Barrett Jackson Vegas/Sherwin Williams Display Car

1970 DODGE HEMI CHALLENGER R/T PRO TOURING

BARRETT JACKSON/SHERWIN WILLIAMS/PLANET COLOR DISPLAY CAR

 

http://youtu. be/6tW4lmNl5Yg?list=UUxz9QSiZN-42UNqK8ZTUmhQ


You'll get few arguments. even from Chevy and Ford fans. that Mopar wasn't hitting on all eight cylinders during the height of the muscle car era. Their engines dominated the tracks. their styling was stunning on the street. and in the case of the pony car twins. Challenger and 'Cuda. the combination was insanely appealing. Today. top-flight Mopar muscle remains in demand for all these reasons. but if you seek to go beyond the factory's abilities—because. admittedly. they drive like 45-year-old cars—you have to do something special. Enter Jason Bair and the experts at Bair Customs. home of the Big Hemi garage. Perhaps you're familiar with their work. since they've appeared in every big magazine. on several of the most-watched automotive TV shows. and even as featured cars at SEMA and the Barrett-Jackson auctions. so if you've missed them. you've probably been living under a rock.  
 Anyway. the idea is that Jason Bair does concours-grade work and specializes in Mopar muscle. If you want the nicest stock Challenger in the world. he's the guy who can win you top prize at the Mopar Nationals. But if you want to go beyond stock. he's still got you covered. which is exactly what happened with this stunning 1970 Challenger. They sourced a clean but tired Challenger. complete and running. and tore it down to a bare shell and rebuilt it from the molecular level on up. The result is a car that looks fairly stock aside from the rolling stock. but moves like a modern supercar with all the creature comforts. In short. it's the pure essence of pro-touring. Mopar style.
 When that Challenger body was stripped naked. they fixed every bump and bruise it had ever suffered. If the panel was too far gone to be salvaged. it was replaced and invisibly stitched into the existing shell. It was primed. sanded. blocked. sanded some more. until it was totally straight. Once that part was done. they sprayed it with a few coats of traditional Hemi Orange Metallic. so it looks stock until the light hits it just so. then it really starts to glow. The blacked-out hood treatment is painted on. not a decal. and it's buried under the clear so it looks like a black hole that's settled on the hood. Trick flat black R/T side stripes were added to complete the factory look with a slight twist. although nothing rolling out of a Chrysler plant in 1970 ever looked this good. Yes. we've all seen straight cars. but after you see the exacting gaps and distortion-free surfaces on this Challenger. you're going to have to recalibrate your ruler. because it's simply astounding. All the things guys love most about the E-bodies. including a Go-Wing on the trunk and hard-to-find louvers on the rear window. were included with this build. Like I said. aside from the large-by-huge wheels and the subtle custom grille. this sucker's got a very stock look and that's just the way they wanted it.
 Respecting the original design was paramount on this build. so while it does everything better than a stock car. it doesn't color too far outside the lines. That's why inside you'll find a set of custom buckets reupholstered to look like stock Challenger seats. complete with horizontal pleats. Sure. the bolsters are aggressive and the headrests are cool. but they don't jump out at you like with some builds. The stock center console remains in place and the back seat was reupholstered with restoration-grade seat covers for a totally original look. New carpets. fresh door panels. and several hundred feet of DynaMat underneath give it a factory-fresh look and a new car feel. There's a custom tilt column that blends into the background. mostly thanks to the original-style Tuff Wheel. and the full complement of factory gauges remains in the dash. The original Music Master AM radio remains in the dash for show. but there's a killer AM/FM/CD/iPod stereo system hidden out of sight. and the original A/C controls still manage the system. which blows ice cold today. Carbon-fiber accents on the dash. console. and pistol-grip shifter add a touch of high-tech without being terribly obvious about it. Even the painted and powdercoated trunk was neatly outfitted with a custom OEM-style mat and original space-saver spare and inflator kit to help the illusion. Honestly. the truly amazing thing here is that guys this talented were able to restrain themselves and stick to the factory recipe. because the line between the new and factory stuff is virtually invisible.
 OK. we're getting to the good stuff. don't worry. The engine is a Gen III HEMI stroked to a legit 426 cubic inches by Muscle Motors. noted Hemi builders with a serious reputation. With close to 600 horsepower on pump gas. this Challenger humiliates any original Hemi Challenger and once you find out how well it works you won't go back to stock again. It idles nicely. it pulls like a freight train. and thanks to a full shakedown on the Power Tour. it can be driven daily without complaints. There's a custom Quick Fuel 4-barrel carb up top. living under a custom billet aluminum air cleaner that simulates the original dual-quad look but that kind of excess isn't really necessary anymore. A billet accessory drive with serpentine belt controls all the modern conveniences and dresses up the front of the engine. and a giant aluminum radiator keeps it cool. You can see Jason Bair's attention to detail everywhere you look as there's simply no part that was simply installed; everything was either polished. painted. or plated and when it went on. it was aligned and straightened to look right. Maybe that's a kind of obsessive-compulsive disorder. but when you get results like this. a little crazy is probably OK.
 It's backed by a Keisler/Tremec TKO600 5-speed manual transmission that doesn't seem to mind the massive torque moving through it. A custom driveshaft was fabricated to withstand the force and feeds a built Dana 60 rear end filled with 3. 73 gears on a Sure Grip limited slip. The original suspension is long gone (would you trust it at this point?) and replaced with a tubular subframe and a full Reilly Motorsports Alter-K-Tion front suspension with tubular A-arms. coil-over shocks. and a fat sway bar. There's also power rack-and-pinion steering. so even with the fat tires it steers so nice your grandmother could manage it. and a giant Wilwood brakes with 6-piston calipers in front and 4-pistons in back. all supported by a Hydro-Boost power assist. In back. that bulletproof Dana 60 hangs on a custom Hotchkiss suspension with a set of trick adjustable shocks and application-specific leaf springs. Subframe connectors reinforce the tub and obviously the floors and underside of the car are every bit as nice as the top side. Finally. I would be remiss if I didn't mention the gorgeous fabricated 2. 5-inch exhaust system. which features polished ceramic-coated long-tube headers. a TTI X-pipe. and mufflers big enough to make the Hemi a reasonable choice for long-distance cruising. Custom Boze 2-piece wheels measuring 19x8 up front and 19x10 in back were fitted with Mickey Thompson street performance tires that do their best to hook it up.  
This incredible car is fully sorted and ready to rock. You'll probably need a new Viper to keep up with it. and if you put a set of stock Rallyes on it. it might even pass for a restored stocker at shows. The combination of build quality. performance. and the subtlety of the package make for an insanely appealing Challenger. If you have questions. we'll even put you in touch with Jason Bair himself. who would be happy to tell you all about the build. which took thousands of hours and deep into the six-figures. This isn't an average guy's car. we know that. It's expensive. But if quality and detail. not to mention full functionality. matters to you. then this is the price of admission. It's a big kid's toy. but there are no disappointments at any level with this incredible Challenger.

http://youtu. be/6tW4lmNl5Yg?list=UUxz9QSiZN-42UNqK8ZTUmhQ

 

For more pictures and information on the 1970 Big Hemi Challenger go to:

Bighemi. com

Harwoodmotors. com

For immediate attention ring  724-996-1288

Also published at eBay.com

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