1965 Dodge Coronet 500

Description

This 1965 Dodge Coronet 500 holds a unique place in automotive history. While the Coronet nameplate had been around since the late '40s, it had been attached to a long succession of substantially-sized, though often awesomely designed cars until undergoing a complete rebranding the very year this car came out. Trimmed down to a mid-sized wheelbase with a lot of its previous heft removed, the model met with an enthusiastic response, with 500s like this available only with V8s as an indication of their intended purpose.

Decked out in a vibrant red paint job that replaces its original gold metallic, this car is a very cool looking representative of its era. With a very sleek muscular vibe, you can easily picture it cruising down the asphalt leaving a huge smile on your face! It's a unique looking car as well - the way the roof tapers inward as it reaches down to the rear quarter panel makes for an expansive, triangular-shaped rear window you don't often see on a coupe and the rear windshield has a great wrap-around curvature to it. The rocker panels feature an undercoat to guard against rock chips that's been painted to match the rest of the exterior and it was clearly an effective move, as you'd have to look long and hard to find any real blemishes. Everything lines up well here - including that aggressive-looking front grille and the long stretches of chrome trim on the sides.

The interior has been thoroughly refurbished, with very era-appropriate tuck and roll black vinyl covering the front buckets, rear bench seat and door panels and showing only minimal wear. The dash area has been brought back to life in its original configuration, with a new instrument cluster sporting stock-looking gauges that are joined by a trio of aftermarket counterparts sitting just a little lower and right in front of that unmistakably stout B&M shifter. Just above, a fresh-looking dash pad sits impressively straight, crowned with an aftermarket tach to monitor revs. The spacious trunk area is in good order, with a clean plaid liner on the bottom. The battery has been relocated from up front and sits here securely fastened and shielded to the side and there's plenty of luggage room to spare.

Leaving no doubt that this car was built to be enjoyed, a 440-cubic inch V8 sits in the engine bay in place of the original 426 Wedge. With an eye toward highway cruising and dependability, the 440 certainly fits the part and is ready to go wherever your heart desires. Sporting a pair of Edelbrock 4-barrel carbs and breathing out of a pair of long tube headers, it starts right up with a nice rumble from the exhaust. The much-heralded big block is paired with an A727 Torqueflite transmission that's known for its ability to handle high output engines dependably. Take a look underneath and you'll see that, despite more than 50 years of faithful service, everything looks impressively straight, making it very unlikely this Dodge ventured into unplanned territory. This potent early entry into the muscle car arena sits nicely balanced and level on a set of 15" stock rims with outer perimeters painted to match this Dodge's exterior, and wrapped in BF Goodrich Touring T/As.

If you're looking for an old school muscle car with undeniable curb appeal that's built for highway enjoyment making a whopping 12mpg's on regular pump gas (not a typo), you should definitely consider this Mopar! Call today!