During a reporting trip to Sweden’s southernmost regions a few years ago, a friend offers a tip. Peter Kampf says emphatically, “Visit Christian Rodman; his 1968 Dodge Charger is absolutely stunning.” Kampf is absolutely right. The Charger is, in fact, so pristine that it is nearly identical today, despite changing owners several times and now residing with a Mopar® collector in Austria, in southern Europe.
The automatic transmission has been replaced with a five-speed manual from Tremec. That’s about all that has changed since Rodman owned the Charger. Revisiting the interview with Rodman for a new audience feels especially relevant. So, we step into a time machine and travel back to Malmö in southern Sweden, July 2017.
Standing before me is Rodman and his Dodge. Some enthusiasts are purists to the point of obsessing over every bolt, but Rodman isn’t one of them. His 1968 Charger is a blend of various automakers’ components, and Rodman himself is a cheerful guy with a relaxed attitude toward his muscle car. The muscle car in question is a sleek gray Dodge, a prime example of a carefully restored, tastefully upgraded and finely tuned Charger with serious power under the hood.
As is often the case, the story begins with the purchase itself. Rodman belongs to that daring group who simply browse American classifieds, pick up the phone and take the plunge – without ever seeing or test-driving the car in question.
“I had been searching here in Sweden for quite some time without much luck. So I found the car on Craigslist,” Rodman says. “The seller was a man who primarily deals in Dodge Chargers. He buys these models to sell them for a small profit. This car, he had found without an engine,” he explains.
The dealer had done some investigating, and it soon turned out that the seller had given the V8 engine to a friend for restoration.
“It had been about ten years since the engine was handed over. The two had a falling out and a decade passed. The guy restoring the engine was also going through a divorce, so things got tricky. Eventually, the seller and dealer sneaked over to the guy’s place and took the engine back.”
Depending on who you ask, this move might be considered genius. The Charger was now a matching-numbers car, a genuine R/T with a 440 engine.
“Matching numbers isn’t that important to me, but it’s a fun detail,” Rodman says. “Still, just because I happened to buy a Dodge that was matching numbers didn’t mean I wouldn’t do what I wanted with it. I had a clear vision of what I wanted to achieve, and that’s exactly what I did. Many people think you shouldn’t mess with cars like these, but I didn’t care.”
Once home, Rodman disassembled the Charger down to its components, painstakingly scraped off the undercoating and sent the body off for painting. The chassis was upgraded with subframe connectors and polygraphite bushings from PST. He also installed a rear sway bar.
“I boxed the lower front control arms,” he says. “There are pre-made metal pieces you can buy and weld on. That way, you stiffen the chassis and get better handling. Everything under the car is either new or refurbished. I also installed a Fast Ratio pitman and idler arm, which gives tighter, quicker steering with fewer turns lock-to-lock.”
When the body and chassis were done, it was time to tackle the engine. The initial plan was to restore the 440 to stock, but Rodman soon had a change of heart.
“When the cost of original parts equals that of a stroker kit, the choice isn’t hard…”
He opted for aluminum heads from 440 Source, a hydraulic roller camshaft and some other goodies. The engine now boasts 505 cubic inches.
“A friend who knows how to port heads showed me how to do it. ‘Take a little here, some there and a bit more here. Then call me and I’ll finish it up.’ Yes, porting and port matching make a noticeable difference in power,” Rodman says.
Switching to aluminum from old-school cast iron for the intake, heads and water pump also made a significant difference in weight.
“Aluminum shaved off quite a few kilos. I weighed the parts and wrote it down, but I can’t find the note right now. Still, it was a lot.”
As for power? Rodman laughs, as he often does.
“I wanted over 500 horsepower. But honestly, I don’t care. The engine hasn’t been dyno-tested, but calculations suggest it makes about 525 horsepower. I didn’t build the V8 for racing. I chose a milder camshaft to maintain sufficient vacuum for the brakes.”
I ask Rodman to briefly describe the rest of the drivetrain. He obliges quickly and concisely.
“The converter is from PTC, 9.5 inches in diameter, and stalls at around 2,700-2,800 RPM. The transmission is a prepped 727 I bought from Cope Racing Transmission. The rear axle is the original 8 3/4, limited-slip, with a 3.23:1 gear ratio.”
The 1968 Charger is a favorite among muscle car enthusiasts. I ask Rodman why it appeals to him.
“I’m a sucker for the round taillights, just like the second-gen Camaro has. And there’s something special about the hidden headlights up front, of course.”
Before we part ways, I have to ask… that spoiler (also called an air dam) under the front bumper – it looks very familiar and not very Charger-like.
“No, you’re right. It’s from a first-gen Camaro. Even the gray color is from GM – some Corvette paint from the ’80s.”
It’s wonderful when people dare to mix and match.
0 Comments