OWNER : Mario
VEHICLE : Valiant VH Charger
CLIENTS OBJECTIVE : Custom Street Rod


WORK COMPLETED :

  • Dissassembly
  • Complete Chemical Stripping
  • Post stripping body preparation and etch primed
  • All Rust Repairs
  • Chassis Connectors
  • Resizing of rear wheel tub
  • Centralising of transmission tunnel & firewall

If you want a dream custom street-rod, there's simply no better car to start with than an absolute stock base model as you starting platform. Ask and you shall recieve ! This base model Charger promises to be something different with plenty of custom features to boot but with old-school muscle and weekend cruiser in mind. More details to come as we progress.




UPDATED : 24/09/08
This bodyshell turned out to be quite a suprise, with alot more repairs than first anticipated. The decision was made to have this car stripped by a chemical tanking process with Alkaline. This is a fantastic way to restore your car as there is no blasting residue and it does not pit the steel at all. The completed process leaves you with bare steel, if only it could repair the rust and impact damage on this car ! Below are some pics of the car as delivered after chemical stripping, it has now promptly been prepped and etch primed. Look..... suprise, suprise .... another chassis rail repair !

UPDATED : 05/11/08
Ever wondered why your Chrysler or Valiant leaks water onto the floor ? Commonly misdiagnosed as a leaking front screen seal, most leaking areas like this are attributed to rust inside the front cowl panels (plenum). No matter how daunting this process may look, it's very repairable and the only way to do it right is to remove the outer cowl panel as pictured below.

When we fit the new driveline to this car, everything will be centered to the vehicle. Doing this requires a great deal of floor modifications, as we are looking for a 'factory-like' finish from the floor pan, we opted to do sections repairs and enlarge the tunnel by cutting it in half and moving the left-hand side over the required amount. As you can see below rust repair sections are all hand fabricated with correct reinforcement bead profiles and the end result is floor panel that has a centered transmission tunnel that looks like it should have been from the factory.

UPDATED : 14/12/08
Images below indicate that this indeed needed alot of work. Currently one inner trunk extension floor panel is fitted and partial trunk floor. Profiled chassis connectors are in place and look great without compromising vehicle cabin space or floor pan shape. These images clearly display the 'split-tub' modification that we have opted for as opposed to the fabricated mini-tub that we are accustomed to doing on these cars. I think it's a great look and provides the opportuity to retain a 'factory-esque' look by with very little modification required to things like trunklid spring support brackets and rear seat back.

Previous images displayed the front cowl (Plenum chamber) opened in the process of being repaired, below you will see the completed cowl repair look like new. The inside of this cars cowl was pretty nasty, whilst the cowl was open, we opted to totally seal the inner panels to prevent future issues, a caution never undertaken when the cars were built. This vehicle will also have a battery relocation, so instead of leaving the empty space there, we chose to remove that panel altogether, replacing it with a fabricated panel that looks like it should be there.

UPDATED : 19/02/09
The more we dig, the more you find. This car has become a perfect example of how without experience, a seemlingly good bodyshell can turn into your worst nightmare ! Take the a-pillar as an example, this car displayed typical evidence of what looks like relatively minor rust in a very structurally integral part of the car combined with further upper sill panel rust which is directly below the a-pillar.

UPDATED : 30/03/10
Rust repairs & modifications complete, now pre-paint bodywork almost complete.

UPDATED : 21/07/10
...more progress. As a result over a large workload and unforseen delays, this Charger has not had as much completed as I would like. However things are moving along now. More to follow.

UPDATED : 22/08/10
Here's some images of the body-shell during speed filing stages and pre-polyester coat. The rear qtr-panels have also been modified to accomodate the 'twin-filler' fuel caps to be fitted.

UPDATED : 24/09/10
Wheels are ready..... all the parts for this car will start to trickle in now. AlterKtion trial fitted and final body has progressed. Polyester coating has been blocked and ready for final coat of hi-fill for the straight finish our cars are renowned for. Weather permitting, we anticipate this car in colour with the next 3 weeks. More to follow...

UPDATED : 27/10/10
Car is painted prime body colour (Magenta) with body stripes completed in a few days. more images to follows.

UPDATED : 04/04/11
Re-Assembly has begun. Restored Charger R/T Textured Argent dash panel with newly restored instrumentation is now fitted. Things will move along quickly now.

UPDATED : 12/05/11
Custom twin-filler fuel system has now been started, Coilover Tubular front suspension system is now fitted and powertrain in place. This 422ci Small-Block Mopar should wake up the neighbours. To compliment the build theme of 'Retro 80's' look, this car has been fitted with musclecar hood pins.

UPDATED : 03/06/11
Like everything with PP&R builds, nothing goes untouched. Take this beautiful fuel tank for example, with attention to detail on ever facet of our builds. Now sporting a super shiny twin 3'' exhaust with crossover and custom fabricated mandrel bent headers. Almost there now....

UPDATED : 02/07/11
COMPLETED : Mario takes delivery of his new Retro 80's 422ci Powered Charger R/T Clone. He loves it...and just quietly, so do we!

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