Hmmmmmmmmmmmm........

[dkn1997]

http://www.dodgecharger.com/forum/index.php/topic,24763.0.html

[BigBlockSam]

i've always thought that was an r/t converted at a dealership into a daytona. 

[daytonalo]

    What welds could he possibly be speaking about !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ghoste]

It's been fairly well documented that there were no 70 Daytona's by now and I think almost all of the X-files have been closed on the case.

[daytonalo]

A for effort !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ghoste]

I agree on that A for effort.  I think anyone who has ever seen the car have always been impressed with the quality of the conversion.  So much so, that it's become this urban legend that won't die as far as it being a real one.

[daytonalo]

I meant A for effort regarding the owner trying to defraud the public !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Ghoste]

Well, I'd probably have to agree with you in that way too.  Some say that isn't true but going by this ad and some of the other statements which have been alledgedly made about the car in the past, I have my suspicions.

[daytonalo]

I spoke to bill at top shelf , he said thank god everyone is not as knowledgeable as we are , or he wouldn't be able to sell this clone . E-mail him

[69_500]

I think eventually they will be able to sell it. The arguments for both sides of the story will never truly be settled. I don't think just due to the MCG article things are as cut and dried as they would like for them to be.

[daytonalo]

what I can see is the dealer throwing a wing and nose for a cust and 37 years later passing it off as a real daytona , its a nice replica , sort of [no plug ]  The only way anyone will believe it is we see pictures on assembly line or a picture with Elvis next to it !!!!

[69_500]

Well you won't see a photo of any Daytona at the assembly line with a window plug either.

[Arigmaster]

I just wanted to put another spin into this....  I remember reading somewhere that when the Daytonas came out, it was a very limited market (which is why they stopped making them) and there were many cases where the dealerships removed the "Daytona" packages and turned them back into 500's. Does this mean they are "Real 500's" and no longer a Daytona? The parts were exchanged by the dealer prior to delivery of the car. There are also some "Daytonas" out there without the nose cone as well. I believe there were laws in some states at the time where any vehicle registered in that state must have a front bumper so the dealerships were forced to remove the nose and put the grill and bumpers back on or order without the nose. Does this make them not a or less of a real Daytona?

Any input on this?

[69_500]

I believe that the Daytona's that were forced to have  front bumpers still had the nose cones, just had a converted bumper put in front of the nose cone. I've seen a car done like this.

Haven't ever heard of any Daytona's being back converted to 500's to sell. However there was always rumors of Superbirds being done this way back to RR's. However I think that Doug would have more information on that.

[hemigeno]

Did Chrysler end up buying back the Daytonas originally shipped to Maryland?  That was the only state I remember having a bumper law that the Daytona couldn't satisfy.  Might be wrong on that subject though.

I had heard of no Daytonas being sold new as C500s - ever.  Even the rumor about the Superbirds being converted to regular RR's did not happen nearly as many times as has been reported.   

As for why they didn't make more of them, the simple answer is Economics.  Chrysler lost their shorts on every one of those cars.  The whole reason they were made was not to put lots of them on the street, but rather to put lots of them on the oval track.  If they could have satisfied Bill France with 50 Daytonas rather than 500, they'd have only made 50 - guaranteed.

[69_500]

I'd always heard that they simply sent the ones from Maryland to other states that could sell them. However anyones already that had sold, were required to install a front bumper. And oddly enough it looked like a front bumper from a 63 Corvette. The loop style.

[hemigeno]

Well, there were only three shown as having been shipped to Maryland in the first place, and one of those cars was a Hemi that went to the Dodge Regional Office in College Park, MD.  Hard to say where that car ended up selling from after it was retired from Exec/Demo duty.

Anyone know the whereabouts of:

J9B419443
L9B405180
L9B409064

Those cars would be able to answer the question for certain about what was or was not required of them.  I've heard the stories about the loop bumper too, but I don't remember seeing anything actually showing what it might have looked like apart from the pictures of the green 1970 "Daytona".

[nascarxx29]

XX29J9B419443 I believe that was Dave Jones old hemi daytona.The purple 70 daytona was retro fitted with corvette front bumpers at one time

[69_500]

I think your right. I think that the HEMI Daytona was the V2 orange one that Dave Jones had. That could be where I've seen one with those bumpers. As he bought it out of Delaware I think. And the owner had some older photo's of the car from the early 70's.

[hemigeno]

I have the Fender Tag information from 419443 logged.  It was indeed a V2 automatic car, and it sold through Mecum back in October of 2005 for $610k.  I did not note who the prior owners were, but I remember Dave Jones having a V2 HemiAuto Daytona so I suppose this was it??

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of that particular car - and it was probably restored anyway.

[Aero426]

I have the Fender Tag information from 419443 logged.  It was indeed a V2 automatic car, and it sold through Mecum back in October of 2005 for $610k.  I did not note who the prior owners were, but I remember Dave Jones having a V2 HemiAuto Daytona so I suppose this was it??

Unfortunately I don't have any pictures of that particular car - and it was probably restored anyway.

419443 is Dave's old car, for sure.
405180 has not surfaced.
409064 is on the old Winged Warriors VIN list but hasn't been seen lately.

[hemigeno]

Doug,

Do you remember if Dave Jones' old car had a loop bumper?  Any old pics of it "back in the day?"

[69_500]

I don't have any photo's of it with the loop bumper but I have a ton of photo's of Dave's old car. Gene I'm sure you have a poster of it. There was a poster made of Dave Jone's HEMI Daytona back in the 80's. About 16x20" or so. Of it in front of some tree's.
I just remember my dad saying something about photo's of Dave's car with that loop bumper on it. I do have a photo around here somewhere of a Daytona with the loop bumper but its not a HEMI.