1970 Plymouth Superbird is a survivor but hides one little secret
- This 1970 Plymouth Superbird seems like a true survivor
- It hasn’t been restored since it left the assembly line 50 years ago
- However, look closer and you’ll notice it’s hiding a little secret
Published on Sep 29, 2024 at 7:00 PM (UTC+4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Sep 27, 2024 at 7:29 PM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
This 1970 Plymouth Superbird seems like a true six-barrel survivor at first glance.
It hasn’t been restored since it left the assembly line more than 50 years ago,
However, this Mopar still looks pristine.
Look a little closer, though, and you’ll notice that it’s hiding a little secret.
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1970 Plymouth Superbird
Debuting in 1970, the Superbird was Plymouth’s take on the Charger Daytona that Dodge launched a year earlier.
The Superbird was a homologation to help Plymouth in the NASCAR ‘winged warrior’ race.
With cosmetic tweaks, a third base 440-cubic-inch (7.2-liter) RB, and an optional 426-cubic-inch (7.0-liter) HEMI joined by a six-barrel variant under the hood – the Superbird wasn’t the commercial success you’d expect.
Of the 2,000 units built, many lingered for months on showroom floors – some as late as 1972.
This means their value hasn’t reached the million-dollar mark as quickly as the Daytona.
However, the HEMI is well on its way, with 440s valued at around $400,000.
The secret
This red example was spotted at the 2023 Mopars With Big Daddy show.
This 440 Superbird is as original as you can get and you can view the footage on the YouTube page of Corner Classic Car Hunter.
It retains its 440-cubic-inch Six-Barrel V8 is numbers-matching, as is the automatic transmission with the column shifter.
Despite never being restored it looks incredible.
It’s little secret? A Tor Paint refresh several years ago is all that’s preventing it from being entirely authentic.
It’s worth noting that only 14 percent of all Superbirds were finished in this shade.
Not as rare as the one-of-123 HEMI, this ‘winged warrior’ is one of 716 that was fitted with a six-barrel version of the 440 big-block V8.
It was a carburetor setup that increased output by 15 horsepower compared to four-barrels
The automatic transmission narrows the production status further.
There’s no existing data on how many examples received the column-mounted shifter and standard bench seat.
Meanwhile, this 1970 Plymouth Superbird was found unused in a chicken house in 1994 but is now up and running.
This one has a super rare feature on its dashboard.
Bringing the story of the Superbird up to date, this 2045 Plymouth Superbird EV concept brings the muscle car legend into the future.
All Supercar Blondie contributors undergo editorial review and fact-checking to ensure accuracy and authority in automotive journalism. After gaining her BA Hons in French and English at the University of Nottingham, Amelia embarked on a vocational diploma from the National Council for the Training of Journalists (NCTJ). This led to numerous opportunities, from interning at Vogue to being on the small team that launched Women’s Health magazine in the UK, which was named the PPA Consumer magazine of the year for three years running. As Health, Beauty and Fitness editor, Amelia personally received a Johnson & Johnson Award and was shortlisted for both PPA and BSME titles. Since then, Amelia has created content for numerous titles and brands, including the Telegraph, 111 Skin, Waitrose, Red magazine, Stylist, and Elle, as well as being Head of Content at Vitality and Editor in Chief at INLondon magazine. “My superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a relatable story you’ll want to share with your friends after you’ve read it.” After joining the SB Media family as a senior journalist in September of 2023, Amelia’s role has evolved to see her heading up the SEO output of the editorial team. From researching the most ‘Google-able’ key terms to producing evergreen content - it’s been a time of hard work, growth, and success for the editorial team and the Supercar Blondie website. “I like to think of myself as a ‘method journalist’. In other words: I live and breathe whatever I am writing about. When writing about fitness, I trained as a personal trainer, and as a beauty editor, I completed an ‘expert’ in scent diploma with the Fragrance Foundation. “During my tenure at Supercar Blondie, however, I did something I never thought possible: I passed my driving test at the age of 36. One day I’d love to train as a mechanic to better understand what happens under the hood, too. “My sweet spot is providing readers with a ‘takeaway’ (read: something new they didn’t know before) after reading every one of my stories. While I don’t claim to be an expert in the automotive world, I know the experts and bodies in the field to rely on to provide our readers with an informative and thought-provoking story every time they visit the site.”
