Survivor...?

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oldmoparsrule

oldmoparsrule

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I am not sure if this happens to everyone, but I typically get comments about both of my A-Bodies (1964 and 1966 Darts) that they are great survivors....which is typically a precurser to a comment like , "Dont you dare do anything to these...leave them just like they are today."

My question though is...what makes a car a survivor? I can guess it has to do with the original nature of the car, but are there specific rules about what this entails...X% original paint, etc...?

What can you do to a survivor without affecting its status as a "survivor"?

Does Headers (if I can find them...), dual exhaust, 4bbl carb and manifold detract from that status?

My 1966 is an all original car that has never been touched. I am dying to do the aformentioned modifications to it to add to the fun factor, but am I taking away from its value? If I keep all of the original parts, does that help?

Sorry if this is a crazy or ill-informed question, but I kind of feel like I want to make some modifications, but I do not want to end up loosing in the long run.

Thanks,
Clint
San Diego
http://members.cox.net/cschmucker/
 
well its mainly up to you, i myself would enjoy making it a little 'funner' and add a little performance. I mean if you have all of the orginal parts still after you do the mods, you have every orginal piece, so you could always swap it back for what ever reason.

i saw go for it add a 4bbl, headers its your car do what you want thats most important. But then again if you tear her appart i would find it hard not to install a new cam, then new bearings...such n such, its up to you. Maybe keep one all orginal, and one add a little performance to it :thumblef:

i would say that a siurvivor to me is all orginal, but o well these cars weremade to be drove, and 'hopped' up, wow after seeing the pictures it (66) looks soo nice, man that would be tempting, and a hard disson, its good to see another 66, that looks BEAUTFUL :thumblef: :notworth:
 
I'd say do the modifications. Most of these early A-bodies don't have a high collectable value, so a little modification is not going to hurt the value & if the mods are done well they will increase the value. IMO.
 
Nice 66!!! I would be tempted to keep it just as it is, from a pure point of view.
But, how much is it worth now? $10-15,000 if it was perfect? If you put in a
408 stroker and tricked it out with cool paint and all the goodies what would it be worth then? $15,000? I've got a 66 GT HP273, 833 4-spd, 8 3/4 sure grip.
after 2 1/2 years of ownership I still can't decide wether to repaint it the
original color (yuck!) or paint it something I would really like. (2006 Mopar Tangerene Pearl). A good Mopar friend of mine (who owns a 67 Barricuda show car) said that I should do whatever to my car that makes me happy. He restored his down to the last nut and bolt but turned it into a trailer queen. No fun. Sometimes I wish I found a barnyard 64 Dart post car and then I could hot rod the hell out of it and not feel bad. If you do any mods to your Dart save and label all the old pieces and try not to cut and hack too much. Good luck!!
Keep me posted
 
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I started to gather the parts to restore my 66 perfect but I knew that it would never be a rare or collectible car so I am going to modify it and drive the hell out of it on the strip. It might as well be fun. I f it was a 71 'cuda or something like that, I would have done a resto on it.
 
I would say do the mods. But make sure you could put it back to orginal. That way you can have fun with it and not hurt the value too much. As you can see by mine i chose not to stay stock, but then it wasn't as nice as yours. I have even added a flip gas cap off a 69 cuda, I like the looks of it
 
If that beautiful '66 Dart were mine, I'd keep it original. There are plenty of modified Darts but the really nice original cars are rare. The modifications you do might subtract value to a collector. It's true the early a-bodies are not as valuable as some of the other Mopars, but as those cars reach stratospheric levels, the less desirable models wil increase in value as well. But in the end, it's your car and you should do what makes you happy.

Take care,
DonC
 
That would be a hard one, it is in nice shape. To me unless it's got the Commando V8 and the GT trim I would do what you want. At the same time you could do a lot of cool stuff and not hurt the orginal part of it. Like I don't know if I would paint it or not, looks really good the way it is. You could always put some rims on it or have stockton wheel make some custom wide ones for the back and skinnys in the front and run the hubcaps you got. Kind of wish I would of done that on mine. You could do all kinds of stuff and not modify things that you couldn't go back. Just my two cents.

Nice car either way.

Lee
 
i believe survivor means "untouched" but still looks new. meaning it still has the orginal paint engine ect. it would be hard for me to mod a survivor car, this is one reason i bought my 64 dart gt convertible. shes a solid car but was already being "restored" when i bought her. some people would say restore it to orginal, but i didnt buy this car to just take to car shows. im updating my 64 with more modern day stuff. i just ordered the Alterktion unit from RMS with mounts for the new 5.7/6.1 style hemis, it gives me coil overs and rack and pinion,im gonna use buckets from a 66 A-body (love those plastic back covers and trim), and a tko 500 5 speed tranny, also changing to all wheel disc brakes and it will be fuel injected. lots of work, lots of money, and lots of headaches im sure, but i want my car to be different than anyone elses. sure i could have restored it to original, but it would never be a survivor (sense it was restored). besides, unless your into buying and selling cars to make a profit i say do it how you want it. you say people tell you "dont touch it, leave it original", i ask what do you want to do with it? in the end your the one driving her on the road, so if your not completely happy with her and want to make mods, then do so. if you like hearing people say "keep her original" then keep er original.
 
A true survivor car is one that has never been touched, never repainted, engine never rebuilt, just normal maintainance parts replaced with factory replacements except things like tires and maybe belts because over the years, those things stopped being produced. If it were me, Id keep it like it is, Dont you remember back about 15 years ago when there were hardly any Mopars that were worth very much? The same collector value that the E bodies and B bodies have seen will eventually happen for the A bodies, and the original survivor cars will be at the top of the curve. But, its up to you, your car, your choice, Im just stating my opinion.
 
Hi Clint,
I'm kinda late on this post, but wanted to say, I'm glad you still have the '66!! Sorry I fell thru on that in the end.. but on the side note, we did purchase the repo house across the road for $9,400..lol. Hey it needs loads of work, but the 2 car detached is standing in good shape!
If it had ended up in my garage it would have remained original as possible, but hey, I'm old, haha.. You're young and have the sweetest '66!!
So, like said before, I agree,, make your mods, & enjoy your car, and save back all the original equip you pull off it... I'll be ready to buy it again, lol within a couple years.. Best to you Clint!!
Mike

1302231a.jpg
 
Do what you want with it, but be sure and keep everything! Do you know how many of us sold muscle cars in the 70`s for a song thinking that they never would be worth a lot again? Don`t think that what you`ve got will never have a collector value. Have fun with it but be sure that you can take it back. In my experience I`ve found that the highest collectability and intrinsic value is with a totally untouched car. Cars like yours are very finite, and make great research tools for others who need to see how it was done from the factory.
 
Can you post a photo of your car? Keeping the old parts after you install the new ones is a good option. You can always put everything back if you want to. I have a '62 Fury survivor that I take to shows. It is not a trophy car by a long shot but it's amazing how many people like to stop & look at an all original car. The Fury has survived hurricanes, the Loma Prieta earthquake, and me getting my driver's license in it. My Dad's VW was not so fortunate! Still, it's hard to look at all the nice shiney cars at the shows and not want to get a new paint job & some fresh upholstery.
 
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