Hellcat Swap? 1968 Dodge Charger
This 1968 Dodge Charger is a pretty good looking project. It obviously has some bumps and bruises but the seller claims there is minimal rust repair needed. The ad states the owner will start building it for themselves if it isn’t sold. It can be found here on eBay with a current bid of over $12,000 and a buy-it-now price of $20,000. Located in Columbia City, Indiana, you’ll notice the car has a bit of a nose-up stance. Let’s check out why and wait until you see the potential in this car!
You have to love the rear end of a ’68 Charger! The taillights, marker lights, and tucked rear bumpers are a great design package. Whenever I see these cars it makes me think of the iconic cars from the movie Bullitt. This car would make an awesome tribute to the Bullitt Charger.
The interior obviously needs some TLC like the rest of the car. The seller says the car was originally equipped with a 383 cubic inch V8 backed by an automatic transmission. Unfortunately, the numbers-matching drivetrain is gone, but that shouldn’t stop you from taking on this project. Resto-mods have been very popular over the past several years, and this car looks like a great candidate. While you could swap in another 383 or even go for a reproduction 426 Hemi, how about something more modern? Yes, how about a Hellcat?!?!
How do you find a Hellcat crate engine without going directly to Dodge and paying a huge price? Well, how about a low-mileage crate motor from a donor 2015 Challenger? Unfortunately for the Challenger owner, their car suffered an interior fire after only seeing about 15K miles on the odometer. The 707 horsepower supercharged engine can be found here on eBay with an asking price of nearly $13,000. While this seems like quite a bit for a powerplant, consider trying to build a conventional V8 with 700+ horsepower in an ultra-reliable/streetable package. So, is this an awesome combo for a project? Let us know your thoughts.
Auctions Ending Soon
2006 Ford Mustang Saleen S281 SCBid Now16 hours$15,000
2002 Subaru Impreza WRXBid Now3 days$333
1975 Chevrolet Corvette ConvertibleBid Now3 days$3,000
1964 Ford F-100 Camper CustomBid Now3 days$2,000
2006 Jeep Wrangler SportBid Now5 days$10,500
Comments
It’s no longer available on eBay.
Bob
why the hell not?
The Hellcat engine is $18,000 and change from Chrysler. The wiring harness is $2,100 and change. By the time you upgrade the suspension, transmission and brakes on this Charger, you would be seriously upside down financially. You would be far ahead just buying a used Hellcat Challenger or Charger.
& how much to change the new Charger into a 2 door & get rid of grandma’s steel frames around the side windows(& tool up new glass) & somehow make the front & rear & WHOLE BODY! look as cool as the one on the ’68-9 – almost impossible if you ask me.
I sure would not have watched the Dukes of Hazard if they used the modern 4 door charger!!
& some of the proportions on the new chally just don’t look right – & grandma’s trunk lid on it(& the new charger) going down to the bumper ruins the styling too.
On the other hand, a ’68 charger with hellcat & 4 wheel manual drum brakes would be more exciting than riding Kingda Ka. lol
The Bullitt Charger was a 69, different rear end.
The Bullitt charger was a 68.
I think 700 plus horsepower is maybe pushing it in this old Charger, but kids did that sort of thing to early Ford’s and other depression era relics back in the fifties…big then modern engines and complete builds really. They called em hot rods, the resto-mod thing is no different, only now it’s fueled by the latest greatest powertrains of today.
For me I like the older school stuff such as a hopped up 440 running thru dual glass packs.
Forget the hellcat motor!! It’s gone and get the car and fix it with more conventional parts for the era!!!
How can you not think General Lee!
Easy. Maybe the most imbecilic TV show of all time.
That inane dumb ass TV show destroyed more 68s than you could shake a stick at. Wrecking classic cars is not cool. Emulating morons & imbeciles is not cool either.
Bob
“Wrecking classic cars is not cool”…
Back in 1979 those were 10 year old cars. No one cared then.
Would you give a crap if I went out today and smashed up a bunch of 2009 Dodge Chargers? Or Mustangs? Or Camaros?
Lets not pretend these were even remotely worth money until about 15 years ago…
Too much HP for the chassis. Pop in a nice 225 or something.
I like your thinking, by the way, I am not a “fuddy duddy”.
Okay, maybe not a fuddy duddy if you like the slant six! Greatest engine of all time, bar none! I would rather have one in a smaller car though, actually. I saw a SS 1973 Charger with an auto. Interesting, but bet it was slow! A nice Duster slanty is my kind of ride, make it sky blue, white buckets, and a three speed on the floor!
The good news is this car is a factory AC car and has the Tic-toc-tach. Plenty of 440’s out there, 383’s are nothing to sneeze at, either. The bummer about a non-running car that has been disassembled is that it is a real process to come up with missing small parts and brackets. A motor home 440 with headers, a 509 cam, and a coat of black primer on the body would make this a cruise night candidate…that blue is hideous.
I will have to pass….🤣
That is a Tic-Toc-Clock.
I’d restore it. You probably get more money for it in the long term, and you’d have a lot of fun putting back to factory specs. Yeah, it might not be the fastest thing on the planet, but you don’t forget, America’s main car industry in the late 60s to 70s was the Muscle Car, so restoring it is kind of like respecting the craftsmanship of your father and grandfather.