Transmission: A-833 4-speed Manual, Stock Clutch/Pressure Plate, Original Hurst Shifter
Rear-End: 8 3/4, stuffed with a 3.91 'Sure-Grip' pumpkin. Suspended by Hemi leaf-springs.
Chassis/Body: Fiberglass Six-Pack Hood, primered black. Only rust was in the corners of the rear window and the bottom of the quarters.
The first '68 was a miracle. I then owned a '74 Duster I was going to drop a 440 into, when I saw a '70 Challenger R/T in the paper for $300. Well, I went to see it and got hooked. I wanted that car, but alas, he sold it to his friend.
Not to be deterred (plus I think my parents thought I'd be safer in a larger car!), my Dad placed an want ad in the local newpaper for the Mopars I wanted: '68-'71 Charger, Road Runner, '70-'74 Challenger or 'Cuda. I looked at some stars, but the one that caught me was this '68 Charger.
The first thing I saw was the blacked-out tail panel. I knew I wanted right then and there. We went up and talked to the guy, turned out it was his uncle's car, given to him when the front driver's side brake locked up, sending him skidding into a tree in his own driveway!
The body was totally taken apart. I had to find all kinds of parts for this thing, but it was an original big-block (no engine) 4-speed car(no tranny).
The asking price: $0. All it cost me was the towing it home, and the DMV back registration fees.
The 440 came out of a '78 Motorhome. The guy at the yard I bought it from told me the story behind the motor. It's kind of wierd, and spooky when you think about it.
Two years of effort went into making this monster. I found two Chargers, one '68 base model and a '69 SE with a 383 in a wrecking yard, and bought them both for $850. I took EVERYTHING off the '68 and put it onto my '68, including a perfect grill! I sold the '69 to Miguel of the Mopar Alley car club for $500, a set of wheels, and some other junk. I wish I hadn't later, 'cause he parted it out, and it was really too complete. The brakes came of a '78 Chrysler Newport Wagon, and are the larger 11.75 variety. They fit perfectly. I put on a huge sway-bar (1 3/4") that came off my first Duster (Surprised it fit, but it did!), put on some great big meats, 265-50r15 front and 295-50r15 rear. They fit great, and looked good on those slot mags. The hood was steel with a Six-Pack scoop put on it. If you've never seen a black '68 Charger with Six-Pack scoop, and big fat-ass tires, you're missing the meanest looking car EVER. http://www.waywardmusclecars.com/
This family or couple was driven their motorhome on a vacation. It was one of the king-size motorhomes, and they were hauling a trailer, fully loaded, behind them. Anyways, they were coming down a curve on a steep grade when the weight of the trailer and top-heavy motorhome caused them to roll the entire rig! As if this would have been bad enough, they rolled down an embankment, and then fell more than 300 feet to the bottom of the cliff. Needless to say, the results were very grim for the occupants.
The motor hauled ass stock, but with the 3.91 gears and the factory RV cam, the power-band of the motor was totally mis-matched. So in goes a new cam, a Comp Cams XE268. As long as I was doing that, I threw on a set of fully hogged out '915' cylinder heads, and an Edelbrock Performer RPM. Worked really good, and even re-used the Thermo-Quad carb that was originally on the motor. The carb worked great, until a backfire blew it apart (Literally! I had the choke on, and the backfire blew the top butterfly and part of the top casting completely off!). A big 'ole Holley 750 went on their, which worked really great. Needed a secondary lighter spring than the one in it out of the box.
The first real trip out with the car I picked up a bunch of friends, four of 'em. We were foolin' around when a local dealer, with his Drug-Dealer special edition Saleen, pulled up next me, and throws a few revs. I figured I was screwed. I hadn't done much tuning yet, and had at least 900 extra pounds on top of the Charger's weight. The light turns green, and amidst squealing, smoking tires, I blow this guy away! I'm at least a few car lengths ahead of this guy, so I slow down to wait for him. He pulls up, says "Wanna go again?".
Naturally, I said yes, we lined up, and gave it a go. By third gear I had this guy by at least 6 car lengths and was still pullin' away. We split after that, not wanting beat on my Charger when it was still fresh. Besides, how many times can you beat on the same stupid Mustang before getting bored?
The car terrorized the local rice-rockets, GM F-bodies, and 5.0s for a while. It was fun, and LOUD! 2 1/2" pipes with Thrush Magnum Glasspacks gave it a totally unique sound. I was getting offers to buy it everywhere, and was always gettin' thumbs-up. Everyone had a story to tell me, about how they had one, or their brother, friend, pet dog, etc....
What a waste....
The saw-zalled remains of this Charger
The only thing I have left of it