Unique Drivetrain 1969 Newport

V Scott Senter said:
I picked up a red 1969 Newport 4-door sedan last May in Ellensburg, WA for $700. It has NO options listed on the data plate! There is a factory (dealer installed or factory mistake?) AM radio, a non-factory painted white roof/undercoating and rear bumper guards. I'm working on resurrecting the engine (not seized, off road since late 90s). Valve cover gaskets were original (badly leaking) with original engine paint! Mileage reads 00218. I'm curious to drive a Fusy with no power options... Not even the light group! Trunk is rusted bad, some small holes around back window and front window. Otherwise, solid body, trashed black cloth/vinyl interior and radiator core. Unfortunately, no title...View attachment 277252 View attachment 277253 View attachment 277254 View attachment 277255
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Get it running, drive it alot. Old worn cars are a blast.
 
LocuMob said:
That's exactly the mentality I have for my '68 Monaco 500. Drive the hell out of it.
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Steering box, steering box, steering box, so I can steer the hell out of my race car.
I have lost track of all your cars since you went on a buying spree.
 
Both are bare bones but have pedal dress up, or did chrysler's get that standard?

Good score on those pedals both of you!
 
Its a CHRYSLER for sakes! Notta Plymouth or Dodge... Base Newports came with lots of standard features other cars charged for. They were advertised as a luxury car you could step up to for a reasonable entry price of $3414 + shipping. (If you didn't mind shifting yourself and growing big biceps and quads...) But I'll bet 99+% of Newports got a Torqueflight!
 
My lowly Plymouth was better optioned but no pedal dress up. That's a strange option to have, since only low end got the 3 in the tree you'd think plain pedals would be the only available pedal assembly.
 
70bigblockdodge said:
It's a manual drum car. Must be standard.
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Personally, coming down the line, the assemblers probably had no clue on what a stick shift Chrysler should have and just grabbed the next set of pedal pads that came to hand off the shelf.

Rob at MCG would probably headline it this way...
FOUND! ONE OF ONE MANUAL SHIFT CHRYSLER WITH PEDAL DRESS UP KIT!

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Quite possible, but the fact there would be a c body manual pedal setup to grab at all and then it happen to be a dress up one...
 
Every Fuselage Chrysler I've seen with 2 OR 3-pedals have the chrome trim pedal dress up. Its standard guys. This car has NO factory options. Yes, it has manual drum brakes. And manual steering. The disc brake option has the same chrome surround as drum brake cars, except it says " Power disc brakes" on the middle chrome strip. The E in the VIN indicates it is an "economy price class" Chrysler. That's what the Newport was: A base Chrysler people could step into for a low entry price. And you got a 3-speed manual column shift trans., drum brakes and arm strong steering for the low entry price.

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The data plate has the name and address of the original owner as "Laramie, Wyo". Wide open spaces with interstates where you can drive at 75mph all day. And with a manual transmission you'll get an extra 2 MPG! Judging by the handwriting of the scratched in name, it looks like an old guy bought it new. It HAD to be special ordered with no options! I've never heard of a "stripper" or no-option Chrysler. A Duster, yes. A Belvedere or Fury maybe. But NOT a Chrysler. A dealer would have NEVER ordered a no-option Chrysler. He would have been stuck with it for years! Like so many older gentlemen of the era, the original owner probably didn't "trust" "fancy options" such as automatic transmissions or power steering/brakes, which are ALL prone to more failures than the manual versions. I would be willing to bet that this car is 1 of 1. The only no option 1969 Chrysler Newport. Rare? Hell YES! Valuable? NO. Rarity does NOT necessarily equate to value.
 
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