5 Rare Dodge Muscle Cars Every Collector Wants

At the very beginning, Dodge focused on making reliable, robust vehicles that would serve as all-purpose vehicles for the growing American market. The 1930s saw Dodge introduce independent front suspension and an L-head eight-cylinder engine while the 1940s were mostly characterized by war production. Before, Dodge was "just" a family car brand, but when the 1960s rolled around, Dodge found its muscle car mark.

Models like the Charger, Challenger, and Coronet defined the brand. However, in recent years, Dodge has taken a different route focusing more on EVs, moving away from its muscle car heritage. Additionally, Dodge discontinued most of the models that defined that very heritage. Are classic muscle cars going out of style? Not really.

It's actually the opposite — old muscle cars are only getting rarer and more valuable. Although there are many special Dodge muscle cars, some are more special than others. Whether it is rarity, the price, pop culture, or sheer power, choosing the most special of them all is difficult. Still, here are five rare Dodge muscle cars every collector wants.

If you know anything about Dodge and its enthusiasts, you know the 1969 Charger Daytona ranks among the top Holy Grail models. With only 503 examples ever made, the legendary big-wing big-nose Charger was initially built for NASCAR, but was subsequently banned for being too fast. The '69 Daytona is our number one for the top five best Dodge Chargers ever made, primarily because it's rare, race-designed, powerful, and looks the part.

The 1969 Daytona also managed to reach 200mph back in 1970, the first to ever do it. Out of just 503 examples, only 70 were HEMI models, while only 22 were manual. Its status is undeniable judging by how much one of these sold for in 2022 — $1.32 million. However, two years later, USA Today reported on a manual HEMI 1969 Daytona breaking an even crazier record — it sold for $3.3 million. Non-HEMI models (440 Magnum) are less expensive, but even these can fetch $130,000 to $330,000, and are highly collectible.

Although it was designed by Chrysler's missile division and was bred by NASCAR, the initial years for the Daytona were not glamorous. They actually sat on dealership lots waiting to be sold. NASCAR rules back in the day mandated that if a manufacturer wanted to take part, they had to sell at least 500 road-going examples of their race car versions. The Daytona sold very poorly, but now, more than 50 years later, it's selling for as much as a LaFerrari.

In 1967, only three HEMI Coronet R/Ts were built, in 1968, it was two. The 1969 Dodge Coronet R/T HEMI spawned only 107 examples equipped with the legendary 426 HEMI engine. Even rarer are the automatic models, of which only 39 were hardtops. It was a 1969 HEMI R/T that set the record as the most expensive Coronet ever sold — $687,500. The Coronet was a true trailblazer in the Dodge lineup, pioneering many of the brand's performance milestones that defined cars that came after it.

It was among the first cars to feature the 426 7.0-liter HEMI engine, the first Dodge to wear the R/T badge, and it served as the platform that eventually led to the Charger, helping shape the golden era of muscle cars. According to Ultimate Muscle Car, for 1969, just 1.48% of all Coronet R/T cars produced were equipped with a HEMI engine. Today, it remains one of the most desirable and collectible Dodge muscle cars, making it one of the best classic Dodge vehicles to consider for your next restomod project, if you manage to find one.

Even though the 1969 Dodge Charger Daytona is credited by many as the most important vehicle from the "aero wars" era, without the 1969 Charger 500 HEMI, there wouldn't be any Daytonas. This was the first serious aerodynamic experiment Dodge did for NASCAR and is the predecessor of the iconic Daytona. A flush-mounted grille, recessed lights, and even a modified roofline, the Charger 500 saw Dodge trying to make street cars competitive on track.

In total, 392 coupe examples were ever built, and it is said that only 15 of them are equipped with the highly sought-after street HEMI engine and the A833 four-speed manual. This makes them so rare that even most Mopar fans have never seen one. If you hop on Classic.com and take a look at how valuable these are, you'll see that the most expensive examples are asking upwards of $300,000.

DodgeGarage reported that a 1969 Dodge Charger 500 equipped with a factory 426 HEMI engine and four-speed transmission just set a new benchmark at auction, selling for $357,500. With such low production numbers, great historical significance, and the connection to the Daytona, the Charger 500 earns its spot on this list.

The Dodge Challenger is also one of the most memorable Dodge models, and there are plenty of collectible Challengers out there. However, if sheer rarity, value, and historical significance are considered, the 1970 Dodge Challenger R/T convertible with the 426 HEMI likely tops them all. Rarity-wise, there are only 37 1970 426 Challengers in existence.

Value-wise, some examples of the 1970 426 sold for prices between $1.4 and $1.8 million. Lastly, from a historical point of view, the 1970 model year Challenger R/T was the very first Challenger model to ever come out. Arguably the most iconic 1970 Challenger R/T is the "Black Ghost" special edition. With only 23 examples produced and unique features like the factory triple-black décor, Gator Grain vinyl roof, and white stripes, it became a street racing legend in Detroit — something Dodge fans should know about the 1970 Challenger. 

When Car and Driver tested the 1970 HEMI Challenger R/T, they noted that the 426 HEMI under its hood was "the only real racing engine in all of Detroit that you can dial up from your corner dealer with relative ease," and it was precisely that accessibility that made the car so revered both then and now.

1968 Super Bees are not all that rare because there are 7,842 of them, but HEMI Super Bees are just 1.6% of all Super Bees — 125 examples. This makes the 426 Dodge Super Bee one of the most collectible Dodge muscle cars out there — one of the rarest HEMI-powered muscle cars ever built. To narrow down that number even further, only 93 automatic transmission models were ever offered. 

Understandably, this made the 1968 426 HEMI Super Bee highly collectible, with the highest recorded sale reaching $245,000 in 2024. 1969 models were a bit more common and also introduced iconic "Ramcharger" twin-scooped air induction hoods and the new 440 Six-Pack engine. The 1970 model is also very rare, with new options such as new seats, styling updates, and the iconic "bumblebee bee wings". 

According to an article by DodgeGarage, there are only four 1970 HEMI coupe Super Bees with the four-speed auto. The Super Bee was envisioned as Dodge's response to the Plymouth Road Runner, and these two muscle cars cannot be mentioned one without the other. However, unlike the Road Runner, the Super Bee was aimed as a more premium offering. Nowadays, it has become one of the most collectible Dodge muscle cars out there.