In the arena of show cars, what does it take for a Mopar to be defined as a Survivor? For starters, it has to be untouched-paint, interior, engine, transmission, the entire package needs to be as it was when it rolled off the assembly line. If your car's been repainted, sorry, but it's no longer a Survivor. Many people aspire to finding survivor cars. most of the time, the survivor is little more than a car needing a complete restoration. But keep in mind, a 20-, 30-, or 40-year-old car has to be considered for some sort of a survivor status just because it is still around. To be considered a Survivor on the show field is, for some, a pinnacle in the car hobby.
The '67 Hemi-powered Charger you see here is owned by Ron and Pat Crouch of Pataskala, Ohio. Ron admits if he had known what it took to be a survivor years ago, he would have never painted this Charger. The paint that was on the Charger was fine. the body simply had the usual door dings and shopping cart dents on the sides. Since he was unaware of the survivor status of the car, he had Neeley's Autobody in Dayton, Ohio, handle the easy task of sanding and straightening the body, and shooting a flawless coat of the original red in acrylic enamel. With the body in new condition, all of the factory trim was reinstalled on the car, and the outside was complete.
When it came time to focus on the interior, Ron didn't have to focus too hard. The interior is the same stuff that was installed in 1967. And frankly, since we don't know who worked at the factory at that time, it's anybody's guess who's responsible for its install. the interior is all original factory-installed right down to the white vinyl seats and door panels and all the way up to the headliner and down to the carpet.
Ron tells us when he bought the car the engine wasn't running right, so he figured it needed rebuilding. to get the engine in good running order, he had Red Jackson (former Super Stock Hemi Racer) of Dayton, Ohio, look things over. The only thing Red found was a distributor problem. While Red had the oil pan off the engine, he changed rod bearings just to be safe. The floor-shifted 727 transmission did not need rebuilding, but it was cleaned up and put back into service. The same goes for the 831/44 rearend. The 3.23 gears and Sure Grip center were in excellent condition and therefore left alone. The Redline tires are G70-14s and are only the second set of tires to be mounted on the factory wheels.
Since there were only eight '67 Hemi Chargers built like this, it is a rare beast indeed. And according to Ron, only two remain. With just 60,000 miles showing on the odometer, this Charger may not get much highway time. But on the other hand, Ron says he doesn't own a trailer.