eBay Find Of The Day: A ’78 Dodge Diplomat Wagon 440 Six-Pack?

Probably the cleanest 33 year-old car we've seen in a while. The 28,850 miles might have something to do with that.. Image: eBay Motors.

Lately, we’ve had a sick fascination with ex-police cruisers, and with the late-model Crown Vic around every corner, we’ve decided to jump on eBay and search for something different, i.e. much older. Admittedly being inspired by the Blues Brothers, we went in search of a ’74 Monaco but turned up empty handed. So we instead decided to look for its younger brother; the Dodge Diplomat.

After kicking up some rocks, we still couldn’t find the ex-cop car we were looking for but came across this; a ’78 Diplomat wagon complete with woodgrain siding and burgundy leather interior. But this family hauler packs a secret…and punch. Instead of being powered by a Slant-Six or a smogger 318, this thing shows up to soccer practice with 440 cubes of 1969 6-Pack muscle. Score!

How cool would it be to pull into your local cruis-in with everyone snickering at your ride... until you popped the hood to reveal this? Image: eBay Motors

Yup, the original owner swapped in an entire drivetrain from a ’69 Super Bee shortly after he had purchased it in 1978. It was even featured in the February ’91 issue of Mopar Magazine.

Up to now, the car had only traveled a total of 28,850 miles, and is currently being sold by a dealer out of Conover, North Carolina.

It comes complete with power everything including power steering, A/C, tilt wheel, rear defogger and wiper, 4-wheel disc brakes (!), a set of polished American Racing Torque Thrust II wheels, full gauge package, and the obligatory roof rack.

We think with a few chassis and suspension upgrades, and this thing would be ready for the autocross course. We wouldn’t even mind using this thing for a daily driver in the summer. Sure beats a Honda Odyssey minivan.

Although the auction for this particular car has ended, there is contact information on the site. Strangely, nobody bid on the car at all. Maybe the opening bid of $17,500 (more than likely what the seller actually wants) kept potential buyers from bidding. Either that or not many people think of a ’78 Diplomat wagon as their first choice in a potential street machine. Which is exactly why you should!