If an original ‘68 Charger R/T is badass, then this car must’ve lined up for a second helping.

There aren’t many better looking cars than the ‘68 Dodge Chargers, and nothing looks better than a sinister black one. Add in a dark red interior and a set of charcoal Torq-Thrust replica wheels and you have one menacing muscle car. With a built 493-inch stroker motor and a 5-speed Tremec transmission, it’s not just a pretty face, either. This is what you can confidently call, “The Total Package.”

Tribute cars are not a recent phenomenon, but they’ve become a lot more common now that certain cars are skyrocketing in value. Well-done tribute cars can be nice cars in their own right, and because they aren’t original ultra-rare pieces, you can build them to taste. This is just such a car, an R/T clone with a heapin’ helpin’ of badass poured over it – maybe more than a lot of folks could ever justify putting on a real R/T.

Just how badass is it? How about a stroked Muscle Motors 493-inch 440 with Edelbrock aluminum heads, TTI headers and a 3-inch exhaust with Dynomax mufflers? There’s a hidden MSD 6AL ignition system to make the fire, and it includes a rev-limiter because you’re just not going to be able to keep your foot out of it. To keep with the illusion of being a factory piece, the entire engine, including those aluminum heads, was painted in the correct turquoise paint and surrounded with the kind of detailing you only see on national show-winning cars. It looks totally factory original, right down to the color-coded return springs on the carburetor and the overspray on the battery cable. To go that extra mile and make a “clone” so authentic is almost unheard-of.

That killer motor is backed by a Kiesler/Tremec TKO600 5-speed manual transmission hanging on an aluminum bell-housing that encloses a hydraulic clutch. All that stroker motor torque is channeled through a new driveshaft to a factory Dana 60 rear with a 3.54 Sure-grip differential twisting Moser axles. The 245/60/15 B F Goodrich T/A Radials on 15” American Racing Torq-Thrust wheels have the unenviable job of trying to put that power to the pavement. Good luck with that, guys.

This car isn’t just insanely fast, it’s insanely gorgeous, too. Of course, there’s nothing better than a black car, but there’s also nothing worse than a black car that isn’t straight. If you sneezed while you were bolting on a fender, black paint will show it. This car is laser-straight from front to back, and with quarter panels the size of a cargo van’s, getting them perfect is no easy task. This car’s builder was a professional body man and restorer, and he built this car for himself. The shell was stripped to bare metal and placed on a rotisserie where every flaw, top and bottom, was carefully repaired. The floors are all original steel. Charcoal gray bumblebee strips were added at the rear for a subtle look, and it’s all topped with a correct black vinyl top. Wow.

The suspension has been upgraded to factory heavy-duty Hemi specifications with all-new components. Front and rear sway bars were added, and make a big difference in the car’s handling. The brakes are also all-new and feature stainless steel lines and emergency brake cables front to back. It’s all highly detailed under there to show car quality. It looks as great underneath as it does up top and it’s hard to believe this car has ever been driven.

The dark red interior really makes this car stand out. Black on black cars are OK, but if you want something that will make heads swivel and grown men cry, put a red interior in your black car. This one is all new from Legendary Interiors and is factory correct in every way, from the grain of the vinyl to the pattern on the seats. The gauges have all been rebuilt and feature new faces, with the odometer showing just 86 miles. The driver’s seat is a manual 6-way adjustable unit and the seatbelts have been restored by the experts at Ssnake-Oyl. Even the radio and steering wheel are factory original items. The only non-stock piece is the Hurst cue ball shifter with a diagram that shows 5 gears instead of 4.

Tired of the show circuit, with long lines of pretty restored cars and guys craning their necks to make sure the car is “real”? Ready to attack the road with a sinister black 1968 Dodge Charger R/T, that appears stock but is ready to lay down a healthy dose of whoop-ass to anything that crosses it’s path? You might spend more on a real one in this condition, but you’ll most certainly get less car. This is a killer piece that can be shown with pride and driven with confidence. If all you care about are numbers and codes and details like that, this probably isn’t the right car for you. But if you speak badass, this is EXACTLY what you need in your garage.