After 15 Years in Storage, a 1968 Dodge Charger Finally Gets Its First Wash and Drive

The body lines are still straight and the car is blue with a black top and blue leather interior, dressing up the seats and the dashboard. It's far though, from its former glory, with the upholstery being worn and torn. "Those aren't damages, that's character," the team supposed to save his car encourages the owner. As cool as the blue-on-black color combo looks, that's a lot of... "character" to fix there!

On the outside, there's a thick layer of dust and there are cat paw prints all over the bodywork eaten up by rust. When the hood pops up, everything is intact in there. All the hoses and belts are in place. Jacob Davis from Sally's Speed Shop YouTube channel gets a helping hand from Dylan McCool, whom they refer to as "one of the kings of automotive revival."

The owner, Larry, who turned 80 in February, first wanted to buy a used Dodge. But he could not take his eyes off the new shiny second-generation 1968 Charger. He bought the car in his youth from Music City Dodge for $4,180, as per the invoice. His daughter, Joyce, drove it through her high school years, racing boys and getting their lunch money. She's got quite some stories to tell grandchildren. Larry used to start the engine every once in a while to make sure it still runs. But he eventually stopped doing it. Now the time has come for this Charger to go for a little ride again just to stretch her legs. But first, it's so obvious that she needs some TLC.

The mechanic's service truck is fully equipped with tools and parts, and he is excited to be helping in getting the car back on the road. The old battery gets replaced, and the mechanic is surprised to find that the dome light and console light are both working.

We learn that under the hood, there is a naturally aspirated 318 cubic inch (5,210 cc) V8 engine producing 230 horsepower (233 ps) and 340 lb-ft (461 Nm) of torque. When it was still in her heydays, this baby right here could accelerate from 0-60 mph in 8.9 seconds.

The rescue of a 1968 Dodge Charger

After towing the car out into broad daylight, the old tires are replaced as well. The team of mechanics encounters a small issue with the wheels locking, but plans to fix this by jacking her up. The next two problems to be solved are related to the braking system and carburetor replacement. They ended up realizing that it is much easier to buy one off Amazon for $70 than rebuild the old one.

It has been a very long time since the last oil change. So replacing that one, too, is mandatory if they want to get the engine to start again.

And after all these repairs are made right in front of the garage where it was stored, the engine is brought back to life. After the key is turned in the ignition, the engine starts. After all, it seems that time hasn't killed this 1968 Charger barn find.

In order to make this Dodge run and drive again, the gas tank has been replaced as well and the wheels have been fitted, before the car is taken out into the driveway. You can hear strange noises when the Dodge starts moving. But it wouldn't be out of the ordinary for a vehicle that's been sitting for such a long time. The Charger is an all-original, one-owner vehicle that has been in a barn for around a decade and a half and hasn't been on the road since 2007.


Even if the 1968 Dodge Charger is running on its wheels, there is still a lot of work to be done before it reaches the necessary level of beauty and grace of yesteryear. It needs rigorous detailing. Not before it gets repainted and the interior is refurbished.

In another video uploaded online on another YouTube channel, we get to see the same car being washed for the first time in a very long time. The car is being detailed, cleaned, and updated to function properly so that it can finally be driven.

Those who think that after a complete and well-done restoration, the car could be sold should know that a 1968 Dodge Charger can top out around $360,000. This is not yet the case with this car. It still needs a lot of repairs to get it to the auction.