The popularity of the resto-mod continues to grow. I mean how can it not? Take a classic American muscle car, pickup, or boulevard cruiser and update its powertrain and/or chassis so the vehicle keeps its classic styling but benefits from all of the modern automotive advancements.
With that mindset, our friend Abimelec Arellano (@abimelecdesign) has a brilliant way of interpreting classic vehicles and infusing them with modern technology. You might remember some of his other Mopar ideas, like the HELLCAT-powered Chrysler ME-412, the What If? 1970 Dodge Durango Adventurer, or the crazy Chrysler Pacifica SRT HELLCAT.
But in his most recent design, he has taken the 1966 Dodge Charger and modernized it. The original 1966 and 1967 Dodge Chargers were known for their very sleek fastback roof style. So, Abimelec kept his design clean, with an all-Black design, featuring hints of chrome touches elegantly placed on the car. The grille design was revised to be more in line with the second-generation 1968 Charger, making the front of the vehicle wider. Even the wheels have been upgraded with Mopar “Dog Dish” hubcaps over color-matched steel wheels and wrapped in Goodyear rubber.
Instead of imaging HELLCAT power under the hood like everything today, Abimelec stuck with the naturally-aspirated route with a 6.4-liter (392 cubic-inch) HEMI V8. The 485 horsepower and 475 lb.-ft. of torque produced by the HEMI, provides 50 more horsepower than the original big-block 7.0-liter (426 cubic-inch) HEMI that was offered in the 1966 Dodge Charger.
It would be perfect if it was fitted to a modern-day 6-speed manual transmission.
“Do you guys like the ‘66 Charger? 😁
I have been playing around with paint materials in my renderings, mostly just adding slight imperfections to give the cars a more natural feeling, especially older cars. Pitting, scratches, orange peel, etc.
My test bed was this 1966 Charger, a mostly forgotten body style thanks to the absolute home run the 1968 to 1970 Charger was. Still, it is a gorgeous car and just as cool in my book, when done right.
The main course is the custom grille, which is a reshaped 1968 grille. One of the things I felt was missing from the 1966 was the bad boy face we all associate with ‘Charger’— so the deeper, blacked-out grille fixes that.
The overall vibe I wanted the car to have was ‘Private detective’ type vibe. Make it look taken care of but used, fast and prepared for duty. The engine displayed is a 6.4 HEMI. Wears Goodyear Billboard tires for that period look and a set of magnificent Mopar Dog Dish hubcaps over color-matched steelies.
Let me know what you think! This one is a bit simple in concept but it was a lot of fun to make, hope you like it! Have a great day. 😎 👊” – Abimelec Arellano
Nevertheless, it would be awesome if someone were to take this design and make it a reality. It’s clean, handsome, and modern, yet still looks better than 99% of the current vehicles on the road today.
Resto-Mod 1966 Dodge Charger Design Image Gallery:
Source: Abimelec Arellano
