1978 Chrysler Le Baron Slant Six powered. Would you buy or not?

[RichieDart]

I have the chance to buy a '78 Le Baron 25k orig miles Supposedly owned by a senior citizen. I would like to know the pros and cons of such a car. Has anyone ever owned one? Do they drive like "slugs" with the "Super Six" and all the power options parasitically pulling power from the engine? Looks like a lot of vacuum lines under that hood. I know that late 70's Aspens and Volares were plagued with some issues and recalls. Just asking.

 

[toolmanmike]

I have the chance to buy a '78 Le Baron 25k orig miles Supposedly owned by a senior citizen. I would like to know the pros and cons of such a car. Has anyone ever owned one? Do they drive like "slugs" with the "Super Six" and all the power options parasitically pulling power from the engine? Looks like a lot of vacuum lines under that hood. I know that late 70's Aspens and Volares were plagued with some issues and recalls. Just asking.

Pics? 2 door or 4? I always like the 2 door Le Barons and the Dodge Diplomats.

 

[Kendog 170]

I just inherited my daughters 1994 Crysler LeBaron convertible. Her light switch was bad. Discontinued. Paid over $150. for a used one after weeks of searching. Other items are hard to find as well. No idea about a 78.

 

[Kendog 170]

Example
1977-1978 Chrysler LeBaron Right Passenger Side Parking Light Lamp 3881646 NOS | eBay

 

[slantsixdan]

These "M-body" cars are just gussied-up F-bodies (Aspen/Volaré). Yes, they are slugs; they are heavy cars, with tall rear axle ratios, and crude, power-sapping emission controls. The 2-barrel "Super Six" 225 is a bit less sluggish in them than the 1-barrel version.

Chrysler's quality control at that time was piss-poor. Most of the badly-built ones went away long ago, leaving only the relatively well-built survivors, but with 29k original miles, you don't know which kind you'd be getting.

Whether to buy it depends on the usual factors, plus what you want to do with it. Buying it as a fun hobby car is a whole different prospect than buying it as a daily driver.

 

[RichieDart]

BTW It's a 4 door. Looks like an overdressed Volare. Upon closer examination I could see some quality control issues. I will pass on this one. Thank You for the insight.

 

[318willrun]

BTW It's a 4 door. Looks like an overdressed Volare. Upon closer examination I could see some quality control issues. I will pass on this one. Thank You for the insight.

They can be a fun car to play with. Pretty easy to change/fix what you may not like about it.

 

[toolmanmike]

BTW It's a 4 door. Looks like an overdressed Volare. Upon closer examination I could see some quality control issues. I will pass on this one. Thank You for the insight.

You are getting just a driver then and I wouldn't pay much.

 

[RAT ROD AL]

My dad bought a new one back in 78. Had a Super Six in it. I rode to work with him for many years in it. Very nice and dependable. Not a hot rod , but it got the job done . He put over 300000 miles on it.

 

[340six]

They can be a fun car to play with. Pretty easy to change/fix what you may not like about it.

Not sure if a Saint Regis (M Body) counts. But the police had them here and had a 360 so guessed it was E58.
My buddy at the time did work on the cop cars. Needed a trans and other things so the depth let it go instead. He pulled the trans and was a great car. Fast for what it was. I was offered it, and I should have got it to keep miles off my E Body.
Be a fun car today and drove great on the interstate. My memory was had a mid 200 gear as was a state car ment for hwy use.
Had extra cooling and coolers. No lights. The ones you saw blacked out at night waiting for speeders on the I-10
Certified Speedo, light on A Pillar.
I am sure it could reel in a speeder with a E58 motor and 8 1/4 with 245 gears?

 

[318willrun]

Not sure if a Saint Regis (M Body) counts. But the police had them here and had a 360 so guessed it was E58.
My buddy at the time did work on the cop cars. Needed a trans and other things so the depth let it go instead. He pulled the trans and was a great car. Fast for what it was. I was offered it, and I should have got it to keep miles off my E Body.
Be a fun car today and drove great on the interstate. My memory was had a mid 200 gear as was a state car ment for hwy use.
Had extra cooling and coolers. No lights. The ones you saw blacked out at night waiting for speeders on the I-10
Certified Speedo, light on A Pillar.
I am sure it could reel in a speeder with a E58 motor and 8 1/4 with 245 gears?

Like @slantsixdan said.... they were plagued by 2.45 gears, a real tight stall, heavy cars with impact bumpers, and smog junk with odd spark control. Results were gutless cars but actually rode nice! But, again, in todays world all that fixes pretty easy. B-body 8.75 rear end and pick your gears, better converter, and dive under the hood and clean up the 17 miles of vacuum hose, normal ignition, and your off to the races! Especially if a guy puts it on a diet. You know, go to the gym and have 4 muscle men hold the front bumper while you unbolt it so you can cut a toyota corrolla worth of steel from behind it?? These cars can become fun!

 

[340six]

Most cars of that era sucked. The guy that lived across from.my dads home bought a brand new K car. Electricity was a nightmare. And slow, was at dealer countless times. He ended up trading it in. Got a car made in Japan. There is a reason Japan got such a foot hold in the marketplace. 2st was milage, and then quality.
a good friend (Bruce) got a 1981 Formula 301 auto. Black with 2 scoop hood. Slooooooow but was comfortable and looked great. It also had problems.
he traded it in on a Daytona Z it was a great car and faster than the Firebird 301 V8. He was shocked.
It was a bad era for cars

 

[318willrun]

I've personally owned several Volare/Aspen/Diplomat types of cars. I really think they are cool and have potential. I have a '79 Magnum now. Reminds me, my wife and I took a '77 Aspen R/T out to her folks in '94. It was about a 2000 mile round trip. I think it's a great way to get into a "classic mopar" without breaking a Hardees budget.

 

[slantsixdan]

Not sure if a Saint Regis (M Body) counts.

The St. Regis was an R-body, which was a gussied-up B-body.

But the police had them here and had a 360 so guessed it was E58.

Even with the cops-only 360, those R-bodies were so gutless that the CHP resorted to deleting the mufflers to try to make them even just a little less slow.