1. 1967/1970 Dodge Coronet R/T 426 Hemi Convertible Only 2 Produced — Cost $305,000
Dodge fitted 487 Coronet R/Ts with Hemi engines. Of those, only four convertibles were ever made. Two were made in 1967 and two in 1970. “R/T” stands for “Road and Track”. 1967 was the first year Dodge offered R/T models of the Coronet. The Coronet received a compete make over in 1970 and was capable of producing up to 425 horsepower.
2. 1969 Chevrolet Corvette ZL-1 Only 3 Produced — Cost $1,400,000
The all-aluminum ZL-1 engine block was only put into three Corvettes. The idea was first ordered by one of the factory workers at Chevrolet’s St. Louis, Missouri plant. Two more orders were placed after the car was finally unveiled. The all-aluminum L88 Special Turbo Jet 427 cubic inch engine produced 500 horsepower. The car cost $10,771 in 1969. It was over $3000 more than a normal Corvette. With an aluminum engine churning out over 500horsepower, the ZL-1 was the most powerful version of the already strong L-88 Corvette. In fact, ZL-1s were the most powerful production Corvettes available until fairly recently. Only three are known to have been built that year.
3. 1971 Pontiac GTO Judge Convertible Only 17 Produced — Cost $232,500
The GTO was started as an
upgraded package available for the company’s Tempest line. It was designed by
John DeLorean and inspired by the Ferrari 250 GTO. In 1966, the GTO became a
separate model from the Tempest. The Judge was released in 1969 as an upgraded
racing package available for the GTO. Pontiac stripped the GTO down to its bare
bones in order to save weight on the car. Then they dropped in a 455 cubic inch
engine. GTO Judges are highly sought after, but the rarest are the
convertibles. They only produced 207 convertible models of the cars. In 1971
the United States made the emission standards on cars much stricter. Pontiac stopped
making the car that year. Only 17 of the 207 convertibles were made in 1971.
4. 1970 Chevrolet Chevelle SS 454 LS Only 20 Produced — Cost $280,000
The 454 LS6s are the
rarest Chevelles out there. They were only made in 1970 and Chevy only produced
20 of them. Chevelle SS came in one of two options at this time. A person could
get a RPO225 which came with a 402 cubic inch engine or a RPO215 which came
with a 440 cubic inch engine. The LS6 was an upgrade that was only available on
RPO215s. The LS6 upgrade added 100 horsepower to the RPO215, allowing it to
produce a total of 560 HP.
5. 1967 Chevrolet Corvette L88 Only 20 Produced — Cost $3,850,000
Chevrolet produced
the Corvette L88s in 1967 and 1968. They were exclusively manufactured at their
factory in St. Louis, Missouri. The L88 was a racing package available for the
Corvettes which included a 427 cubic inch Chevy big block engine. Chevrolet
originally designed the car specifically for the purpose of racing at the
professional level. They actually discouraged selling it to dealerships and
consumers because they thought the added power was dangerous for street
driving. Chevy stated the L88 engine produced 435 horsepower, only slightly
higher than a regular Corvette. This was in order to make consumers think the
L88 package was not much better than the everyday Vette. However, later tests
from individuals have shown the engine has between 540 and 560 horsepower.
Increased emissions demand forced the company to stop producing the L88s. Only
196 were made. The most valuable are the 1967 models, of which only 20 were
produced.
6. 1970-71 Plymouth Hemi Cuda Convertible Only 21 Produced — Cost $3,200,000
For the true muscle car fan,
there has never been and never will be anything like the Hemi Cuda. Plymouth
resigned its Barracuda line in 1970 and it became simply known as the Cuda. The
car had five different engine options available ranging from a 340 to 440 cubic
inches the most highly sought after of which being the ones with the 426 cubic
inch Hemi. Cudas were only fitted with this engine in 1970 and 1971. Though
Hemi Cudas are extremely rare themselves, the rarest are the convertible
models. There were only 21 convertible Hemi Cudas produced. This was
because the Hemi engine upgrade cost $871. Most people went with a 440+6 cubic
inch model because it was only $250 more than the base model.
7. 1967 Plymouth R023 GTX Only 55 Produced — Cost $225,000
Plymouth’s GTX was
always overshadowed by the much more popular Roadrunner and more powerful Barracuda
lines. Because they were not as popular, GTXs are rarer than most other
Plymouth lines. However, the most sought after of the GTXs are the 55 R023
models. The GTX R023 was designed for racing. Plymouth did away with the GTX’s
hubcaps, radio, heater, body insulations and carpet in order to save as much
weight as possible. The R023 was over 500 pounds lighter than a regular GTX
even after it was fitted with a 426 cubic inch Hemi engine. The car also was
designed with larger hood scoops in order to increase airflow to the massive
engine block. It was capable of doing 0 to 60 in 4.8 seconds. That is quite a
feat for 1967.
8. 1967 Ford Fairlane 500 R-Code Only 57 Produced — Cost $100,000
The Ford Fairlane was
introduced in 1955 and was Ford’s full-size car model until 1962. In 1962, Ford
redesigned the Fairlane in order to compete with the growing muscle car market.
It became Ford’s original muscle car design and became the basis for Ford’s
Torino and Cobra lines. The 500 was the upgraded racing package available for
the Fairlanes. In 1967 Ford offered the 500 R-Code. The name is derived from
the “R” which was put into the VIN number. The letter signified that the car
had been fitted with dual quad carburetors. The upgraded carburetors allowed
the Fairlane 500 to achieve up to 425 horsepower. Only 57 Fairlane 500’s
R-Codes were made.
9. 1969 Chevrolet Camaro ZL-1 Only 69 Produced — Cost $319,000
Chevrolet released 69
Camaro ZL-1’s as an upgrade package available only on the 1969 Camaro. The ZL-1
engine was the L88 engine made entirely of aluminum as opposed to sheet metal.
The factory stated it was capable of producing about 430 horsepower, but it
really could produce up to 560. The ZL-1 engine is considered a much better
design than the L88 it was modeled after. Because it was made of aluminum, it
only weighed 500 pounds. It actually weighs just as much as a 327 cubic inch
Chevy small block engine. The first 20 produced were immediately put on
professional drag racing strips. The rest were sent to the public with a price
tag of $7,200. The high price tag drove away consumers. Twelve of them actually
got sent back to Chevy and refitted with a smaller engine so they would be able
to sell.
10. 1970 Plymouth Hemi Superbird Only 135 Produced — Cost $500,000
The Superbird was a
highly modified version of Plymouth’s already highly successful Roadrunner
line. The car was designed for racing purposes. It was a follow up to
Plymouth’s parent company Dodge’s Charger Daytona. The Superbird was fitted
with a 426 cubic inch Hemi engine and many MOPAR high performance parts. The
cars have become famous for their high mounted, wing-like spoiler and its horn
which copied the sound from the Looney Tunes’ Roadrunner character. The
Superbirds were only made in 1970 and Plymouth only produced 135 of them.
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