Built by: Eric Grey in Palo Alto, California

The Dodge Charger III doesn't look, smell, or feel like a Charger. I never felt like I was building one of the great American muscle cars. It doesn't take a genius to think "Corvette." This was clearly Chrysler's attempt at testing those waters. I think one description of the Charger III on a web site was "stillborn." If you Google"Charger III" you don't get much--a stock publicity photo, a drawing, and a few toys. I didn't do a lot of research on this car, but it obviously got nowhere. Maybe it was the first Viper!

I bought this on ebay for about $25. The first challenge was that it had no directions. To make matters worse, there were about 20 extra parts in the box from other show rods. It was like putting together a jigsaw puzzle. I'm still not sure if I got all the pieces on.

This seemed like a car you could go for any color combo. I liked the thought of Candy Scarlet. I was tempted to blast some pearl over it but I kept it a solid color. I went for a two tone leather looking interior.

Interesting notes about the car. The dash and steering column lift up when you lift the cockpit--a nice feature for a model. I never did understand the airplane-like breaking spoilers. There were two gas cap-looking chrome pieces and I had no idea where they went, so I stuck them where the fit---under the
spoilers.

There is a compartment on the hood behind the front wheel (driver's side). On photos and on the box there is clearly a latch and the Charger III emblem. But for some reason the latch and emblem never made it on to the model. The name however is on the passenger's side. Perhaps the most exciting feature of the model is it has "hollow baloney tires." (Whatever that is).

I must admit, 40 years later this car looks pretty good. I think the design holds up well and if they produced it today, it wouldn't look out of place or dated.