Of All The Cars Kurt Cobain Could Have Owned, He Drove A '65 Dodge Dart

Born in 1967, Kurt Cobain was a musician most famous as the frontman of Seattle-bred grunge band Nirvana. The band quickly became engrained in American pop culture, and singles such as "Smells Like Teen Spirit" are just as poignant today as when they were when released in the 1990s.

While some rock stars found fitting companions in high-powered muscle cars or shrieking exotica, Cobain settled upon much more humble choices. According to the narration from an NFT (remember those?) by his sister, Kim Cobain, a friend of Kurt's stumbled across a gem of a Dodge Dart in a Seattle car lot, and Kurt decided to select that easily overlooked sedan for his wheels of choice. He paid just $2,500.

The Dart, a 1965 example finished in a charming pastel shade of blue, was affectionately dubbed "Baby Blue" by Kim, and in Kurt's hands, it joined similar company: a Plymouth Valiant and a Ford Falcon. Clearly, due to the size of his — and Nirvana's — following, these cars would make prized possessions for any fan. However, the Valiant and Falcon are no longer on the roads, leaving the Dart as the only known Cobain-owned car for collectors to fight over. And fight they did when the Dart hit the auction block in 2022.

The Dart had been Kim Cobain's prized possession for 28 years before being offered for sale, and she had acquired it directly from Kurt Cobain's widow, Courtney Love, so its provenance is immaculate. Before we get to its sale price, it's important to visit what such a car would be worth in a typical sale. 

Since Kurt purchased it the Dart has become something of a classic, even if it has never risen to the ranks of heroes such as the Mustang or Charger. The Hagerty valuation tool doesn't cover the Dart 170 four-door sedan, Kurt's model, but it does provide values for traditionally more desirable specifications. For example, the 225ci-powered two-door coupe carries a good-condition value of $10,600, while eight-cylinder or Hemi-powered Dodge Darts carry a slight premium. Hagerty probably would suggest a lower valuation for a typical Dart in Cobain's specification, as two-door and V8 models tend to command higher prices.

Still, this is no regular Dart, and the very first Dodge Viper, owned by Lee Iacocca, sold for $285,000 in 2020. But the Cobain connection carries even more weight, as the little Dart sold — with NFT attached — for a mind-boggling $375,000. That was actually slightly lower than the estimate of $400,000 to $600,000 from Julien's Auctions, which conducted the sale, but still a more than pleasant return on Kurt's $2,500 investment. That's the power of a celebrity connection when it comes to classic cars.