This 1971 Dodge Dart is a clean and tidy vehicle that still wears its original paint. There is only one very small spot of rust for the next owner to attend to, but it is what lies under the hood that makes this a pretty powerful piece of machinery. After spending what would have been a pretty significant amount of money on this car’s drivetrain, the owner has decided to part with his little slice of Mopar muscle. If you would like to own a car that is capable of generating some serious respect, then you will find the Dart located in Martin, Michigan, and listed for sale here on eBay. Bidding has reached a mere $3,550 on the Dart, and I’m not at all surprised that the reserve hasn’t been met.

The owner states that the Butterscotch paint that the Dart wears is original, while the same is said to be true of the vinyl top. If this is true, then both the paint and top seem to be in nice condition. The panels also look straight, with no significant dings or dents. The owner makes no mention of any rust issues with the Dart, and after looking through the photos, this spot just behind the rear wheel arch on the passenger side is the only spot that I’ve been able to…er, spot. The rest of the panels appear to be clean and solid, and there are no signs of any obvious bubbling under the vinyl. The trim and chrome all look to be in good condition, while there are no signs of any problems with the glass.

Now we get to the area of the Dart that could potentially command plenty of respect but has caused me a certain amount of confusion. It isn’t clear just what originally occupied the engine bay of this vehicle, but what we get now is a 383ci V8. Backing this is a 727 TorqueFlite transmission, while the rear end is an 8¾” Posi with 3.23 gears. The engine has been fully built, with all work performed by Kauffells, in Detroit, Michigan. I’ll be honest here, because this is a company that I’m not familiar with, and I haven’t had a lot of luck with an internet search. Maybe one of our readers can point me in the right direction on that one. Anyway, the engine features an MSD ignition and nitrous in its armory, which means that it should really get up and moving when the right foot is buried. Now, there is some bad news here, because the engine doesn’t currently run. Apparently, the MSD box failed last Summer, and this hasn’t been replaced. That surprises me a bit because given the fact that the engine is supposed to be one of the Dart’s strongest selling points, having it running would have been a priority in my books. The transmission is also said to work properly, but the fluid does go dark. I would probably want to investigate that as well.

The Dart’s interior is said to be original, and it appears to be in generally quite reasonable condition. The front seat has some splitting on the driver’s side, and I suspect that a new cover will be on the agenda. The dash and pad look like they are in good condition, while the same would appear to be true of the carpet. The rest of the interior trim is impossible to see, but the owner doesn’t identify any issues. Given what is hiding under the hood, I expected to see a reasonable cluster of gauges inside the Dart. There’s nothing obviously visible, but the car does score a tachometer mounted outside the car, on top of the cowl. One interior addition is what I believe to be a TCI shifter mounted on the floor. The original shifter is still on the column, but it obviously doesn’t do much anymore. I’d be inclined to remove that purely for appearance.

If this 1971 Dart was in running order, I suspect that the bidding would be a lot stronger than what it has been to this point. There’s no doubt that this is a car with plenty of potential, but it is also a car that leaves a lot of questions unanswered. Personally, I think that given the relative cost of a replacement MSD box, the owner is doing himself a real disservice and making his job a lot harder by not investing in one of those to get the Dart up and running again. What do you think?