In these horsepower-rich times we currently live in, it’s becoming all-too-easy to dismiss vintage iron as overpriced toys that, stats-wise, don’t really stack up to today’s garden-variety performance cars.

Every once in a while though, we get a swift kick to the back of the head that brings us to our senses. Today, that much-needed revelation is brought to us by the folks at Petrolicious and their excellent profile of “El Hemi”, a 1970 Dodge Challenger Hemi four-speed that’s been part of this family’s history since it rolled off the assembly line.

“The 1960s was a memorable time for Dodge,” explains owner Juan Escalante. “Dodge was on the cutting edge of performance, styling, and engineering.” And to look at this immaculate Hemi Orange example, we can’t see much reason to argue with that assertion.

Juan explains that only 137 Challengers built in the model’s inaugural year were optioned with the much sought-after combination of the 426ci Hemi motor and the four-speed manual gearbox.

Fortunately this is one of them, and it’s due in no small part to the fact that Juan’s father ordered the car to his specifications shortly after seeing its debut at the 1969 Detroit Auto Show.

From 1972 to 1996, the car lived with the Escalante family in Venezuela. Unsurprisingly, the car gained a reputation both for its regional rarity and fearsome performance, earning it the El Hemi moniker. Over the years the Challenger felt into disuse due to lack of parts availability, eventually getting parked in the late ’70s until Juan and his brother proposed the idea to Pops to bring the car to the U.S. for restoration back to its former glory.

While Escalante’s father passed away during the extensive restoration project, the results of his sons’ efforts speak for themselves. And to watch this Mopar glide along a back road at full song, it’s easy to remember why we got obsessed with muscle cars in the first place.