It is all about Mopar - Enthusiasts meet in Melbourne
Jim Beekman of Cocoa has done a yeoman's job restoring a 1965 Dodge Dart GT he picked up a few years ago, rebuilding the engine and prettying up the white exterior. He'll soon replace the red leather interior in a gold motif.
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Source: It is all about Mopar - Enthusiasts meet in Melbourne
Quote from the article:
| "I wouldn't take anything less than $10,000 for it," the 68-year-old retired diesel mechanic said Saturday at the annual Mopars of Brevard Super Swap Meet in Wickham Park. Mopars of Brevard is a car club of Chrysler, Plymouth and Dodge enthusiasts. What Beekman and others at Saturday's event were sadly curious about is why the honchos who most recently ran Chrysler didn't have as much pride in their products as they do. If they did, maybe Chrysler and other Detroit auto makers wouldn't have gone through last year's financial upheaval that left the company broke and numerous dealers out of business. "I hate to see that happen," Beekman said, offering a small positive for what transpired. "I guess it will make this more valuable," he said, wiping a smudge off the Dart's passenger side panel. At Saturday's swap meet 281 classic cars were on display, as well as 51 vendors who buy, sell and trade hard-to-get parts. Many attendees gravitated toward the Plymouth Duster on display in Wickham Park's pavilion. The black, red and silver Duster, called the "Mopar Missile," was famous for winning 11 out of 14 major National Hot Rod Association events in 1973. People eyed the four-wheeled legend with a passionate intensity that some would reserve for romance. They took video and posed for photographs. But local Mopar member Derek Smith of Palm Bay had just as many superlatives for a 1971 Plymouth Barracuda parked in the swap meet's car corral, an area of cars for sale. The red convertible "Cuda" catching Smith's attention listed at $85,000. "The owner paid $110,000 for it three years ago," Smith said. "He was actually selling it before at market price, but the market fell out so he is going to take a loss. If I had an extra $85,000 I'd snap that up in a second." |
Source: It is all about Mopar - Enthusiasts meet in Melbourne
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Actually came across this story looking for Jim Beekman. I am an old friend, if this is the right Jim Beekman, from Circleville, Oh. I wouldn't expect to be many people with this name that was a diesel machanic and a mopar fanitic. If this is the same person, he use to own and race a Dodge Dart called Southern Yankee. I use to be his next door neighbor and would really like to see him again. It has probably been over 35 years. I would appreciate any information on how to contact him or have him contact me. My e-mail address is wallyja@gmail.com