Back in 1990, Al Stigter of Osgoode, Ontario, was young, all knowing, and poor, but desperately wanting a Hemi car. He asked a couple Mopar collectors to help him locate a '69 Hemi Charger that was affordable. Keep in mind, he was poor, and affordable is a relative term. The hunt was on, and soon one was located. The owner was using the car to scavenge parts for his collection of other Hemi cars, so an extensive restoration would be needed. Young Al figured no problem; a little restoration sweat could save him thousands of dollars. the previous owner had scavenged framerails, floorpans, and quarter-panels. The car was resting (rusting) on its roof behind a barn, but the required numbers indicating it as a Hemi car were there. After a brief thirty seconds of shrewd haggling Al had his car, and he was committed-to the restoration not a sanitarium.
Al tells us once the bulldozer (gently?) loaded the car, and it was back at his home, he started the hunt for parts. It didn't take long for Al's savings to disappear since he tried to buy N.O.S. parts when available. Finally around the beginning of 1992, he thought he had everything needed. that was when he noticed the garage had shrunk to the point were there was no room to work. (How often have we all experienced that problem?)
In 1993, he built a 5,000-foot garage. The Charger was slowly tweaked and began to look like a car. A work stoppage occurred in 1995 when Al got married and built a house. With that out of the way, it was time to start on the resto. Al is a perfectionist, so he knew he would not be satisfied unless he did the restoration himself. The body was again made complete with the addition of front framerails, quarters, and floorpans. Once the welding was done, Al applied a perfect coat of B7 Blue. The stock suspension was rebuilt, and all of the paint daubs were reproduced where required.
The engine had been removed quite a few years prior to his purchase of the car, so a suitable replacement was needed. To fill the hole between the fenders, another 426 Hemi was located. It was then given the required rebuild back to factory specs. From there, the torque spins the four-speed tranny, and it all ends up frying the Kelsey-Hayes mounted skinnies via the 4:10 filled Dana.
When Al finally finished the Charger, he had made so many contacts that a lot of car owners asked him to restore their cars. Thus, ASE Motorsports was formed. With the fledgling business well underway, the Charger now lives the pampered life of a two-ton business card. A fitting end to the bulldozer-loaded Hemi car.