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1973 Coronet "2 door"

No.

I'm not trying to offend anyone here but come on man, it's a 4 door sedan which (at least in my book) is probably the most pedestrian form of automotive transportation in existence. If car pooling, transporting prisoners or picking up fares is your thing that's OK but none of that is relevant in my world. 4 doors just do not speak to me on any level. Again, I can understand their appeal especially if it's a secondary toy but if I have to choose, I'm opting for a 2 door every time.

But also - where's the fun in taking things at face value? Hot rodding is all about putting your own stamp on something. Sometimes that works and sometimes it doesn't but if you don't try you'll never know if an idea has merit. Taking a car like a '70's 4 door sedan that no one (generally) cares about seems like the best possible scenario to try something like this.

I'm also not suggesting this idea should be taken to some extreme end by reshaping the car into something else. Turning a 4 door Coronet into a 2 door still leaves 95% of the car as-is so what's the big deal? I said I liked the grille, fenders and roofline so none of that would change. I'm not sure why the factory didn't offer a 2 door Coronet in '72 but they should have. That rendering I posted looks totally right to me and I believe it would be a good looking car.

Everyone knows the story about the end of the muscle car era - horsepower was down across the board in '72-'73 due to rising insurance premiums and the first gas crisis. Theoretically, if a 2 door Coronet idea would have made it into production in '72, it probably woudn't have been some high impact color Scat-Pack gee gaw machine but rather a Slant 6, 318/360/400 2 bbl with a ton of smog crap, column shifted automatic, 8 1/4" rear with highway gears, basic vinyl bench seat interior and little else. In other words, the perfect blank canvas for a subtle, street sweeper sleeper.

Like everyone I have specific tastes but I know my eye is good. I've studied these cars for my entire life and can articulate exactly why I like certain aspects of them and/or why I don't like other things. Do you only like your car because it's a 4 door or do you like it for other reasons?

Again, I do not own a Coronet 4 door nor do I have any intention of going out and buying one for the express purpose of turning it into a 2 door. If FMJ decides he wants to cut up Leroy Brown in the name of science, I'm a willing participant in that experiment. Until then, it's just an idea in my head.

I won't hold my breath but perhaps this thread will inspire someone to try this out some day. That one little picture I found certainly got my wheels turning, why wouldn't it do the same for someone else? Maybe that someone has a 4 door Coronet out in a field or parked in a shop corner taking up space. Rather than parting it out or junking it, why not make something cool and unique out of it? What's the worst that can happen, a couple left-for-dead Mopars are revived and enjoyed?
The key words here are: "Left for dead Mopars get revived"
It's true. these cars have been long gone and forgotten for the most part, that is why when one pops up, it's an event worthy of the 11 o'clock evening news.
Being that this is my daily driver and it pretty much runs like a top as it is, I'm gonna leave alone with the exception of the bulge hood later this summer and perhaps throwing in a BONE STOCK 4 barrel 360 by next Winter. I have a low mileage 44K '73 360 on an engine stand for years.
Now if I did not have my real deal '65 post sedan to fiddle with, I would definitely take RMCHRGR's lead and build a II door '73 Coronet sedan. What a undertaking and interesting project it would be. Oh, and let's not forget, it would be super lightweight too.
 
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That's it man, I'm breaking out the hacksaws, torches, welders and body hammers and going at it to make the worlds first lightweight 2 door '73 Coronet.
In all seriousness, I believe the '73 Coronet is a few inches shorter than a Charger of the same year thus being a few pounds lighter for a perfect street sweeping sleeper. The hood is definitely shorter since I've been planning to draft, graft and fab on a power bulge onto my stock hood. Either that or shorten a Charger power bulge hood and bolted it on. They definitely look muscular and tough.
This car gets lots of attention on the NYC streets. It came with a factory two tone Gold interior and a burnt gold exterior coat.

By the way, I happen to know just the guy to make the conversion if it were in the plans since he made a hardtop '68 Coronet into a post car better than the factory could ever do. His name is "The Palm Reader" and Rmchrgr knows him well.

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This car is stunning just the way it is, vinyl top included… please keep the look. Spice up on performance if you want, but the look (and conditions) is just perfect.
 
I love these oddball conversions, I have two. First is 69 Belvedere that is cut to two door sedan in 80's. It was never finished and sat in woods, I saved it from there few years ago.
Another one is in part collecting phase. I bought a 70 Coronet that had been imported from California for parts. I bought almost rust free rolling body and I have been thinking what to do with it. Now I am restoring a 68 Charger which gets most of new sheetmetal from AMD. Old rusty and bondoed outer sheetmetal found their new place from Coronet. 4d door 68 Charger it is!
 
This car is stunning just the way it is, vinyl top included… please keep the look. Spice up on performance if you want, but the look (and conditions) is just perfect.
NachoRT74. Trust me, I'm not cutting up this handsome car. I was kidding', but since I'm totally head over heels for my '65 Post, this car is sitting as is....................with the exception of a bulge hood. That being said, I'd like to take a poll vote on what you guys think of a non functioning bulge hood for this car and nothing else. I love the muscle swell of the bulge hood on the '71's-'74's.
NachoRT74, I believe besides you being an enthusiast and expert on these 3rd generation Chargers, Satellites, Sebrings, Coronets, I would think you would have a good word on the fashion statements of these cars. Bulge hood????? What say ye?
For the record, my favorite all time Chargers and Sats are the '71-'74 models. They look fast standing still. I think they were the baddest looking cars in Nascar racing back when every manufacturer had a podium.
 
well, I’d make a custom hood but over another one. I’d get an extra one to modify, not the actual one on car.

Maybe even being a black matte hood, something similar to an A12 car.
 
Honestly, I think a bulge hood would look out of place. The rest of the car is as plain-Jane as it gets. My vote is nay.

Perhaps a set of cop wheels would set it off a little. I like them in argent with trim rings and center caps or vented dog dish hubcaps. They get lost if they are black, might as well just stay with the steelies.

I saved this off the web many years ago, thought it was cool. I don't know who's car it is, I just found it in a search. Clean and mean in a sea of B5. Also gives you an idea of what it might look like without the vinyl top.
more door 71 Coronet.jpg


The more I look at it though, the more it reminds me of a '68-'69 Torino/Fairlane.The Ford is obviously a bit more 'sporty' but if you squint hard enough, you can see the similarities.
011122-1973-Dodge-Coronet-two-door-2d copy.jpeg

1969-Torino-Cobra-Hardtop-428-Super-Cobra-Jet.jpeg
 
Sorry, I can’t find similarities with that Phord LOL. MAYBE SOME OTHER, but not that one
 
Yeah, maybe it's a bit of a stretch at least going by the rendering. Perhaps an LTD from that time would be closer.

But the point is both have the Coke bottle shape molded into a sedan body. The front and rear overhangs are definitely similar in concept as well. Changing the angles of the tail panel/roofline/wheel openings are what differentiate the makes but if you strip those parts away, the Coke bottle shape is the common denominator as well as long hoods, laid back windshields and body lines that kick up before the C pillar.

Designs have to come from somewhere and the shapes of many 'mid-size' cars are common throughout the era. Just to cite a few examples, Charger/Coronet/Satellite/Biscayne/Belair/Torino/Fairlane all share the "Coke Bottle" shape.
 
Honestly, I think a bulge hood would look out of place. The rest of the car is as plain-Jane as it gets. My vote is nay.

Perhaps a set of cop wheels would set it off a little. I like them in argent with trim rings and center caps or vented dog dish hubcaps. They get lost if they are black, might as well just stay with the steelies.

I saved this off the web many years ago, thought it was cool. I don't know who's car it is, I just found it in a search. Clean and mean in a sea of B5. Also gives you an idea of what it might look like without the vinyl top.
View attachment 1639154

The more I look at it though, the more it reminds me of a '68-'69 Torino/Fairlane.The Ford is obviously a bit more 'sporty' but if you squint hard enough, you can see the similarities.
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By way of the OP and Nacho RT74, it seems the battle of the bulge is not getting the needed troop support.
Maybe you guys are right. I would argue one point though. If a bulge was installed, I would think that the vinyl top and side trim would have to go south in order to clean it up and bring out the sexiness in the cars shape. I keep everything, so I would not throw it away except for an old shredded vinyl top. LOL.
I was thinking at one time of going with the bias tires that they came with back then.... Uni-Royal... GoodYear.... Firestones?????? not sure what brand and tire level, but I surrendered to BF Goodridge's for what is presumed a cushier ride.
 
These cars look so cool in dark colors. That Cop car up top is stunning with its black nose and tail ends.
 
I wouldn’t say battle, but just posting my personal opinion/taste LOL.

However I’m not against that kind of mods, just that not preciselly on THAT one. Maybe some other needing job I’d agree more on Nascar wheels with yellow letter tires, blacked out hood with scoop (not really buldge hood, but any other performance finish and even better, operative), maybe on that same gold/bronze color… but not on THIS one, so pristine LOL.
 
I wouldn’t say battle, but just posting my personal opinion/taste LOL.

However I’m not against that kind of mods, just that not preciselly on THAT one. Maybe some other needing job I’d agree more on Nascar wheels with yellow letter tires, blacked out hood with scoop (not really buldge hood, but any other performance finish and even better, operative), maybe on that same gold/bronze color… but not on THIS one, so pristine LOL.
Word!
I'm leaving it as is. Its time capsule status probably is feeding on the fact that it is all stock.
 
It seems that wheel well bright trim is very hard to find for these cars. Mine had the rears when I purchased it, but not the fronts, so I removed the rears into storage.
 
Not to get too far off topic but I wanted to use this idea as another way of looking at 'the problem' with 4 door cars which is proportion. Chrysler muscle car era station wagons look 10x better than the 4 door sedans of the same time period because the proportions look 'more right' (better) than sedans. The extended roof line gives the illusion of a sleeker or at least more balanced look. That's not necessarily the fault of 4 door sedans on their own; if a buyer wants the utility of rear doors the tradeoff is a step down in the looks department. I don't think anyone can argue that point from an aesthetic viewpoint.

For me, what makes a 4 door sedan so unappealing is that the B pillar is in the wrong place. Unfortunately, it is an inherent design flaw and a hindrance to pleasing aesthetics with all 4 doors - it's not really feasible put the b pillar anywhere else while retaining rear-door functionality. You can tell on late model Chargers the designers tried to blend the b pillar in as best as they could by almost giving the illusion of it not being there at all.

Bottom line, getting rid of the rear door and moving the b pillar back changes the entire look of the car from entirely unpleasing to awesome.

While we're on the oddly compelling topic of 1973 Coronets, here's a video of one just for fun.

 
Couldn't disagree more, Dodge 4 doors in this time period are some of the best looking ever made. Do they look the same a the two door, of course not (but I like them). Do the wagons look better... in my opinion, no (though I like them too).

Looks are subjective, you're entitled to your opinion... but don't expect that you're "right" just because you have one.
 
Do they look the same a the two door, of course not (but I like them).
Sounds to me that you basically agree a 2 door is a better looking car than a 4 door. Or how about this - if you had to choose between the two, which would it be?

Regardless, I'm just trying to explain the reasoning behind my idea of why it might be worthwhile converting a 4 door car that never was into to a 2 door. Plus, I've actually said a few times already that the rest of the car is OK and that it's unfortunate that Chrysler never made a 2 door version of the Coronet past 1970 because it would have been a decent looking car. I will also say that a '73 Coronet 4 door is a better looking car than any '66-'70 Coronet 4 door by a long shot.

But the main point is that the B pillar in any 4 door is what makes it less aesthetically pleasing. There's really no way around that. 4 doors are essentially the opposite of aggressive styling because by nature they're practical. That's fine and good but for my money, I'm not interested.

I have a 2017 Ram 4 door and have always thought it looks ridiculous with the short bed. I would prefer a Durango since they are much better looking vehicles but it would be less practical for my needs. Or, if it made sense for me to have a 2 door truck I would have one. But, I have kids that do stuff like play baseball and I need the truck when I need it so I accept the aesthetic flaw in my daily driver, just not in my hot rods.
 
I would like to see someone build that Coronet coupe and make it look like it was built that way from the factory.
 
I love these oddball conversions, I have two. First is 69 Belvedere that is cut to two door sedan in 80's. It was never finished and sat in woods, I saved it from there few years ago.
Another one is in part collecting phase. I bought a 70 Coronet that had been imported from California for parts. I bought almost rust free rolling body and I have been thinking what to do with it. Now I am restoring a 68 Charger which gets most of new sheetmetal from AMD. Old rusty and bondoed outer sheetmetal found their new place from Coronet. 4d door 68 Charger it is!
4 door Charger it is!

Fake 70 (1).jpg
 
4 doors don't look like 2 doors because they're 4 doors. People that bought 4 doors didn't care about 2 doors because they needed a 4 door. Otherwise they would have bought a 2 door.

:)
 
4 doors don't look like 2 doors because they're 4 doors. People that bought 4 doors didn't care about 2 doors because they needed a 4 door. Otherwise they would have bought a 2 door.

:)
.....and the million dollar grand prize question is.................What's behind door number one?
 
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