1970 Plymouth ’Cuda Rapid Transit System Sells for 2.2 Million Dollars at Mecum Auctions!

When it comes to selling something, a good backstory can really add to the price of an item. This applies to anything from a watch worn by a famous actor to a cheeseburger wrapper left over from some pop star’s lunch. It also applies to cars—the right backstory (or provenance, if you’re rolling with the wine-and-cheese crowd) can add a lot of decimal places to what any piece of classic muscle can cost to have as your very own. A classic sports car might set you back a bundle, but if it was piloted by Steve McQueen, that price is going to be a lot higher. Get the idea? Well, at the 2023 Mecum show in Indy that rule was in full effect, as cars with cool stories attached fetched record sale-prices. In this case, this 1970 Rapid Transit System Cuda fetched $2,200,000 bucks once all the fees were added in!

The Rapid Transit System team consisted of four custom cars built as a traveling promotion for Mopar muscle, and to get this ‘Cuda’s look right they enlisted Harry Bradley. Bradley was a designer for GM, and also as the original designer at Hot Wheels, so he knew about wild car ideas. Custom-car builders were given various Mopars to work over for the program, and the Rapid Transit 1970 ‘Cuda seen here was given to 1968 Ridler award-winning builder Chuck Miller at Styline Custom in Detroit. When done, the cars traveled the country showing off the brand to future buyers. If you want to find out more about Miller and the RTS cars, click here to check out the full story!

This 1970 Rapid Transit System Plymouth ‘Cuda was built by Chuck Miller, who was actually on hand at the event! Three of the four cars had been found and saved, but this one sat in storage for around a half-century, lost to the public. We think it’s the coolest-looking of the four builds, and most likely it’s “lost-treasure” status added to the bidding war that broke out at the 2023 Indy Mecum show. When the dust settled, the time-frozen, unrestored Mopar gaveled for over 2 million bucks, and once the auction fees were added, the new buyer paid $2.2 million for this piece of Plymouth and automotive history. Other cars, like the legendary Black Ghost, sold for big money as well—as we said, the right backstory can really increase a car’s value.

On episode 40 of Roadkill, the Crop Duster is introduced as a new project car! It’s a 1970 Plymouth Duster that David Freiburger forgot he owned—a result of multiple trades with a buddy, and at least five years of neglect in the dirt of a grape farm. Once he was reminded of the car—and with a 440 Mopar big-block sitting on the shop floor (salvaged from the General Mayhem 1968 Charger)—it was evident what needed to happen. Freiburger and Mike Finnegan dragged the Duster out of its moss-covered indignity and attempted to get the 440 in the car and running, driving, and doing smoky burnouts within five days. Want to see more? Sign up for a free trial to MotorTrend+ today and start watching every episode of Roadkill!