The reserve is off! This ultra-rare Dark Metallic Green 1969 Daytona with a 426 HEMI just sold for $1,320,000, setting new auction records.
The Dodge Daytona was built for just one reason: to race and win in NASCAR. It’s at the very top of the best American muscle car era and is already a hugely desirable car.
In 1969, Dodge built special Chargers with long nose cones and gigantic rear wings. With this famous aerodynamic configuration, the car was stable at 200+ miles per hour. However, it famously didn’t sit that well with customers, who didn’t like the design. It’s ironic that its “undesirability” in 1969 made the Daytona so rare and thus one of the most expensive muscle cars at today’s auctions.
But even though Daytonas and Superbirds were sitting on lots for months or years, somebody took a chance and ordered one that was even more expensive and unique. You guys are looking at what could be the most unique and certainly the most highly optioned 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona.
As you probably know, there are four times as many Superbirds as there are Daytonas. Only 503 of these Dodge models were made for 1969. Most of them have the 440 engine, and those can easily grab $300,000 at auctions. However, what we have here is one of only 70 examples that were made with the famous 426-cubic-inch HEMI.
How rare is this Daytona?
This legendary engine is the most desirable out of all the Mopars, and in this case, produces 425 horsepower thanks to dual Carter AFB 4-barrel carburetors. Of the 70 HEMIs, only 22 had the option of an A833 four-speed manual gearbox like this one. Further performance upgrades include the N51 Max Cooling Package with a 7-inch fan,26-inch radiator, and power steering cooler. I bet Hoovies Garage wishes he had a working set of these things.
Almost as cool as the engine is the Super Trak Pak, which gave 4-speed Daytonas a Dana 60 rear end with 4.10 gear ratio and a Sure-Grip limited-slip differential.
However, I feel like the color makes this a 1-of-1. Many Daytonas are red, blue, or a shade of green called F6 Spring Green. However, this bad boy is finished in F8 Dark Green Metallic with a black rear wing.
The color extends to the cabin, which is done in C6G Green with vinyl bucket seats. Photos of the interior reveal a C16 woodgrain center console, factory P31 power windows, and a 6-way adjustable driver’s seat. Further comfort features include the Chrysler Solid State AM radio with an 8-track player, N85 tachometer, remote left-hand mirror, locking gas cap, and the A01 Light Package.
The rare dark green HEMI Daytona will be up for sale at the Mecum Indy 2022 auction on May 13-21. They haven’t released an estimate, but it could be worth a cool million in this market.
