Before any of us were old enough to be called “car guys”, we were just kids sitting in front of the television set. Unbeknownst to us at the time, sitting in front of that TV and watching our favorite shows was molding our psyche’s into the kind of “car guys” we would grow up to be. For some, it was Speed Racer with his Mach 5.

It’s tough to see in the photo, but Dana really upgraded the tail lights as they are now sequential LED’s that replace the factory 1157 bulbs.

The youngsters watching this probably grew up to be rocket scientists or Indy car drivers. But, some of us — like Dana Hinkle, grew up watching cars fly through the air as Bo and Luke Duke would jump their Charger over and through buildings.

Every week, Dana would watch the Duke boys as they would foil the ploys of Sheriff Roscoe P. Coltrane and his fat little buddy, ending with the moral-of-the-story being that good does prevail. While that moral was the underlying plot, it was the Charger that really captured the hearts of pre greasy-fingered car guys. None of us realize it at the time, but we were hooked. Speaking honestly, how many of you guys either tried to slide across the hood of your mom’s car, or get out through the window? C’mon, you know you did.

Dana Hinkle of Ramona, California, has definitely grown into a car guy, but in his words, “You won’t catch me driving or building cars that are ‘popular’”. While the Dodge Charger is a fairly popular muscle car, Hinkle had a plan to keep his Charger from being just another restored Charger. The idea behind the build was to leave the body virtually stock, because Dana says that he loves the body lines. In his words, “It would be a shame to widen the body, or even shave the door handles”. But on the other hand, he has no problem with changing things like the paint, engine, suspension, rear end, transmission, wheels and tires, and the interior.

When Dana started conceptualizing the project, it was understood that the car was to be built with one idea in mind: to make sure that the car was able to be driven hard, and at will. With that in mind, Dana outlined a plan that would make sure the Charger would be not only a reliable driver with a butt-load of style and power, but also deliver a comfortable ride with great handling.

In a sinister throwback to the classic Scat Pack Bee, the skeletonized insect certainly packs a punch.

That being said, every project has a beginning, and this one began in 2009 when Dana found the car in his hometown of Ramona. When he bought the car, it was complete — and drivable. He initially thought that the body was in great shape, and he even enjoyed driving it around town for a while. That is until a thorough restoration began. That’s when his body guy Steve Feher got started.

When it came back from the paint stripper, Steve let Dana know in no uncertain terms, that the car had been the recipient of some “shoddy” body repair. Steve found that the right rear ¼-panel was “scabbed” on, and the entire trunk floor was there, but rusty enough that it might as well be gone. Dana quips, “All I can remember him saying is ‘you should have let me check it out before you bought it’”.

To say that the car was rough is an understatement, as it took roughly 1,000 hours to repair the rust-afflicted areas, and straighten the body panels. In other words, there was a lot of body work to do. It could have taken longer, but fortunately, there was no rust on the rest of the body, just minor dents. The doors, hood, deck lid, and front fenders were in really good shape.

While the body was off being whipped into shape, Dana set a plan in motion to put a Hemi under the hood. There isn’t a Mopar guy out there that doesn’t want to own a car with a Hemi, so that was this Charger’s destiny. But, Dana was going to add a twist to the vintage car’s power plant. He contacted Indy Cylinder Head in Indianapolis, Indiana, and when the machining and assembly was done, what Dana has under the hood of his Charger is a 6.1-liter based 426 Hemi.

Even though it’s a Gen III Hemi, this 426 looks right at home in the Extreme Charger.

The block has a 4.090-inch bore, that is filled with Diamond Racing pistons. There is a steel Compstar crankshaft with 4.050-inch throws, along with Compstar H-Beam connecting rods. The hydraulic roller cam is from Comp Cams (.575/.575-inch lift, and 244/248-degrees of duration at .050-inch lift), and 6.1-liter Hemi rocker arms and Manley valve springs control air movement in the ported 5.7-liter Hemi heads.

Finally, a TWM eight-stack injection system by Borla induction is serving duty on a Mod-Man intake, and is controlled by FAST XFI and XIM controllers. Finally, oil is fed from a Milodon oil pan. The stroked engine delivers 600 horsepower at 7,000 rpm, and 500 lb/ft. of torque at 5,400 rpm.

Hinkles Hot Rods always has something in the works, and we got a peek under the covers of this build, but we promised not to tell. Expect to see this beast at a major upcoming car show next year…or the year after.

Considering that a stock Gen II 426 Hemi is rated at 425 horsepower from the factory, that’s not a bad upgrade. Behind that Gen III Hemi is a GM Performance Parts 4L70E Supermatic transmission with a cockpit controller that allows the driver to switch from either a four speed auto or manual mode.

Building a lot of horsepower is one thing, but if you’re going to make that power, the suspension better be able to handle it. For that reason, Dana felt the need to upgrade to an XV Motorsports Level II front end. What that gives Hinkle’s Charger is an aluminum k-member and lower control arms, aluminum uprights with modern, sealed-bearing hubs, and tubular-steel upper control arms.

The ride is smoothed with custom-valved aluminum-bodied coilovers, and a quick ratio variable-rate rack and pinion steering help carve those sharp corners. Finally, NASCAR-inspired tubular sway bars make sure that you can laugh at those corners as you go through them. Rounding out the rear suspension is a Dana 60 suspended by XV’s three-link rear suspension.

When you have enough power to go, you need quality brakes to bring it all to a whoa. Knowing that the factory push-and-pray drum brakes—and even run-of-the-mill disc brakes wouldn’t cut it, Hinkle chose to use a Hydratech braking system. A hydroboost hydraulic brake assist booster is a powerful alternative to a vacuum-assist booster. This type of brake assist uses the hydraulic pressure from the power steering system instead of relying on engine vacuum to provide reliable braking

If you’re planning to build a roadworthy car, it is going to need a good comfortable interior. So, Dana installed a pair of Recaro six-way heated and ventilated power seats to gives the driver and passenger a place to park their keisters. A set of Shroth seat belts keeps them firmly in place. The jet black vinyl upholstery and Mercedes-sourced plush carpet let’s everyone know that this is no ordinary Charger.

It didn’t take much coaxing to get Hinkle to lay some rubber for us.

If that doesn’t convince you, check out the dash cluster – the typical six-gauge cluster found in just about every other Charger has been tossed, and smack dab in the center is an MFDL dash logger from Auto Meter to provide the vitals.

While Dana did get help from a couple of shops for paint and fabrication, he’s quick to point out that he did a lot of preassembly fitment, design, wiring, and final assembly with the help of his boys Dylan, Bryan, Robert.

The boys are to be commended, as what they have built is truly an animal of a road car, and Hinkle showed the crowd at the Goodguys Del Mar Nationals in April that this Xtreme Charger can put the rubber down and smoke the hides.

If you like the wheels, they are by HRE, and measure 19 x 9, and 19 x 10 inches. The tires are Yokohama’s Advan Sport’s, measuring 275/40 ZR 19 front and 255/40 ZR 19 rear. Pete “Hot Dog” Finlan gets props for the paint work.