a little paperwok you get the new title in the mail a few weeks later or something. you should look into it. and if nothing else, i would put it up on ebay or something just advertisng it and like with ebay just put a reserve on it, if you dont get past the reserve atleast if someone bids then you will have an idea and then if you get alot more than your reserve then hey, you just got payed.

Well I got it home and it wasn't easy. What should have been a few hours took all day. Long story. Anyway, I didn't have much time to play with it and I'm heading out of town this weekend. I need to decode the rest of this car. I definitely was a ramcharger and I noticed a clutch pedal up against the firewall. When the 440 was swapped in I guess the auto trans was too. Sure looks like a dealer install since there are no aftermarket manifolds, shifter, etc. While wiring up the exhaust from falling out I saw that the frame rails are completely gone in the back. I was worried the springs would bust through the trunk. The quarters are blowing in the wind at the bottom. The bottom of the doors are badly rusted and the front fenders too. Lots of rust around the rear window as well. The guy swears he has the title somewhere and is still looking for it. I'm not holding my breath on that. It sure attracted a lot of attention going up the road...

What's happened to this car since?

There's an '70 Coronet 440 (M/N, not engine size) in the Kencot area of Kingston in a bit better shape than that shown (but I don't think it's running). If I had any skill, experience, tools, garage or money, I'd consider buying it and trying to fix it. Unfortunately, I don't, so I just have to hope it finds a good home eventually.

It's on eBay right now. Had A LOT of people ask me for various parts but I am trying to sell it whole. I may consider parting it out since the car is a disaster and the original drive train has been swapped out. The seats are 69s and the console came from somewhere else too. We'll see.

One man's junk is another man's treasure.

Definitely SAVE it! B-bodies are getting tougher to find in rebuildable form. Super-Bs are quite desirable. 383s are still around, so putting it back to original wouldn't be TOO tough...

www.moparts.com

They will be able to help you there.