Car Of The Week: 1970 Dodge Coronet 440 Station Wagon

Within the MoPar community, Richard Myers is known for collecting rare, unrestored automobiles. Motivated by the loss of a close friend, he established the Manny Collection, located in Ontario, Canada.

In 2011, he bought this unrestored 1970 Dodge Coronet 440 station wagon that still wears its original dark green paint, tan vinyl interior, matching-numbers 318-cid V-8 and factory air conditioning. The car was originally purchased by the seller’s mother in Anniston, Ala., and had been stored on blocks for years before Myers acquired it.

Myers particularly enjoys the hunt in locating rare, unrestored Mopars, and the original 1970 Dodge Coronet 440 station wagon perfectly matched his interests. He described it as “price friendly” for being so authentic, original and rare. 

The station wagon is one of 15,066 midsize (Chrysler Corp. B-body) Coronet station wagons built for the 1970 model year, of which 7,736 were Coronet 440 station wagons. Even fewer station wagons in the top Coronet 500 trim level were built (3,436) and the base Coronet Deluxe trim level (3,694). Dodge’s 1970 Coronet station wagons would have competed against General Motors’ midsize (A-body) station wagons, such as the Chevelle, which sold 40,600 station wagons of all lines in 1970, and the Pontiac LeMans wagons, which sold about 4,000 fewer midsize wagons than Dodge in 1970.

Crowning Dodge’s midsize line

No matter how you slice it, the Dodge Coronet wagon is a rare station wagon. Like its competitors in the midsize field, the 1970 Coronet wagon shared its styling and foundation with its more popular muscle car counterparts — in this case, the Coronet R/T and Super Bee. As such, a Coronet station wagon could house a muscular V-8 engine up to a 330-hp, four-barrel 383-cid V-8 that provided just 5 hp shy of the standard engine of the Super Bee. However, most Coronet station wagons were likely equipped with the 318-cid V-8 found in Myers’ car or the two-barrel 383-cid V-8. Some Coronet station wagons were also equipped with the 225-cid Slant Six engine. They would have had their work cut out for them hauling even a base-equipped, 3,585-lb. Coronet Deluxe station wagon. 

A three-speed manual was the standard transmission in Slant Six- and 318-powered Coronet station wagons, but the TorqueFlite automatic was optional behind these two powerplants. Meanwhile, TorqueFlite was a required option on the two-barrel 383-cid V-8 in a Coronet station wagon, and optionally available on all other engines, including the four-barrel 383-cid V-8, which was the sole Coronet station wagon powerplant that could be otherwise optioned with a floor-shifted four-speed manual transmission.

Dimensions for the 1970 Coronet station wagons were a wheelbase of 117 inches, an overall length of 211.7 inches, a width of 76.7 inches and a height of 56.4 inches. In three-seat station wagons, the rearmost passengers had the least amount of headroom at 35 inches., which probably didn’t bother the children likely sequestered to the far-back position. Front-seat and second-row passengers had similar headroom, with 39.4 and 39.3 inches, respectively.

Spanning seven generations, the Dodge Coronet was introduced in 1949 as Dodge’s top model and later fell to being the base model between 1955 and 1959. The nameplate returned from 1965 to 1976 for Dodge’s midsize line, which came to include the performance-oriented R/T in 1967 and the Super Bee in 1968, both of which featured big-block V-8 engines as base equipment and even the 426-cid Hemi V-8 as optional.

Upon its reintroduction in 1965, the Coronet became an intermediate-sized B-body model with a 117-inch wheelbase. It was Dodge’s best-selling vehicle with over 209,000 sales in its initial year. For its second year upon returning, the 1966 Coronet got all new styling that would carry it through 1967. Both were well-received and continued to produce more than 200,000 sales each year.

In 1968, the Coronet — along with the Plymouth Belvedere and Dodge Charger with which the Coronet shared a chassis — was re-engineered with more Coke bottle-shaped body styling. Front and rear Coronet designs became more aggressive. Little changed from 1968 to 1969, but for 1970, the Coronet receiving a modest update that included a new delta-shaped taillamp design, plus a major front-end facelift that placed each pair of headlamps within their own chrome bumper loop that also incorporated half of the grille. The loops were split by a tag from the front tip of the hood, much like on an Oldsmobile Cutlass. Although the 1968 and 1969 Coronet body design was aggressive, the new 1970 grille-and-bumper design upped the attitude to a new level. Also as before, the base, Deluxe, 440, 500, R/T and Super Bee Coronets shared the same design, so even the mundane Coronet taxicab sedans had the sinister new look for 1970.

Base Coronet Deluxe body types for 1970 included the two-door coupe and hardtop; four-door sedan; and six-passenger (two-seat) station wagon. The Super Bee was in the Coronet Deluxe series and was available in a two-door coupe or hardtop configuration. The Coronet 440 lineup included a four-door sedan; two-door hardtop and coupe; and six- and nine-passenger (two- and three-seat) station wagons. The Coronet 500 line didn’t offer a two-door sedan, but did include the two-door hardtop; four-door sedan; six- and eight-passenger station wagons; and added a convertible. 

In addition to the federally mandated safety equipment, Coronet Deluxe models featured an all-vinyl bench seat interior; color-keyed floor mats; heater and defroster; cigarette lighter; 14-inch black sidewall tires; 19-gallon fuel tank; and self-adjusting drum brakes. The Coronet 500 had an upgraded all-vinyl interior; carpeting; sport steering wheel; 318-cid V-8; and more than 20 safety enhancements. The Coronet 500 station wagon had unique woodgrain decorations on the station wagon’s body sides and tailgate. Among the notable optional features on all Coronets were front disc brakes; three-speed windshield wipers; tinted glass; cruise control; radio; power steering; power windows; air conditioning; and High Impact paint colors in Plum Crazy, Sublime, Banana, Go-Mango or Hemi Orange. Options specific to station wagons were a luggage rack, power tailgate window (standard on three-seat wagons); tailgate window wiper with washer; and rear compartment lock. 

Coronet station wagons also featured two-way tailgates that could be dropped flat as on a pickup bed, or swung open from the side as on a standard passenger door. When built as a three-seat model, the Coronet’s third seat faced rearward.

The optional choices available on the 1970 Coronet station wagon exemplified Dodge’s commitment to offering practicality, with spacious interiors, substantial fuel capacity and advanced safety features. They provided a truly memorable ownership experience by offering hot looks and strong acceleration. Whether a family was looking for strength, comfort, dependability or style, Dodge delivered. If they were looking for all this plus a flashy look and enhanced driving experience, Dodge would add icing to the cake.

Putting the ‘fun’ in ‘functionality’

Today, the Dodge Coronet is primarily recognized for its high-performance R/T and Super Bee models, which have become significant icons in MoPar and American muscle car history. Yet, the Coronet 440 station wagon, seldom found in unrestored condition — or any condition, for that matter — is likely to draw just as much attention for its rarity, thanks to the growing interest in station wagons. Many people realize the Coronet station wagon is the people-hauling version of their favorite tire-roasting muscle cars, which only fuels their growing appeal. Partly due to the Coronet station wagon’s scarcity, and partly due to its good looks and functionality, they’re no longer seen as parts cars for R/T and Super Bee variants, as they were in the past. Now, they’re seen as worthy collector vehicles that deserve to be restored.

In the time since Richard Myers’ 1970 Coronet station wagon was photographed for Old Cars, it was sold. The new owner is Piero Lucrezi, a MoPar wagon collector from northern Ohio who also shares a passion for these vehicles, so it’s gone to a good home. It turns out there’s another rare MoPar in the Manny Collection that Myers is highlighting. 

“We’re planning to use funds from selling the ’70 Coronet wagon to make key upgrades to a unique Plymouth Road Runner we recently acquired. Stay tuned for more updates on this project!”

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