Spectre customers are individuals. When Brent Bellon decided to build a ‘69 Dodge Charger General Lee, he could have made a carbon copy of the TV picture car, but he wanted to stand out from the crowd, and that’s what got our attention.
We saw Brent’s General Lee videos online, and the first thing we noticed was a familiar-looking air intake coming straight out of the hood! We contacted Steven, the poster of the video, and he put us in touch with his good friend Brent, who told us all about the build.
Brent purchased the Charger in 1997 and it was a much rougher project than he expected. Most of the sheet metal had to be replaced. The floor pans and trunk were full of rust and at one point, Brent and his team seriously considered giving up on the Dodge and finding a different car. Thankfully they stuck with it.
The entire body was replaced, welded and painted to perfection. The interior was redone with a custom sheet metal dash filled with Autometer gauges and switch panels. Kirkey aluminum seats with Simpson 6 point harnesses give Brent a safe and comfortable place to sit when he’s blasting down the 1/4 mile. That full roll cage isn’t just for show. Brent is an active racer as well as a car show participant.
The go-parts include a custom Moser 60 rearend filled with chromoly Moser axles and a Detroit Tru-Trac locker with 3.73 gears. Power gets to the housing through a Brewers Performance 4 speed 833 Mopar transmission with dual force clutch and scatter proof bell housing.
The engine is a custom built 528 Indy Legend Hemi from Indy Cylinder Heads in Indianapolis which showed 737 horsepower @ 6500 rpm and 680 lbs, torque @ 5400 rpm on the dyno. That’s no slouch!
Of course, the thing which really got our attention is that big dual filter Spectre intake sitting on top of the Demon carburetor and sticking out right through the General’s orange hood, so we asked Brent about the unusual set-up.
“When I started building the car, I wanted it to stand out and be as unique as possible,” Brent told us. “Everyone in the world has a round air cleaner under the hood. The Spectre intake had a very nice look and is the perfect complement to the engine bay. Plus, it functions very well! I have had zero problems since installing it.”
That’s what we like to hear! A big thanks to Brent and Steven for the use of their photos and videos. Stay ahead of the Sheriff, Duke boys!
