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Posts Tagged ‘Dodge’

Spectre Collection: 1969 Dodge Dart

Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012

There are good things and bad things about car people, and when we brag about being car people, we have to come clean about our flaws as well…

We have too many projects, and some are neglected.

We’d feel worse about it if we didn’t know that many of you suffer from the same issue. Hopefully you’ll have some sympathy as we introduce one of our long-ignored favorites, the Spectre Dodge Dart.

Write in and tell us if any of the following sounds familiar.

We purchased the ‘69 Swinger on Ebay in June of 2006 from a guy in AZ. Why a Dart? Why Ebay? Nobody can remember. It seemed like a good idea at the time.

As is so often the case, the Dart came to us as an all-stock running car, but nothing stays that way in the Spectre shop for long. We sent the car off to Fast Eddie’s to get a full cage in preparation for a proposed drag car project.

Over at Eddie’s the little Dodge went from stock to stripped and caged, but then we got busy with other projects and the Dart has lived like a bat in the rafters for the past five years.

Happily, the Dart has made its way back to the shop floor. Does this mean that 2012 will feature a second blue Spectre Mopar project? We may just get into drag racing…or should we build a corner carver?

Head over to our Flickr account for more Dart and other project photos.

Tags: Dan Weishaar, Dart, Dodge, drag racing, Mopar, Muscle Cars, Project Cars
Posted in Behind the Scenes, Muscle Cars, Spectre Cars | No Comments »

Spectre Customer Profile: Viau Motorsports’ Devilish Dodge Demon

Wednesday, May 11th, 2011

We never know where we’re going to meet a Spectre customer. At the recent Car Craft Magazine Anti-Tour, we spotted a stealthy little Dodge parked in the shade. A peek under the hood showed off a custom intake using Spectre components.

Dodge only offered the Demon for three years, and 1972 was the very last opportunity for a customer to pick up the sporty A-body. We spoke with Marc from Viau Motorsports about the car.

“The build for this car was guided by two main ideas,” Marc told us. “The first was for a road race inspired car to be used in ’spirited driving’ on-road tours, with reliability, ease of maintenance, and self support as key factors in design. The second was to use as many Mopar family parts as possible in the design and construction. This Demon was designed for the road.”

1972 Dodge Demon Specs:

410+ HP – 340 Block w/ Swirl Port Iron Heads
Spectre Performance Air Cleaner and tunnels
A-833 4-Spd – w/ 3.09 1st Gear
Modified TTI Exhaust & Headers
Firm Feel, Inc. Front Suspension & Steering
6 Point Rollbar, Frame Connectors, Torque Boxes
Viper Brake Calipers on MoPar 11 3⁄4” Rotors
Hidden Stereo w/ RF Remote & iPod Connection
Autometer Gauges w/ 1970 Charger Switches
Spare Tire, Custom Toolbox, In-trunk Aluminum Fuel Cell
White Pearl Metallic Demon Stripe
Custom Airbrushed Demon Logos

We haven’t been the only people to be impressed by the Viau build. The Demon was last year’s winner of the Mopar Muscle Magazine True Street Challenge.

Nice work guys!

Tags: Car Craft, demon, Dodge, intake, Viau Motorsports
Posted in Customer Appreciation, Customer Profile | No Comments »

Spectre Customer Profile: Brent Bellon and the General Lee

Monday, January 24th, 2011

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!

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