More Details on the Hellcat Charger with the Poorly Repaired Chassis

Dodge Charger Hellcat was crashed and rigged-up to sell, but it is now properly repaired.

Back in April, we brought you the story of the yellow Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat shown here. This car became a sort of social media celebrity thanks to the sketchy chassis repairs made to the front end. In short, the subframe had been mangled and “fixed” with some random box steel tubing that was welded into place by someone who clearly wasn’t a professional.

The Moparian Facebook page shared a video showing the troublesome chassis repairs, but there wasn’t any backstory. That led some folks to insist that the video had to be faked, but thanks to the folks at The Drive, we know the whole story on this poor super sedan.

As it turns out, the video was real and that Hellcat Charger actually had that crude undercarriage fix, but after changing hands several times, the proper Mopar parts have been installed.

History of the Mangled Hellcat Charger

After The Drive ran their initial piece on the crudely repaired Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat, someone who had more information reached out to them. This person asked to remain anonymous, but the details and images provided make it clear that this informant is legit.

The unknown person explained that this Hellcat Charger was stolen from the original owner and wrecked badly enough that it “ripped the weld off the subframe”. There was also damage to the passenger’s side quarter panel, the rear differential, one of the axles and one of the wheel hubs. The thief must have taken the Charger on a hell of a rough ride to do all of that damage, leading to a salvage title.

At some point, this Hellcat Charger was sold at auction to a dealership for $30,000. That dealership then sold the damaged car to a wholesaler for $33,000 and the wholesaler sold it to a used car dealership for an unknown price. The last dealership to have the car had it properly repaired, per a Toyota dealership technician who did the work for the used car dealership.

“I did the repair for a buddy of mine who is a used car retailer. He got the car at auction after it was sent from Georgia up to North Carolina,” the technician told The Drive. “It turned out the only thing damaged in the front was the subframe itself. There is a clunk noise in the rear but I think it may be the exhaust.”

What The Drive doesn’t mention is where exactly this Hellcat Charger is available for sale, but if you can find it, the odds are good that it will cost you less than any other example of the supercharged sedan. Of course, you will want to take a very good look at the rear differential, the axles and the general condition of the chassis, but now that the subframe has been properly repaired, this could be a great deal for someone.

Photos: The Drive

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Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

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