We’re all about Mopar muscle around here, but every once in a while, we run across something about Dodge, Plymouth and Chrysler cars from the 1960s and ‘70s that catches even us by surprise. That was the case recently when we found an article about the incredibly rare “Mod Top” cars built by Dodge and Plymouth in 1969 and 1970. Spring is about to be sprung out there, and with the daisies and daffodils soon to peek through the soil, it seems like a good time to share what we know about these most flowery Mod Top Mopar muscle cars. Let’s dive in, shall we?

What’s in a Name?

First available in 1969, the Mod Top option consisted of a series of three wild, flowered vinyl designs that could be ordered to substitute for the single-color padded vinyl tops on many higher-trim Dodge and Plymouth cars. The interior was treated to the same flowery vinyl on most of these cars, including the seats and door panels.

Sourced by Dodge from a maker of heavy-duty vinyl shower curtains, the material was designed to appeal to those smitten with the flowery, psychedelic design of many 1960s album covers. Meanwhile, the name “Mod Top” was borrowed from the colorful “Mod” fashions that were then the hottest thing on the runways of Milan and Paris.

Exploring the Next-Gen Dodge Charger Daytona R/T & Scat Pack

Visual Appeal 

Intended to appeal to younger female buyers, the Mod Top option was offered on many of the era’s most stylish Dodge and Plymouth cars in 1969 and 1970, including the Plymouth Barracuda and Satellite, and the Dodge Dart, Coronet and Super Bee. Among those was at least one vanishingly rare 1970 Hemi Barracuda Mod Top, which is one of only 26 Mod Top Barracudas built that year.

Incredibly, there is evidence that there was even one 1969 Dodge Daytona–the fearsome, big-block powered road rocket fitted with an aerodynamic nose cone and rear wing to storm the high-banked ovals of NASCAR–that was ordered from the factory with a Mod Top even though the Dodge Charger, on which the Daytona was based, apparently wasn’t offered with the option. The three available patterns included a black and yellow floral pattern used on 1969 and 1970 Plymouth Barracudas, a blue and green floral pattern used on 1969 and 1970 Satellites and Barracudas, and a green, gold and light blue floral pattern used on 1969 Dodge Darts, Coronets and Superbees.

Dodge Challenger vs. Dodge Charger: Which Performance Car is Right For You?

Dealership Disaster

Even for the swinging ‘60s, the Mod Top cars proved to be a little too “out there” for most buyers, and the options were a disaster at dealerships. The best evidence is that Dodge and Plymouth built fewer than 2,900 Mod Top cars. After the psychedelic-topped cars languished on car lots, many dealers resorted to stripping off the colorful vinyl and replacing it with standard, single-color tops to better sell. Still, more Mod Top cars were undoubtedly retrofitted to single-colored tops by subsequent owners after the Flower Child aesthetic wilted in the 1970s.

Because of those factors, only a handful of Mod Tops are known to survive today, with a Mod Top registry–available online at www.mooresmopars.com–including under 140 cars at this writing. Given the hot market for rare Mopar muscle cars, the rarity of the Mod Top makes them astoundingly collectable and valuable today, with Mod Top Mopars in any condition commanding high prices when they appear for sale or auction.