Looking at this video of a 1970 Plymouth Road Runner Superbird, I am reminded how the muscle car hobby has evolved.
It wasn’t too long ago that imperfect cars were restored, killing any chance to reference their originality and how they were built. Today, the market knows better and commands a premium for vehicles that are largely original. That will not change for these or any other cars because we’ve learned our lesson, but like many things with humans, it can veer into the absurd.
Image courtesy of Jim Campisano
Image courtesy of Jim Campisano
For example, what’s a “survivor”? Some folks freely use the term to describe any car that hasn’t been restored or still exists in some capacity, but that’s simply “unrestored.” A survivor must be fully operational and have most of the equipment that came with the particular vehicle. There are different grades of this because not every survivor will have 100 percent original paint or the original tires or hoses, but the idea is to have a car that’s weathered the years in largely original condition. We’ve covered cars like this in the Vintage Certification display at the Muscle Cars and Corvette Nationals.
Image courtesy of Jim Campisano
I don’t know where within survivor status Lee Saunders’ 1970 Superbird lies, but it’s certainly a survivor with 19,462 miles and largely original equipment including the mufflers and more. Muscle Car Campy joins Lee to give us a ride in this Tor Red NASCAR homologation special powered by a 440 Magnum with a column-shifted automatic.
View more Muscle Car Campy videos by clicking here!
