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The ConvertiBee Page
Owner: Frank Mallory of Yucaipa CA
Thanks for stopping by to check out my One-Of-None 1970 Dodge SuperBee convertible! Ma Mopar did'nt actually produce any SuperBee 'verts, but they DID make Coronet convetibles and equipped some of them with 383 engines, 727 trannies, and 8-3/4" rear ends... just the way Super Bee's came! That's the way my car came from the factory, as one of only 214 Big-block 1970 Coronet 'Verts. This figure does not include Coronet R/T convertibles.
In 1989 the previous owner of my car did the cosmetic transformation, adding the SuperBee hood and the graphics package. At that time, a color change was done as well, changing the car from its F4 Limelight Green with F8 Green interior to the Alpine White with Red interior you see today.
The 20-year-old paint job has held up virtually as-new. This is due to the high quality of the original work, and the fact that this Mopar has always been garaged since new. The car was completely disassembled, engine removed, and all of the interior removed before it was prepped and painted. Incredibly (especially for a convertible), the floors, quarters, and trunk pan are all original metal and have never been replaced. This is what happens when a car is born in Vegas and then retires to sunny Southern California. The doors close with an easy "click", the top does'nt rattle, everything works like it's supposed to, etc... all in all, it's entirely bizarre. I've owned over 50 vintage Mopars in my lifetime, and never met one like this!
So, she was a nice solid car when I got her five years ago, and looked even better after I wetsanded, buffed, and waxed the paint. There were some things missing though, most notably the muscle to back up her good looks. For starters, the engine, although original, was a Low-Performance greaseball...
What you're looking at is basically a stock 383 2Bbl motor with A/C, points ignition, Lo-Po exhaust manifolds, etc... this was how I received it. Not exactly an inspirational looking powerhouse, especially when combined with the lethargic 2.94 geared single-legger rear. That was all going to change. I GOTTA have me some tire smokin' power!
The 1st thing to go was the air conditioning. Yeah, I know a bunch of you guys are shaking your head at your computer right now, but I just HAD to get that 75LB ugly lump of power-robbing crap off of my motor. Ever take a close look at an A/C crank pulley? It's 4 grooves wide, and if you look closely you will see that it's actually TWO 2-groove pulleys welded together. Can you say "Heavy rotating mass?"
Now that the engine bay was cleaned up a bit (I took the heater hoses out too!), I spent a couple of days just cleaning and prepping the engine for its new Hemi Orange paint. Then we added stuff. Stuff like a polished Edelbrock Performer RPM intake manifold, complimented with an Eddie "Thunder Series" 650 AVS carb. (GREAT freakin' carb BTW!) Next I added the MP Orange Box electronic ignition kit, Mallory coil, and Moroso plug wires. While I was absorbed in the engine bay i also added chrome Mopar valve covers, a PowerMaster alternator, chrome Holley fuel pump, fuel line gauge, and a K&N air filter to suck it all in through the now-opened hood scoops.
Now that it's fueled and fired properly, I turned my attention to the exhaust. The exhaust sucked, and not in a good way! Stock log manifolds got replaced with the Hi-Po manifolds off a 440 GTX. The 2" single exhaust pipes got chucked and replaced with a 2.5" X-pipe system using Summit polished stainless mufflers, Magnaflow resonators, and 2.5" stainless tips.
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