According to WANE, in June 1983, Gary Dodane, 75, spent $500 — or a little over $1,500 today accounting for inflation — to buy a 13-year-old used car, which he considered a little overpriced. “I thought [at the time], ‘this is a lot of money for a used car,’” Dodane told WANE, which, sure, the value of money is relative. The car he bought was a 1970 Plymouth Barracuda with a Hemi V8 and a four-speed manual, one of just 284 such examples. It is also apparently the first Hemi ‘Cuda sold, bearing serial number BS23ROB100003 — the first two having been disassembled. It’s on sale now for $2.2 million.
Dodane seems aware that that is a lot of money for a car that is more than half a century old but, you know, he knows what he’s got. From WANE:
“I decided after 40 years now, it’s time to maybe put this in another collection someplace,” Dodane said.
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“This is the first one, and that’s why I’ve got my price up there,” Dodane said. “This is the very first ‘Hemi Cuda,’ and these are the holy grail of muscle cars.”
Dodane said he attempted to sell the car in auction once before with a $3.2 million reserve attached to it.
Although the auction failed to reach Dodane’s asking price, he said the bidding did reach $2 million.
“I put down $3.2 million and I said ‘if I get that fine, and if not, we’re going to take it back to the museum,” Dodane said. “I had a (expletive) attack.”
Whether Dodane had a “shit” attack or a “fucking” attack or some sort of other attack is unclear, but he has come down on the $3.2 million number to the current $2.2 million. The car has most recently been on the market for months, which suggests that the appetite for the car is perhaps not $2.2 million, though tell that to someone who thinks their car is worth $2.2 million.
Previously, Autoweek caught up with Dodane and the ‘Cuda in 2005, when we were all younger:
According to the Chrysler Registry, the pilot car was the first of 652 1970 Plymouth 426 Hemi ’Cuda two-door hardtops built, and one of just 284 equipped with a manual transmission.
Once the time-study was complete, the finished ’Cuda was shipped to a dealership in Fort Wayne where it sold for $4,525. Options on the $3,164 base car included the 426-cid Hemi engine equipped with dual four-barrel carburetors ($871), a four-speed manual transmission ($195) and an AM/FM stereo with an 8-track tape player ($196). Given the car’s astonishing power—the Hemi was rated (in the SAE Gross standard of the day) at 425 hp and reportedly ran the quarter-mile in 13.1 seconds at 107 mph—someone with survival in mind probably checked the box for front power disc brakes, adding $71 to the sticker price.
The original owner bought the ’Cuda as a daily driver, but he became ill and was unable to push the muscle car’s heavy clutch pedal, so the car saw just 15,000 miles in its first decade. By the time Dodane bought it in 1983, the odometer recorded just under 17,700 miles. In the 22 years since, Dodane has added a mere 30 additional miles.
“I stopped driving it as soon as I found out it was such a rare car,” says Dodane. “I know I’m a safe driver, but what about everybody else out there?”
Dodane told WANE that he does not care if the car sells or not at its current price, as he is happy keeping it at the National Automotive & Truck Museum in Auburn, Indiana, and also working his day job, which is being a barber.
Another of the 284 1970 Hemi ‘Cudas with a four-speed manual sold in May on Bring A Trailer for $266,000 but Dodane’s is only several multiples more. Some things you can’t put a price on, but old cars you certainly can.