1966 Dodge Dart GT - Trying to Determine How Rare

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maldridgeks

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Hello,

I purchased a one owner 1966 dodge dart gt and trying to decide how to proceed with car. Appreciate your input on how rare it is as that will help me decided how to approach the car's future. Car has the Charger 273 4V, AT, Kelsey Hayes Front Disc brakes, upgraded heavy duty suspension with front torsion bar upgraded, anti-roll bar, and upgraded rear leaf spring count and 8 3/4" sure grip rear end.

After bringing car home, we've gone through it mechanically and have it back on road. Trying to decide how much to invest in car's paint/finish. I will include a pic or two for perspective.

Again, I suspect this is largely subjective, but wanted to ask all of you as I value your opinion. It's a bonus if any of you know of any good resources to help determine the car's rarity.

Thank you.

dart gt.jpg


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dart gt 3.jpg
 
It is a neat old car, I would like to find one, being rare not soo much. Value, it would be worth more if it had all stock parts. Is it worth painting, I would think the car deserves a decent paint job. Cash value, without seeing the engine compartment or interior, hard to say. If I was to purchase a similar car, I would not go over 10 grand for it. Any decent insurance company would appraise the car for you. It is a nice looking Dart for sure.

Here a link, while not exactly the same but it will give you an idea of what your car is worth.
1965 Dodge Dart - cars & trucks - by owner - vehicle automotive sale

1965Dart.jpg
 
Hello,

I purchased a one owner 1966 dodge dart gt and trying to decide how to proceed with car. Appreciate your input on how rare it is as that will help me decided how to approach the car's future. Car has the Charger 273 4V, AT, Kelsey Hayes Front Disc brakes, upgraded heavy duty suspension with front torsion bar upgraded, anti-roll bar, and upgraded rear leaf spring count and 8 3/4" sure grip rear end.

After bringing car home, we've gone through it mechanically and have it back on road. Trying to decide how much to invest in car's paint/finish. I will include a pic or two for perspective.

Again, I suspect this is largely subjective, but wanted to ask all of you as I value your opinion. It's a bonus if any of you know of any good resources to help determine the car's rarity.

Thank you.

View attachment 1716084651

View attachment 1716084653

View attachment 1716084655
8.75 a stock, from the factory rear end? Or was it added. Very rare in a 273 car. IMO. A legit charger 4bbl 273 from factory is rare. again IMO. Mostly 2BBL engines.
 
8.75 a stock, from the factory rear end? Or was it added. Very rare in a 273 car. IMO. A legit charger 4bbl 273 from factory is rare. again IMO. Mostly 2BBL engines.
Most 273/235’s with automatics got the 7.25; 4 speeds the 8.75


I see someone added side marker lights and a custom grille with auxiliary lights. Will they hurt value? To a purist - probably
 
Sounds like a well optioned Dart. They're a blast to drive with the suspension package along with the 273-4. Pretty rare factory black paint (assuming). Does it have the fast ration manual steering box too?
 
Hello,

I purchased a one owner 1966 dodge dart gt and trying to decide how to proceed with car. Appreciate your input on how rare it is as that will help me decided how to approach the car's future. Car has the Charger 273 4V, AT, Kelsey Hayes Front Disc brakes, upgraded heavy duty suspension with front torsion bar upgraded, anti-roll bar, and upgraded rear leaf spring count and 8 3/4" sure grip rear end.

After bringing car home, we've gone through it mechanically and have it back on road. Trying to decide how much to invest in car's paint/finish. I will include a pic or two for perspective.

Again, I suspect this is largely subjective, but wanted to ask all of you as I value your opinion. It's a bonus if any of you know of any good resources to help determine the car's rarity.

Thank you.

View attachment 1716084651

View attachment 1716084653

View attachment 1716084655
It looks like a pretty nice 66 you found. The 4 barrel, disc brakes, and the HD suspension options are all real nice upgrades. According to the Galen book there were 1619 1966 Dart GT's built with the 273-4 barrel and automatic transmission. That includes hardtops and convertibles. There is no other breakdowns known for these cars. There were 2856 including the 4 speed cars. (1237) Like mentioned above, side marker lights and auxiliary lights in the grille added. Value? I have seen "asking price" on fully restored cars around $18,000 and a car like yours can be valued around $10,000 in good driving condition. The 4 speed cars bring a couple thousand more just because of their popularity. It's all up to you which direction you want to go.

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With all those options, I would say it's fairly rare and desirable. If it's not a rust bucket, I'd do a full restoration. :thumbsup:
 
"Rare" is one of the most overused words when talking about old cars. Approximately 30,000 Dart GT's built in 66 and approx 1/3 were V8's. Simple Google search.

GT was a higher trim package which got you bucket seats and console. Very similar to top of the line Valiant Signet. Same basic car as the others, just a little fancier. Reminds me of early 60's Chevy Impala SS which were just trim packages and didn't designate high performance at all.

If yours has the Charger 273 engine with sway bar, disc brakes, etc. That's as good as it got (except a 4 speed) for 66. (And the D Dart) It's a very cool car with those options and I hope you can keep the 273.

https://www.hemmings.com/stories/article/1965-66-dodge-dart-gt

@65dartcharger might know more
 
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It's a neat car. Not worth a fortune, but worth "something". Just fix it up like you want it.
 
"Rare" is one of the most overused words when talking about old cars. Approximately 30,000 Dart GT's built in 66 and approx 1/3 were V8's. Simple Googke search.

GT was a higher trim package which got you bucket seats and console. Very similar to top of the line Valiant Signet. Same basic car as the others, just a little fancier. Reminds me of early 60's Chevy Impala SS which were just trim packages and didn't designate high performance at all.

If yours has the Charger 273 engine with sway bar, disc brakes, etc. That's as good as it got (except a 4 speed) for 66.

https://www.hemmings.com/stories/article/1965-66-dodge-dart-gt

@65dartcharger might know more
Yes, rare is overused. Rare and valuable are two different things.
20,994 V8 66 Darts according to my book. I would restore it. Black with Cragars is a nice combination and I have seen very few original black cars.
 
rare and desirable are two different things.. 66 darts just aren't very collectable. that being said the early abodies are starting to go up in price since so many are being out priced from the 67-70 market. be careful what you put in to it. it will never bring 67-70 money.
 
That is a cool car! A really cool car! And with great options.

I don’t think painting it would add much value even though it’s not really all original with the grill lights and side marker lights added. It is usually best to spend as little as possible on these early A-bodies.

If you’re looking to resell it a quick mediocre quality paint is a big turn off for me and may actually hurt the value. To do a nice high quality finish would cost more than the car will ever be worth.

I think I’d consider adding AC if I was going to drive it. That would make the car much more usable to anyone interested.

If it was me I’d spend some time enjoying this car and then decide if I want to keep it long term and then it makes sense to spend some money on it.

I’m in a similar position with an Opel Manta. I bought one that has zero rust & mechanically is great. But it has a poor repaint and the wrong seats. It’ll never be worth what it’ll cost to make it better so I just drive it

03B5AB71-A4E7-41F5-9ADB-AF76793C02DA.jpeg
 
Remember, production numbers are just that- how many were produced. "Rarity" kind of refers to how many may still exist, and that's going to be quite a bit fewer; and a lot harder of a number to nail down. And rarity doesn't always equate to higher value, as noted by others above.
In my opinion, any car that has survived 57 years and is still in the kind of condition yours appears to be in deserves a little lovin'.
 
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Hagerty throws these numbers out.... Market value which I suppose you could translate to mean desirability.

Fair - $9k, Good - $17k, Excellent - #30k, Concourse - $41k

I agree with the others. Get it the way you like and enjoy the vehicle.
 
Hagerty throws these numbers out.... Market value which I suppose you could translate to mean desirability.

Fair - $9k, Good - $17k, Excellent - #30k, Concourse - $41k

I agree with the others. Get it the way you like and enjoy the vehicle.

man those numbers sound quite high to me. if they are truly that high then our 70 will be for sale by next week..:). cashing out and going modern muscle.
 
man those numbers sound quite high to me. if they are truly that high then our 70 will be for sale by next week..:). cashing out and going modern muscle.
:lol:

I'd say that's probably insurance valuation... But as we know, the car is "worth" what someone will pay.
 
man those numbers sound quite high to me. if they are truly that high then our 70 will be for sale by next week..:). cashing out and going modern muscle.
Yep, they are high. Not very realistic for sure. No way my 66 is worth more than my other car. You guys have seen my 70 Swinger. I would consider it to be Excellent condition. I would be happy to sell it for $30 k. :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
 
8.75 a stock, from the factory rear end? Or was it added. Very rare in a 273 car. IMO. A legit charger 4bbl 273 from factory is rare. again IMO. Mostly 2BBL engines.
Thank you. We believe the 8.75 is from factory but difficult to prove. Confirmed it did leave factory with 4bbl though.
 
It looks like a pretty nice 66 you found. The 4 barrel, disc brakes, and the HD suspension options are all real nice upgrades. According to the Galen book there were 1619 1966 Dart GT's built with the 273-4 barrel and automatic transmission. That includes hardtops and convertibles. There is no other breakdowns known for these cars. There were 2856 including the 4 speed cars. (1237) Like mentioned above, side marker lights and auxiliary lights in the grille added. Value? I have seen "asking price" on fully restored cars around $18,000 and a car like yours can be valued around $10,000 in good driving condition. The 4 speed cars bring a couple thousand more just because of their popularity. It's all up to you which direction you want to go.

View attachment 1716084717
Thank you very much
 
If you are thinking of "investing" in restoring the car with the idea that you will make money, that's a fool's errand. That car would be a blast to drive, all fixed up! You just don't see that many nice, well optioned early A-bodies at shows, let alone on the street. With the 273 four barrel motor, buckets and a floor shift what's not to love about it? The sectioned off roof that allows a two tone paint scheme is just icing on the cake. Fix it up and have fun!!!
 
Hagerty throws these numbers out.... Market value which I suppose you could translate to mean desirability.

Fair - $9k, Good - $17k, Excellent - #30k, Concourse - $41k

I agree with the others. Get it the way you like and enjoy the vehicle.
That’s the auction market which is high. Really hard to know what the true market bears.
 
We don't know a few things: What you have in it ($$$), what you plan to do with it, condition of interior, suspension, etc....

I think if you like it and want to KEEP it, if you are in at $12-15K or less ALL IN, I say you're good. But if you plan to flip it, I'd stay under $7-8000. (FYI: I'm in the SF Bay Area, so this is my perspective. You're in Kansas I see ... I don't know what the economy is like out there. My two cents....)
 
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