There’s something to be said about turning nothing into something, even if that ‘nothing’ was once a 1970 Dodge Challenger. With years gone by, a car like a Challenger can lose its edge if it just sits in a garage collecting some dust.
Three years ago, a man named Dave Salvaggio dusted up an old Challenger and proceeded to rework and rebuild it, resulting in what is now being sold at R&H Collections as the “Insidious” Dodge Challenger. A fitting name, Insidious, considering that this car looks all too menacing and sinister once you find out what changes Salvaggio did to it.
Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and even if it sometimes looks like there’s no cause for hope that it could be restored back to its former glory, we get a good reminder from Salvaggio that even in the most rusted states, cars can always be shined up again if it’s worked on by the right pair of hands.
Details after the jump.
1970 "Insidious" Dodge Challenger
- Make: Array
- Model: 1970 "Insidious" Dodge Challenger
- Engine/Motor: 426 Hemi Crate Engine
- [do not use] Vehicle Model: Array
EXTERIOR AND INTERIOR
The Insidious Challenger’s exterior has been given quite a make-over. For starters, a black pearl paint finish was given to the car with complementing olive and sandstone pearl shadings. The door handles, trim pieces, and roof rail moldings have been completely shaved off. The muscle car’s grille and taillights are scratch builds with the fenders, bumpers and hood all being replaced with new materials. The wheel arches have been reshaped and added with flush fitting glass. Tire choice ended up being a set of Symbolic TS15 20-inch wheels on Pirelli P-Zero tires - 245/35/20 at the front and 275/35/20 at the back.
As for the Challenger’s interior, the builders removed the vinyl and polyester carpeting, replacing them with leather and Wilton Wool. High-grade Alcantara was also used on the interior with the seats being treated to Spinnebeck leather with suede inserts. Speaking of leather, other parts of the interior, including the Tuff steering wheel and the dashboard have also been leathered up. Green-gold inserts were also added on the doors and steering wheels, as well as new gauges courtesy of Classic Instrumentation. Finishing the whole interior detail off is an all-new Pioneer DVD sound system.
PERFORMANCE
The Insidious Dodge Challenger is powered by a 426 Hemi crate engine courtesy of noted engine tuners Mopar Performance. The engine is mated to a Tremec TKO 600 transmission and boasts of an output of 575 horsepower. In addition to that, the builders also added custom headers, a custom exhaust system, and a Hillborn EFI. The chassis has also been completely retooled to harness the engine’s power with the addition of a four-wheel independent suspension and coilover springs.
PRICING
This one-off custom Challenger is being sold by R&H Collectibles for a princely sum of $159,000, about $40,000 more than the Shelby GT500CR being sold by Classic Recreations.
COMPETITION
We actually just ran a review on a pretty compelling competitor for the Insidious Dodge Challenger: the aforementioned Shelby GT500CR by Classic Recreations. Both cars are built using specs that are pretty close in comparison, but the Challenger does have around 25 more horsepower than the GT500CR, which, if you really think about it, doesn’t really justify the added $40,000 on the price tag.
