A chrome loop bumper
A large chrome bumper wraps around the grille, which is no longer divided in the middle.236
Class of '70 · Dodge Charger · 1970 body · second generation
1970Dodge Charger
The last of the second generation: a chrome loop bumper, High Impact colors, the 440 Six Pack, and falling sales.
The year in brief
The sources disagree on 1970 production. Over-Drive's table prints 39,431 Chargers and Charger 500s and, in the R/T row, 10,337 R/Ts, which Consumer Guide also gives; together that is 49,768, our sum. The same table prints 18,400 as the R/T production total, and its grand total adds up only with that figure (our arithmetic). Wikipedia gives 46,576 and Hagerty 46,315.1235sources disagree
Sales fell as the new Challenger drew buyers away and insurance rates rose.235
The line-up was the Charger, the Charger 500, now a trim level between the base car and the R/T, and the R/T. The SE could be ordered on the 500 and the R/T.3567
The story of the year
High Impact colors and the Six Pack
For 1970 Dodge offered the Charger in High Impact colors, with names like Plum Crazy, Go-Mango, Top Banana and Panther Pink, shared with the new Challenger.235
A new engine joined the list: the 440 Six Pack, with three two-barrel carburetors and 390 hp. Among the 1968–70 Chargers it was offered only for 1970; Wikipedia adds that 1971 was its last model year, with a handful built for 1972.235
On the track the 1970 Charger won ten NASCAR races, more than any other car, and Bobby Isaac took the Grand National championship.3one source
How to spot a 1970
What tells it apart from a 1969.
Production1235
49,768 cars, by body.
Every trim line
| Body | Trim | Built |
|---|---|---|
| Hardtop | Charger and Charger 500 | 39,431 |
| R/T | 10,337 | |
| All hardtops | 49,768 | |
| Total | 49,768 | |
Rows from Over-Drive's table, which counts the base Charger and the Charger 500 together; Consumer Guide gives the same 10,337 R/Ts. The total of 49,768 is our sum of the two rows, not a figure any source prints. The same table also prints 18,400 as the R/T production total, and its grand total of 172,586 adds up only with 18,400 (our arithmetic). Wikipedia gives 46,576 and Hagerty 46,315. See the ruling.
Engines24568
7 engines. The letter is the engine code in the VIN.
The code is the engine letter in the VIN; the letters changed for 1970. Dodge's tables have two 440 four-barrel codes, T and U (high performance); none of our sources says which one the 440 Magnum carried, so both are given. The 383 Magnum came to the Charger only for 1971, according to Wikipedia.
Price when new17
Base retail prices in 1970 dollars, before options.
From Over-Drive's table, the only source we have for the 1970 prices. Dodge's 1970 catalog gives the Charger 500 a 318 V8, so Over-Drive's six-cylinder 500 row is doubtful.
Colors7one source
18 factory colors. 17 of the 18 color names are confirmed by a second source3567; the swatches are approximate screen colors, not paint matches.
Plum CrazyC7
Light GreenF4
SublimeJ5
Dark GreenF8
Go-MangoK2
Dark Burnt OrangeK5
Hemi OrangeV2
BeigeL1
Banana (Top Banana)Y1
Dark TanT6
Light BlueB3
WhiteW1
Bright BlueB5
BlackX9
Dark BlueB7
CreamY3
Bright RedE5
Light GoldY4
No source we have gives the number of cars per color, so the counts are left empty. The 18 colors are those in Dodge's 1970 Charger catalog, which marks Plum Crazy, Sublime, Go-Mango, Hemi Orange and Banana as extra cost and prints the codes with a letter in front (FC7 for Plum Crazy); the two-character codes are Over-Drive's. The catalog calls Top Banana «Banana» and Over-Drive «Bright Yellow». Panther Pink (M3 in Over-Drive's list) is not in the catalog and so is not listed here, although Wikipedia and Hagerty both name it for the 1970 Charger.
Reading the VIN459
A 1970 VIN has 13 characters. Type one in, and the decoder reads it against the code tables on this page.
XS29V0B100001459 · An example built from the code tables on this page, not a real car's VIN: R/T, 440 Six Pack, 1970, Hamtramck, unit 100001. None of our sources prints a real Charger VIN.
The code table
| Position | Meaning |
|---|---|
| X | Car line: Dodge Charger |
| H · P · S | Price class: Charger · Charger 500 · Charger R/T |
| 29 | Body: 2-door sports hardtop |
| C · G · L · N · R · T · U · V | Engine (see the engine table) |
| 0 | Model year (1970) |
| A · B · C · D · E · F · G · R · H | Assembly plant (Dodge's code table) |
| 100001 → | Sequential unit number at each plant |
Where to find it: On a plate on the left top of the dash, visible through the windshield.459
Questions about the 1970
How many 1970 Dodge Chargers were made?
49,768 by the count we use: 49,768 hardtops. The sources disagree on the total; the ruling on this page explains which figure we show and why.1235sources disagree
How can you tell a 1970 Charger from a 1969?
Four signs, each explained under «How to spot» on this page: a chrome loop bumper; scoops on the R/T's doors; a new tail-lamp panel; new High Impact colors.23567
What engines did the 1970 Dodge Charger have?
Seven engines, from the 225 cu in slant six to the 426 cu in Hemi V8. The engine table on this page gives every code and rating, and the rulings cover the disputed ones.24568
How much did a 1970 Dodge Charger cost new?
Base retail prices, before options: Charger, six-cylinder $3,001; Charger, V8 $3,108; Charger 500, six-cylinder $3,139; Charger 500, V8 $3,246; R/T $3,711.17
What colors did the 1970 Dodge Charger come in?
Dodge Division, Chrysler Corporation lists 18 factory colors.7one source
Where the sources disagree
Every conflict we found for 1970, and how we settled it. All rulings.
Open
1970 Charger production
Our ruling: Unresolved. We show Over-Drive's two rows, because Consumer Guide gives the same 10,337 R/Ts; their sum, 49,768, is our calculation, not a printed figure. But the same table prints 18,400 as the R/T production total, and its grand total of 172,586 adds up only with that figure. Wikipedia's 46,576 and Hagerty's 46,315 have no citation and differ from each other.
What each source says (5)
- 39,431 Chargers and Charger 500s together and 10,337 R/Ts (the two rows add to 49,768)1one source
- R/T: 10,3372one source
- 46,5763one source
- 46,3155one source
- «Charger R/T Production Total ║ 18,400» and «Total Mid-Size Production ║ 172,586» in the same table; the grand total adds up only with 18,400 (our arithmetic: with 10,337 it would be 164,523)1one source
Open
How many 1970 R/Ts had the Hemi
Our ruling: Unresolved. Consumer Guide's specification box says 112 Hemi R/Ts, but its text says the Six Pack had 116 orders and outsold the Hemi more than two to one, which would leave fewer than 60 Hemis. We show 112 and no Six Pack figure.
What each source says (2)
- «Number built: 112»2one source
- «With 116 orders, the new Six Pack outsold the Hemi by more than two to one»2one source
Open
Was there a 1970 Daytona?
Our ruling: Unresolved. Wikipedia says the Daytona was dropped for 1970; Over-Drive counts two or three 1970 cars, without a source or a VIN, in a passage that repeats its 1969 text. Both are single sources. We show the Daytona as a 1969 model.
What each source says (2)
- The Daytona was discontinued for 1970, leaving the Plymouth Superbird as Chrysler's only winged car3one source
- «There were only 2 or 3 1970 Charger Daytona models built»6one source
Open
The length of the 1970 Charger
Our ruling: Unresolved: 207.9 or 208.0 inches, and Hagerty's inch longer would make 209.0 against the 1969 catalog's 208.0. We do not have the 1970 catalog's dimensions.
What each source says (3)
- 207.9 inches3one source
- 208.0 inches6one source
- One inch longer than the 1969 thanks to the new bumper5one source
Open
When the sunroof became an option
Our ruling: Unresolved. Wikipedia's 1969 sunroof and its 260 cars have no citation; Consumer Guide calls the 1970 electric sunroof a first, and the 1970 catalog lists it. We do not use the 260.
What each source says (3)
- 1969: «A sunroof was added to the options list, but was ordered on only 260 Chargers»3one source
- 1970: «for the first time, Charger could be optioned with an electric sliding sunroof»2one source
- An electrically operated sliding sunroof in the 1970 option list7one source
Settled
Letters or digits for the plant in a 1968–69 VIN
Our ruling: Letters. The Plymouth Owners Club registry gives letters for 1968–69 and Hagerty calls the seventh character a letter; only one guide gives digits. The same guide gives T for Windsor in 1970, where two others give R.
What each source says (3)
- Letters from 1968: A Lynch Road, B Hamtramck … R Windsor10one source
- «the seventh letter designates the plant»5one source
- Digits 1–9 for 1967–69, as in 19668one source
Sources
- Dodge Mid-Size Production, 1966–1970 (five tables) Over-Drive Magazine · read 2026-10-11
- 1968 Dodge Charger R/T Hemi · 1970 Dodge Charger R/T Hemi · 1969 Dodge Charger HowStuffWorks (Consumer Guide Automotive) · read 2026-10-11
- Dodge Charger (1966) Wikipedia · read 2026-10-11
- 1970 Dodge Vehicle Identification Numbers The Plymouth Owners Club Registry (tpocr.com) · read 2026-10-11
- 1968–70 Dodge Charger buyer's guide Hagerty · read 2026-10-11
- 1970 Dodge Mid-Size Cars Fact Sheet Over-Drive Magazine · read 2026-10-11
- 1970 Dodge Charger sales catalog Dodge Division, Chrysler Corporation · read 2026-10-11
- Dodge VIN Decoder 1966-2002 Rubber The Right Way · read 2026-10-11
- Mopar VIN Decoding StockMopar · read 2026-10-11
- 1968-69 Dodge Vehicle Identification Numbers The Plymouth Owners Club Registry (tpocr.com) · read 2026-10-11
Keep going
Three more years.
1967Dodge ChargerThe fastback's second and last year: turn signals on the fenders, a vinyl roof, the 440 Magnum, and only 15,788 built.15,788 built
1968Dodge ChargerAn all-new coke-bottle Charger with a flying-buttress roof, the first R/T, and sales of about 96,100.96,100 built (disputed)1969Dodge ChargerA divided grille, new tail lamps and the SE, plus two cars built for NASCAR: the Charger 500 and the winged Daytona.89,199 builtSee the whole second generation.
Dimensions, production year by year and every ruling, 1968–1970.