Cars in the Wild

Oh, irony, how I love thee. While out hooning an ATV around Wisconsin cornfields with my cousin Jared, we stumbled across this fifth generation Dodge Coronet—produced between 1965 and 1970—abandoned in the woods, tire well deep in sand and dirt. Literally, a car in the wild. My first reaction upon seeing the Coronet was sadness—who would abandon such a vehicle to the relentless clutches of time and decay? My second thought was, “Could  there possibly be a more perfect candidate for a Cars in the Wild post?”

I’d like to think that this particular Coronet ended up fading peacefully into the Wisconsin landscape because its former owner would rather keep it than ship it out for scrap metal. It’s still a sad ending for such a classic car, but it certainly did make for an interesting find. As I’ve discussed before, I’m not a huge fan of older cars, but I do appreciate them and know that many paved the way for the current generation of machines that I deeply adore.

Back in the mid-60’s, you could have ordered your Dodge Coronet in range of different flavors. There was this four-door iteration, and it was also available as a two-door coupe and a station wagon. In 1968, Dodge completely overhauled the Coronet and also released the Coronet Super Bee as a compliment to the Plymouth Road Runner. The addition of the famous Super Bee name to the Coronet gave the car special visual upgrades, as well as a 390 horsepower 440 V-8, upgraded suspension, special wheels, and a fiberglass hood. In 1965 when the fifth generation was introduced, the Coronet became the best selling model in Dodge’s lineup, and the Coronet soldiered on until 1976 when it was renamed the Monaco.

But enough of that learning and factual nonsense, here’s a video of a Coronet Super Bee doing a burnout. That’s better.

I salute you, abandoned Dodge Coronet. May your journey to the great drag strip in the sky be filled with wide open roads, new paint and primer, and shiny memories of your glory days. And no mouse nests.