TireSmoke.org

Welcome to my Challenger rebuild challenge thread. #45 refers to this being the 45th var I've owned.

I got the idea to do this while working on a rebuild for my daughter. Within a month I had the infrastructure fixed and decided that was too easy, which sent me on a quest to find a bigger challenge.

This thread covers in a fair amount of detail the process of getting the car up to lot drive capable, disassembling, straightening and replacing components of the car.

I wanted something quick but I don’t need to be that fast so the V6 seemed like a good option. I really like the orange color of this car which was a factor in the decision.
• 9/14/22 On a wet Saturday morning this car hits a median on I-75 in Cincinnati. Deployed all the airbags, broke most every suspension piece, tore the LF fender and bumper cover off the car, moved the bottom of the driver side A pillar in about 2 inches.
• 11/25/22 After four weekly auctions they accepted my bid of $1350 which after fees was just over $1900
Walkaround video: https://youtu.be/eIHj3ZrWnWw
• 1/1/23 Rolls off the trailer and moves under its own power
• 7/26/23 Back half of the car is straightened and assembled
• 3/3/24 Reaches point of maximum disassembly of the front left
• 6/3/24 Moves again under its own power


Pre-Work Assessment:

1) LF apron and shock tower are moved toward the center of the car
a. Strut tower brace is bent
b. Subframe is bent a bit on LF, and around the LF lower control arm connecting points
c Lower half of A pillar on driver side is pushed in - bottom is about 1 1/2" closer to passenger side than it should be

2) Suspension
LF
a. Both lower control arms broken
b. Upper control arm U is broken
c. Tie rod is bent
d. Knuckle is also broken in two places, top ball joint separated
e. Brake hose broken, brake line is damaged, rotor is broken, one brake pad missing
RF
a. Both lower control arms broken
b. Tie rod is bent
c. Knuckle broken in two places
LR suspension
a. Broken knuckle, outer CV boot cut, lower control arm bent, other control arms bent, other parts TBD
RR suspension
a. Broken knuckle, outer CV boot torn open, lower control arm bent, other control arms bent, other parts TBD

3) Wheels
a. LF, LR, RF wheels all broken

4) Under the hood
a. Strut tower brace is bent
b. Windshield washer motor is broken and wiper linkage possibly damaged
c. Radiator is separated between core and can on one side, can cracked on other side
d. A/C line crushed on driver side
e. Motor mount bolts bent over on driver side
f. Radiator pressure canister appears intact, but one retaining tab is broken
g. Plastic trim in front of the core support are both intact
h. Radiator fan assembly has a small crack in the shroud
i. IAT sensor is damaged throwing check engine light

5) Body
a. Both front fenders with significant damage
b. Nose piece, supporting plastic components, grille, headlights are all missing
c. Driver lower A pillar pushed in
d. Driver side floor pan is buckled
e. Driver door bowed out at the window edge – door structure is bent
f. Driver door has a hole due to abrasion
g. Driver quarter panel are through due to abrasion
h. Driver side door jamb B pillar is bent
e. Passenger door has slight damage lower rear part of the door
f. Passenger rear quarter also has abrasions
g. Trunk will not latch down – looks like it was forced so mechanism out of alignment
h. Trunk hinge on passenger side has a bent arm in it so it will not close down level with the fender

6) Interior
a. Airbags: Driver, passenger, side curtain and seat airbags all blown
b. Seat belts - both belt and buckle retractors deployed on both sides in front
c. Passenger side window will go down but not back up
d. Driver seat back forcibly removed and damaged
e. Center console back is missing
f. Passenger side console cover half removed

9) Other
a. Battery support is bent, battery damaged, some electrolyte found in the trunk
b. battery is dead
c. dash lights on: TPMS, check engine, ABS, washer fluid level, air bag, seat belt, trunk open

10) Notes
a. Car is clean underneath
b. Roof and trunklid appear straight
b. Has aftermarket CAI – though the cone is a bit crunched
c. Mufflers and resonators have been replaced with straight pipe
d. Serpentine belt is intact – appears no head on direct contact

I think I figured out what happened to that car:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IHihGPyxe10

-BP

This car went up for auction for four weeks. I missed the first one. After that they offered a "buy it now" price. For week 2 is was $2750, for week 3 it was $2250, for week four it was $1950. Of course no one took these offers. The bidding for these weeks went between $1350 and $975. My winning bid was $1350. They tried to negotiate but I already decided my limits and figured it would be there next week and maybe cheaper.

This was the day after Thanksgiving. The weather looked decent so I decided to pick it up the following Monday. It was located 180 miles away north of Cincinnati. I had them put it on the trailer backwards - and fetched the wheel assembly out of it beforehand. I tried to retrieve the key, but I hadn't brought any tools to cut wire. I tried with channel locks but was not successful. With my trailer having low sides I figured I would not be getting into the car for a while. I also tripped the lever to put the car in neutral so it could roll when the time comes. I left the gate at home figuring the car would hang off the back just a little bit. After loading the car I noticed the RR trailer tire was super low. I had a spare, a jack and a four way, but the u-bolt holding the spare the studs were too long and the four way would not reach the nuts! Well I figured the channel locks would work, but I inadvertently left them on the floor in the passenger side of the car. Well now the door only opens a few inches due to trailer and I can't reach them. Ended up fishing them out with a bungee cord.

The truck handled the load pretty well. I am now 100% convinced my gate - though it is wire mesh - is still a wind sail and create more drag than towing a car. I spent a little bit of time with it since then. I have the car up on blocks so I can get the suspension off, and get into the car. Needed to remove rear bumper cover to get the jack under it, so that got put back on temporarily. I got the LF suspension off. Also got the car started. The factory windows on these cars automatically lower just a little then go back up when the door closes so they seal up pretty good. Well, except when the window motor won't go up. I tried the switch and the window went auto down and wouldn't come back up. Opened up the door, pulled the window motor, and was able to manually raise the window. The trunk won't latch down, it looks like someone who knew what they were doing punched the latch to slide it forward and off the loop it connects. The radio synced with my phone and sounds good.
The color is Go Mango. As I was researching the paint code I found some people listing the color as Go Man Go. It wasn't til I got to the Dodge site that I learned it was Go Mango. So I've been calling this car the "Go Man Go" car since then.

Some projects are a challenge. This looks like one of them. It ought to
keep you busy for a bit!

GM

Front suspension now ready for a lot drive.

Broken parts off and prepped for welding Both tie rods needed straightening - this is before and after for one of them Cut 'N Paste doing the paste with TIG. Cast steel parts required some learning about what rod to use. No brakes on LF, several bushings are loose, but the wheels should stay under it.

Busy week getting rear suspension in order and on the car.

Had to fabricate parts of the upper control arm they were lost in the accident - you can see that in the pic below Today I finished prep and installed the parts - learned fairly quickly that the lower control arms are quite bent. Because of this the toe and camber in the back are off by a mile.

Also found the brakes are completely inoperable - which meant I had to ease it off the trailer using gravity and tow rope to ease it down. Once the front wheels were on the ground I was able to drive it the rest of the way off the trailer and park in front of the garage.

The Challenger has a new face. Picked these up from a auto customization business along with the factory seat upholstery. They had a customer who wanted to upgrade the look of his car to the Demon and these were leftovers.

More triage:
* Kurt helped bleed the brakes so the car can now stop itself.
* Removed both rear lower control arms for straightening and reinstalled.
* Basic interior cleaning - including removing airbags and reattaching rear view mirror
* Found rain to be leaking in and traveling under the carpet. To address, locate damage at base of windshield and did some temporary taping to divert the water, and removed a plug in the floor to allow water to run out
* Straighten lower radiator support, basic straightening of upper core support and a bit of bending on the hood - getting the hood down has the water running toward the front of the car
* Put some rust preventative coating on the areas where metal was exposed
Had a chance to look under the car - the floor pan on the driver side is buckled, and both rear quarters are pushed in about an inch, and the rear of the front subframe is flattened a bit in one spot. Unclear how this happened but if it were a flat surface the exhaust would have been damaged as well.

My opinion is that if you plan to actually drive that car, especially with any aggression, I would tie the subframes together at least, and maybe even make some sort of X support underneath that car. The way those floors are so wavy, I have to think a good part of the structural integrity has been compromised. Or a roll cage...

-BP

This weekend the Challenger came in and got some work. This project is so huge I tried to focus on some small things.

* Re-established the engine cooling system

The radiator was a little bent, the passenger side can was partially separated. I decided to fix it. I pried back all the tabs holding the can on and removed it. I then used a piece of wood and a hammer to straighten the cores. This worked and I was able to put it all back together. Leak test uncovered a crack in the driver side can. This I removed and plastic welded. We'll see if it holds.

The cooling fan shroud was cracked at one of the bolt holes holding it to the radiator. This I plastic welded back together and melted a small piece of steel mesh into the plastic for strength.

After assembly I was able to fill the system with radiator fluid and run the car for 10 minutes to get up to operating temp. It sounds good.

* Cleaned up the battery/spare well in the trunk.

During the crash the battery was damaged and leaked out some of the acid. It was eating the unpainted metal - bolt heads, etc. Washed the spare, jack, battery tray and the trunk floor to neutralize that acid.

* Made a temporary join for LF upper control arm so it doesn't bang around every time I turn the wheel.


Having a running car should help me when I'm trying to straighten things.
After it was cleaned up: Kinda gross but luckily not too much - firecrackers, crayon, broken glasses, mixed with a bit of electrolyte

It was nice on Sunday afternoon so I went out and played with the wreck:

Straightened the front bumper with a come-along and a tree until it started moving the car. Wanted to be able to remove wiper fluid bottle and see how well this might straighten. Might use the porta power to push on it a bit next time I get to this.

pass side before pass side after driver side before driver side after Opened the driver door and found the B pillar in the door jamb needs some help too. At least it will open and latch closed The check engine light is on - its the intake air temp sensor which was apparently damaged when it was removed from the CAI during the crash. Many other lights are on also Removed the lower seat belt mount bolt to take the tension off the belts. Since the belts were guitar string tight I know that neither the driver nor passenger were wearing them at the time of the crash

The A/C has at least one bad line as it was crushed between the chassis and the engine

The back of the driver seat was damaged when it was forcibly removed - but I was able to at least partially reattach so it's not just flopping there til I get it fixed/replaced

My friend Scott said this is my "ship in a bottle" project.

As it turns out there is also an ambient air temperature sensor, which I discovered missing after the check engine light returned. Once I saw a picture of it I realized I had one, and was able to take it and the pigtail connector from the parts car. The passenger door window still does not go up. Did some digging on this and was able to test the window motor, which works in both directions. There is a control module that I think may need to be recalibrated but I need a scan tool.

I also figured out how to store the jack correctly and secured it. Working on some small things now.

The battery I'm using is not holding a charge well. When it's low on power it kicks out all kinds of codes. I also noticed the touch screen on the dash is randomly showing buttons being pressed even though I am not pressing any buttons. I first reasoned the buttons in the wheel may have been damaged from airbag deployment, however after removing the airbag and disconnecting those controls it still did the same thing. I tried charging the battery, then running the car and it still did it. More to come on this.

Took a little time to assess the damage and start working on a plan of attack.

Not sure where to start but the right side is less messed up so I figure maybe straighten that then I can use that as a reference. With this in mind I pulled the RF fender to see what was under there. In general the base of the frame rail looks straight but the fender support at the front end is bent inward, and there is other minor damage in the wheel well.

Comparing the Challenger to the Charger the parts car I see some similarities in the infrastructure but some things are different. Still think I can use some of the parts, but going to be a bit more deliberate about measuring before I take stuff off the Charger. Might also need to sell the drivetrain before I cut up the front of that car.

I also took stock of what was bent on the driver side. There is at least one structural component of the firewall that is bent up and it goes all the way across the front of the firewall, so I'll have to figure out if I'm going to straighten or just replace part of it.

I found some video of a guy who replaced the frame rails on a 2018 Challenger and that was very enlightening. He ended up having to remove everything forward of the firewall, which gave me an excellent understanding of how all the parts come apart/fit together. This means the engine and trans will need someplace to go while this project is in process. Also the entire dash and everything behind it has to come out to avoid catching stuff on fire when welding back together, and figure the center console, carpet and seats need to be out also. This is making me think I really need to sell something to make room. Stuff to check: 1) see if the bolt holes for the subframe are egg shape from the crash impact 2) the windows will not go up if the door is open so make sure there is not some sensor that is misaligned on passenger door.

So for now I put the passenger fender back on the car as I better prepare the workspace and plan next steps. I think the crux of the matter is going to be getting the post for the driver door, the support on the firewall and the LF frame rail all straight.

My plan is evolving. In order to get the structural parts I need off the parts car I'm going to need to get the engine out - so the next step is to sell that engine. I tried FB marketplace but no solid leads yet. Recently put it on Craigslist and LX Forum. I've also started listing misc other parts on ebay just to start the process of getting rid of the parts car.

The other parts I need are the rear suspension so I started on that. The LR on the parts car is toed in. I can't see anything obvious yet as to why. I suspected the toe link was bent but it seems to be same length as the other side. The knuckle itself is not cracked or broken. It's possible the upper front control arm is bent, or maybe the lower. I'll know more once I get it apart and start comparing part lengths. One problem with rear suspension disassembly is that front upper control arm is hard to remove - due to the bolt being installed on the rear subframe before it goes into the car, and once its in there the bolt hits the floor pan and will not clear it. Either going to have to lower the subframe, cut the bolt and get replacements, or make an access hole in the floor pan.

Busy week:

1) Removed the knuckle, stabilizer link and two control arms (all parts Kurt welded for lot drive) from each side of parts car rear suspension and from the Challenger.

Turns out the upper control arm is steel on the police car, while it is aluminum on the Challenger. Dimensions are the same.
Cleaned up the metal parts as they had a bunch of surface rust and painted them flat black.
2) Reverse the process and install the good rear suspension parts on the Challenger, and the bad parts on the Charger. The combo of the bent control arm that was on the Charger, and the bent parts off the Challenger had the LR tire on the Charger like 1/4" from hitting the wheel well, after I maxed out the toe out adjustment. Still lot drives!

And the Challenger for the first time in a while has rear hubs that appear to be aligned. I'll confirm this once I put the car back on the ground. I still have to take this apart again to replace the outer CV boots. I thought CV boots would be inexpensive but I can only find them from Mopar and they are $75 each side for CV boots. I hate to do reman halfshafts since I've had mixed success with them. The halfshafts from the Charger are longer, and all the internals are bigger so I can't even pilfer the CV boots from there.
Up next should be the heavy lifting of the left front damage, but I'm stalling a bit until I get rid of the Charger engine. So I decided the next step would be to start straightening the rear fenders.

3) Start on straightening LR fender.

I started with the front of the wheel well. Removed inner fenders and insulation that was on the metal inner fender. This part holds the fender in place, and was bowed out considerably. Using the porta power and a hammer I was able to move that metal until the bowed out section was flat, telling me I was in the ballpark on fender positioning. Test fitting the inner fender allowed for a good point of reference to make a few additional adjustments. The metal is quite malleable - I was pushing on the bowed out section using the brake caliper bracket to push against. Up next was the back of the wheel well to the back of the fender. Similar to the front, the interior supporting metal was bowed in and folded on itself. Also along the bottom edge of the fender, the entire section is pushed inward, and the supporting metal was folded into a V shape. It took some creative massaging to bring these things back into reasonable shape. Used the porta power, hammer, various brass punches to get the metal to move. Had to cut a metal panel in the trunk to get access to the inside of the fender. Was able to do this without pounding on the outside surface so I can do what I choose with the existing patina. I'm not calling this done until I put the rear bumper cover back on for fitment. It may not look like much in the pics but it's definitely a lot better. I'll get to the wavy sheet metal in front of the wheel well at some point. 4) Start on straightening the RR fender.

Had some time to work on the front of this wheel well also.