The VIN plate indicated run-of-the-mill: Plymouth (R), medium price class (M), two-door hardtop (23), 383 4bbl HP (H) low-block B-engine, 1969 model year (9), and built in St. Louis (G). | 
It wasn't long before the work would begin. The car was stripped of all trim by Muscle Car Restorations' craftsmen. | 
Inside, the evidence of a hard former life began to show its ugly face. With the speedometer permanently holding nearly 50 miles an hour and a huge patch panel in the driver's side floorboard, our $4,300 bargain was starting to show its hand. But that wouldn't be a problem as we turned to Neil Freeman of Freeman Auto in Whitehall, Montana. Neil has one of the largest inventories of rust-free sheetmetal in the country which we have already tapped into. |
The dash assembly easily pulls out for a bench-top restoration. With the dash out of the way, the plenum box follows suit. | 
What one gets with a Muscle Car Restorations project is not only great craftsmanship and show-winning results, but also some of the coolest organizers we've ever seen. With a couple of these rolling shelves, an entire Mopar can be disassembled and catalogued. | 
We're fairly certain that John holds stock in Ziploc(TM) Storage Bags. The bags with the silk-screened white area make it a snap to identify the parts inside. |
The #10 paint cans filled with fasteners and small zinc-plated components are readied for their trip for zinc plating. | 
The 440 residing in the engine compartment was certainly not the original and probably barely worth the core. | 
The big-block K-member appears here, fully intact and ready for another engine. |
While a stock drum brake system made up the halting power of the one-time 383 Roadrunner, upgrades are planned--even necessary--to halt the Indy Cylinder Head-built 542ci found in our 'Runner. | 
The four speed that originally came seemed righteous enough, but we'll step up to a Hemi 4-speed to handle the torque of the 542. | 
Fully dismantled, the Roadrunner was readied for transport to DeWayne Krumenauer and Randy Goettl's Progressive Stripping in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. |
This closer look shows that the cowl is in great shape, despite the fact that this is a common rust area. | 
Around the rear window, rust was atypical. | |