Which might be a 'better' choice/price? 69 300 Vert or 69 Polara 500

DerbyCity

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So.... after spending my 20's and 30's doing nothing but driving, working on and trading Mustangs, I get a hankering 20 years later to find some classic muscle I can wrench on and drive. I've admired all types of muscle cars over years, and recently stumbled onto this big, burly beasts while scouring CL, Ebay and Facebook for a project.

My problem is this - I know what I'd like - a 69-70 300, Polara or Fury. I'm also familiar with what it takes to resurrect a car from the dead and can do the majority of work myself. But I have NO idea the value of these cars, so I don't know if asking prices are 'reasonable' or 'no effing way' for a couple of projects I've found.

I've been lurking here for a week or two, just joined today. You guys have a super supportive bunch here and I don't know if I could find a better place for advice on either car. Can you tell me is these are priced right and which may be a better choice? Both cars are an hour + away and don't want to waste my time driving to view/purchase if they are overpriced.

69 Polara 500 - 383/Auto $3,000 - Runs, does not stop (appears to be running off a gas jug in a photo, brakes inop so cannot drive. Obvious quarter panel rust, but appears to be a fairly straight but tired car:
69 polara side.jpg
69 Polara Interior.jpg
69 Polara engine.jpg


69 300 Convertible $2500 - 440/4v auto bucket seats/console, power windows. Looks to me like it had a/c (compressor is MIA, so is the carb so I'd expect mice living in the engine..). Looks to be in 'barn find' condition still in a barn, with years of caked on dirt, mouse crap, etc everywhere. Some rust through above the right rear wheel, but looks fairly straight.
69 300 nose.jpg
69 300 roof.jpg
69 300 interior.jpg

Before everyone says 'both' - I know, I know, but you can't blow your beer budget on so many projects you never get one done, right?

Thanks for having me in the group, gang.
 
Both.....do one at a time and lay off the beer, water is better for you! :)
Seriously, it would be a tough call, but the Polara is given my nod. It runs and drives kinda....
The 300 vert is cool but I feel you'd be into it for a bunch more if the engine is stuck, Replacing the top etc.
Good luck and you're a winner whichever you decide on!
 
Before considering either of these cars, some things to check. Cars with rust showing on the outer body panels are frequently hiding a lot of rust on the frame rails and other structural members. Get a flashlight and start checking. Check the rocker panels, the bases of the door posts, A pillars, C pillars, trunk floor, wheel houses, passenger compartment floors and cowl. The more rust in these areas you find, the less likely the car is a feasible restoration project.

If the cars are solid outside of minor outer body rust, you probably have a feasible project. Go into any project with your eyes open and a clearly defined goal as how much you are willing to spend and to what level you are going to spend money. Bringing a car back is usually never cheap. You will have many thousands of dollars in body and paint work alone. The more you can do yourself, the less it will cost, but some things, like body paint and interior work are usually best left to the pros. Many times it is more cost effective to find a car that is nice to start with.

Dave
 
the cars you consider are not muscle cars.

They are full size cars.
Not Road Runners, Super Bees or Charger R/Ts.
If you want a real muscle car: You need to shop for a Chrysler 300 Hurst or a Plymouth Sport Fury GT

Despite that: Both cars you posted need a lot of work. Many parts for C-bodys are not easily obtainable. They aren't Mustangs (which you dealt with before).
Are you sure you can handle a big project? I hate the cases where someone starts with a lot of enthusiasm, pulls a car apart only to realize 6 months to a year later that it is too big of a project. And the car dies as a parts car.

No offence meant, just open and honest words

Carsten
 
the cars you consider are not muscle cars.

They are full size cars.
Not Road Runners, Super Bees or Charger R/Ts.
If you want a real muscle car: You need to shop for a Chrysler 300 Hurst or a Plymouth Sport Fury GT

Despite that: Both cars you posted need a lot of work. Many parts for C-bodys are not easily obtainable. They aren't Mustangs (which you dealt with before).
Are you sure you can handle a big project? I hate the cases where someone starts with a lot of enthusiasm, pulls a car apart only to realize 6 months to a year later that it is too big of a project. And the car dies as a parts car.

No offence meant, just open and honest words

Carsten

No offense taken. I know these are full size cars. I'm a full sized guy, and a fan of most cars from the muscle car era above and beyond the actual muscle cars themselves. Just because these aren't Hemi Cudas or Coronet R/Ts doesn't mean they can't satisfy that muscle car itch, right? I'm way past drag racing, but can appreciate the sound of a built 383/440 (or almost any red-blooded American V8), and appreciate driving one 'enthusiastically' and be comfortable too, right?

One thing I have discovered in my lurking and looking around is that you're right, I'm not seeing a ton of repro parts, so the availability of quarter panel patches/floors/trunk pans is concerning. That's a big part of why I joined, to hear if from the guys who know these cars. Thanks!
 
Both being equal I would pick the Polara in a heartbeat.
 
i'd go for the polara. looks like some lower body rust. check around the windshield and rear window for rust because of the vinyl top.
the 300 looks like a money pit with no end in sight. there are no repro body parts worth mentioning.
 
the cars you consider are not muscle cars.

Despite that: Both cars you posted need a lot of work. Many parts for C-bodys are not easily obtainable. They aren't Mustangs (which you dealt with before).
Are you sure you can handle a big project? I hate the cases where someone starts with a lot of enthusiasm, pulls a car apart only to realize 6 months to a year later that it is too big of a project. And the car dies as a parts car.

No offence meant, just open and honest words

Carsten

Just to add some background - I have a garage full of tools, compressor, and MIG setup. I've replaced floor pans and patched quarter panels in Mustangs and have no issues taking the engine, suspension and electrical down to the bare bones and building them back up. About the only thing I haven't done is paint. My wife's uncle owns an auto upholstery/trim shop, so the interior work I can farm out to him.

That said, what's the availability of seat upholstery/carpet/door panels on these cars? Are we looking at good used, or are any quality repops availble? On the Polara, for instance, all of that is shot. I realize the lack of repro parts = $$$$, but how bad is it on a fuselage body?
 
The Polara being a running unit that will move, (although it seems stopping may be an issue??), would be likely a way better starting point at least to my way of thinking. That could maybe be changed if the 300 is absolutely sound metal wise (as in zero rust). That said, there were a whole lot more 300's made than Polara 500's so some of that trim on the Polara is going to be near impossible to find while 300 bits are way more available.
 
The Polara being a running unit that will move, (although it seems stopping may be an issue??), would be likely a way better starting point at least to my way of thinking. That could maybe be changed if the 300 is absolutely sound metal wise (as in zero rust). That said, there were a whole lot more 300's made than Polara 500's so some of that trim on the Polara is going to be near impossible to find while 300 bits are way more available.


That being said - what's a reasonable price to expect to pay for the Polara, ASSUMING (dangerous I know) the rust is limited to the quarter panels, knowing the interior is shot, and knowing the brakes are out for whatever reason - could be a rusted line/broken hose/bad master cyl/brake cyl/all the above, but none of those are a high $$ fix unless these things have a 1-off piece in them somewhere.

Is 3k 'in the ballpark' for a car like this? Personally, I feel that given it's a running car that needs everything redone it should be more in the $1500-$2k range, but again, I don't know values for these cars at all.
 
That being said - what's a reasonable price to expect to pay for the Polara, ASSUMING (dangerous I know) the rust is limited to the quarter panels, knowing the interior is shot, and knowing the brakes are out for whatever reason - could be a rusted line/broken hose/bad master cyl/brake cyl/all the above, but none of those are a high $$ fix unless these things have a 1-off piece in them somewhere.

Is 3k 'in the ballpark' for a car like this? Personally, I feel that given it's a running car that needs everything redone it should be more in the $1500-$2k range, but again, I don't know values for these cars at all.

Assuming minimal rust, you guesstimate of $1.5 would seem close to me. Polara 500 trim is very hard to find and expensive.

Dave
 
Assuming minimal rust, you guesstimate of $1.5 would seem close to me. Polara 500 trim is very hard to find and expensive.

Dave
Yeah, I doubt I'd go over 2K for it.

Let me rephrase that - I doubt it'll sell for more than 2K, I have too much on my plate so at free I'm out.
 
I think that $1500-2000 is in the ballpark for the Polara knowing what has been described. As has been mentioned, some trim parts etc will be more difficult to come by. I'm sure you've scoped out the parts availability for both cars. Patience and perseverance will reap rewards. Best of luck on your decision and subsequent project(s).
 
Thanks so much for the advice and help. Even if I don't get either car, this is a huge help building up my knowledge about these cars, and what to look for/where so I can be more confident when it's time to pull the trigger.
 
@DerbyCity — i considered getting that Polara 500 but passed due to the rust. From what I gathered from a friend who passed info to me, the floors seemed decent but the front stub needed work and the lower quarters were shot. From the ad, there seems to be an issue with the rear rail extensions.

@70 Sport Suburban can tell you more about that specific car as he talked to the seller at length. Imho, the car is worth no more than half the $3k ask.

As for the 300, I’d ask for pics of the lower quarters, trunk, and especially the underside.
 
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Of the 2 the 300 has much better value. There are costs like a top. The interior door panels appear to be in good condition, ( very good find even needing repairs). Seats can be recovered as Legendary Auto Interiors makes kits for this car. Just be sure to thoroughly check for rust at the A pillars, B pillars, firewall ,air ducts below the windshield, rear frame rails, trunk and floor pans. If your willing to do a little hard work, the payoff is you will have a pretty rare 300 valued 7000-12000 more than the Polara
 
The Polara, absolutely.
Gonna cost you 30g to make it a 10k car, tho. You have that much passion fo these cars to eat 20k?
 
While 300 parts aren't exactly growing on tress, they're common next to the Polara parts. I frequently see decent 300 parts here or on eBay that are presentable.

While I have an obvious bias to which one I prefer, you should pick the one with the lower expected end cost. Less parts needed = lower overall cost. 2¢ Too often money doesn't come in as fast as interest and enthusiasm wane.
 
The Polara, absolutely.
Gonna cost you 30g to make it a 10k car, tho. You have that much passion fo these cars to eat 20k?

Passion? Maybe. Just not dumb enough to toss 30k into a 10k car unless I was trying to find my old high school ride or something, and even then it would be a stretch. Point made and taken. Thanks to @ayilar for the additional info on the Polara's condition. Saves me a road trip.
 
if you can do a lot of the work yourself, you could break even. stub frames are bolt in. the rear rails are weld in.
as said above, check here for seat covers Legendary Auto Interiors | Factory-Correct and Custom Car Interiors their site is horrible to navigate but they are the only game in town. sign up for their email list. periodically they have sales of 10%-20% off.
mechanical parts are pretty easy. other than ball joints, suspension is easy. this site is your best source for everything used or NOS.
 
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