A 1970 Plymouth Satellite that sat for decades on a Washington farm has a running engine again. That should be good news for a car pulled from a long sleep, but its new owner has another problem. Mice made a home inside it, and the damage could be enough to send the sedan to the parts yard.
Tom of Rocket Restorations spotted the four-door Plymouth in photos from a farm auction in Mansfield, Washington. The sale listing couldn’t even settle on its year. First called a 1968 and then a 1969, the car turned out to be a 1970 model with about 72,000 miles showing on the odometer.
Getting it home took some help. Since the auction was more than four hours away, Tom asked his friend Steve to bid for him. Steve won it for what Tom called a reasonable price, leaving Tom to make the trip with both of his children.
The Satellite had been parked since 1990, according to Tom, yet its body looked far better than many cars left sitting for so long. Under the faded paint, he could see solid panels and parts worth keeping. Opening the doors, though, told a very different story.
A Rough Welcome
One tire wouldn’t hold air at the auction, so Tom fitted the spare before loading the Plymouth. He also found that someone had damaged its once-good bumper by pulling on it. Those setbacks were small beside the smell coming from the cabin.
At home, the cleanup began with gloves and a mask. Mouse nests had spread through the seats and trunk, while debris even blocked the exhaust. Washing the outside removed some grime, but it did nothing to fix what the mice had done inside.
Then the glove box gave up a surprise. Buried among the mess were the original owner’s manual, warranty papers, and window sticker. The sticker linked the car to Cascade Chrysler Plymouth in Everett. Its old Washington plates also pointed to a past in Skagit County, giving Tom a few clues to follow.
One Dirty Start
Jamie from Dead Dodge Garage came by to help with the engine. Before trying to fire up the 318-cubic-inch V8, they cut away a crushed exhaust section clogged with mouse debris. Even that didn’t prepare them for what happened next.
As the engine started, dirt and waste blasted out and scattered across the trailer. The old V8 ran, though, and Jamie soon moved the Satellite under its own power. Wearing a mask and gloves, he sat on cardboard for the short trip. Power steering worked, and after adding brake fluid, they found some braking action too. It was a test around the property, not a return to the road.
With the car awake, Tom turned to its history. The fender tag showed a St. Louis-built 1970 sedan with a 318 V8, an automatic transmission, and blue paint over a dark blue interior. He searched beneath the rear seat for more factory records, but found only bits of what appeared to be a chewed-up build sheet.
Worth More Apart?
By the end of the cleanup, Tom had hauled out a huge amount of nesting material. Much of the inside would still need to come apart. He expects to replace the carpet, headliner, and seat foam, and the heater box needs attention too. Even if the seats look decent, the smell has soaked into the material beneath them.
Outside, the choice is harder. Tom values each front fender and the trunk lid at roughly $1,000. Add the floor and trunk metal, and stripping the Satellite could bring in thousands of dollars in parts for other Plymouths, including Road Runners.
He would rather someone fix it and drive it. But with buyers already asking about parts, Tom has put the whole car up for sale to anyone willing to take on the work. The old Plymouth can move again; now it needs someone who wants to keep it whole.