Nick Suckow of Dallas, Wisconsin is a seasoned mechanic who, in the late 1980s, suffered a fate that would change his life forever. An enthusiast born with horsepower in his blood, Suckow bought his ’68 Charger for $1,500 in 1984 while he was still a junior in high school, and had big plans for the Mopar.

While on the road to Texas from Wisconsin on his honeymoon, Nick and his wife traveled north to find a potential vehicle buy that Suckow, at the time, had had his eye on. The kind of car buff who knows a potential flip when he sees one, Nick and his wife went to go check out the ride.

It had only been five years since Nick was in high school and had bought the Charger, but it wasn’t the Dodge or Nick’s previous experience on Germany’s Autobahn that paralyzed him from the chin down, and in fact on the very day that he became challenged, Nick Suckow was wearing a seat belt and was traveling no faster than 35 miles per hour.

The couple had been towing a Ford Bronco behind Nick’s Grand Prix, and when nick tried to straighten the truck on a rough, paved road, one of its front tires got caught in a pothole, the tie rod snapped, the truck’s driver’s side seat belt broke and the Bronco landed on top of Nick’s neck as he lie in a ditch, leaving him unable to move.

Trying everything possible to cope with a then-new disability, Nick spent a lot of time between home and the hospital. His marriage eventually ended, and Suckow was a man who was bombarded by a myriad of physical and personal challenges. Be that as it was, those obstacles would not stop the Wisconsin gearhead from living-out his Mopar fantasy.

That “fantasy” would eventually become fact in the form of Nick’s high school Charger, as he would strive to bring the car back to life and make it even better than its first run. Over a period of fifteen years, Nick, who at that point was unable to even drive, would supervise his Dodge’s restoration, going to check its progress when he was able.

Chippewa Falls’ Muscle Car Restorations was responsible for the Charger’s revamp, and Nick was able to secure money for the build by selling motorcycle accessories online and designing websites. It was a fairly long restoration, and at an installment rate of $12,000 per year, Nick invested nearly $250,000 into his radical, Mopar build.

Though unable to pilot his monster machine, Nick was still able to enjoy his blown HEMI creation via the abled hands of willing drivers. Eau Claire, Wisconsin’s WEAU 13 reported in November of 2008 that Suckow’s Charger was stolen from his Wisconsin home while he was in Las Vegas, with his in-home nurses, playing at a poker tournament. Nick had earned the opportunity to play in the tournament after winning a hand at a bar near Ridgeland, Wisconsin.

For the Wisconsin local, losing the blown Dodge was to lose a lifetime investment, but for Nick, it also meant losing a lifetime of treasured moments, “There’s a lot of memories with that vehicle,” Nick told WEAU in ’08. Without a doubt, Suckow endured what has to be every gearheads’ worst nightmare, but those who were around Nick were also affected by the unfortunate circumstance, “It makes all of hurt just as bad, maybe not as bad as him, but it takes away his motivation and we need that in him,” friend David Williams tells WEAU about Nick’s Charger.

Since that time, Nick’s Mopar has not been recovered by the Barron County’s Sheriff’s Department, but our featured video is still testament to the fact that a person with all kinds of barriers ahead was able to overcome them. As Suckow transfers from his wheelchair to the Dodge via cherry picker, he becomes a hero to those of us who are challenged who happen to love the motoring hobby, but he’s an inspiration to the motoring community as a whole.

It’s unfortunate that Nick Suckow never did recover the blown Mopar that was such an important aspect of his past life, but with the level of strength and determination he possesses, we just know that a muscle car restoration project will be in his near future. Hopefully, we’ll be able to bring that to you if it happens. Do you have an inspiring story, or a story of a car that you invested your time in, only to have some punks steal it away from you? Tell us about it below.