‘I don’t like to drive it that much other than to shows that are close by, but I do drive it just a little bit.’ That’s a strong statement from a car collector the stature of Chris Lehuede from Medford, Oregon, particularly when the car in question happens to be one of the best-looking original survivors from the age of the muscle cars. World, meet one of the greatest 1969 Dodge Chargers ever to have never received a restoration, drivetrain rebuild, parts replacement, or paint jobs.
If the name Chris Lehuede doesn’t sound familiar, you should get up-to-date by yesterday – the man has one of the best private collections of muscle cars (mostly Mopars) anywhere on Planet Piston. We’ve featured several of his gems on autoevolution.com in the past, and it’s time for another one – a piece that’s among the owner’s favorites. Why so? Read on.
First, it’s a Dodge Charger – and Chris’ first car was a 1968 Dodge Charger R/T he bought for $450 when he was 14. That was 46 years ago, and he still has that car. It’s not his only second-generation Charger R/T; he owns two more – both from 1969 – that he acquired more recently than the ’68.
However, one of them, the guest star of today’s story, is a cut above anything else. It’s a 1969 Road/Track model that had one owner before Chris bought it. Being the same model as General Lee is cool enough, but this car has a story to tell. The ardent dispute almost cut the ties between its first owner and his loved one back in 1969. However, the rowdy Charger ended up being the car in which the couple’s kids went to the ice cream shop together with their parents.
Photo: YouTube/Lou Costabile
The background is simple: a hothead Mopar fanatic ordered a muscle car in 1969—this car, a 440-cubic-inch automatic with a performance axle and an automatic three-speed TorqueFlite. (Side note: in 1969, the rear gearing mentioned meant either a 3:55 or a 4:10—the latter being a heavy-duty 9.75-inch Dana 60.)
The 440 cubic-inch V8 (7.2-liter) was the standard equipment for the Road/Track model, and it brought a nice 375 hp and 480 lb-ft to the Stoplight Grand Prix (380 PS and 651 Nm). That was the application the customer wanted to use the car in – and that racing obsession almost cost him his future. His girlfriend at the time wanted something else from her man: a family with children.
The gearheaded part of the man’s heart got the better of him, and the couple broke up. A couple of years went by (during which the car was raced extensively on Friday nights, garnering the most part of 9,880 miles – more about that number in a minute).
Photo: YouTube/Lou Costabile
During this period, the Charger was modified with the triple two-barrel carburetor Six Pack setup, a hot cam, headers, less-restrictive exhaust, Cragar gray- finish mag wheels shod in Atlas Bucron tires, and a Bell steering wheel. All the original pieces were carefully stored and later refitted to the car, right down to the complete original exhaust system.
The hardcore ‘Mopar or no car (and no wife)’ Charger owner got back together with his seetheart and went on a vacation with her. One thing led to another (read ‘the altar’), and the Charger racer guy became a family man. Naturally, kids came along, and the Charger’s glory days were sent to the archives.
However, the muscle car still saw some Friday night action – as a very composed driver for the whole family. After a while, it was parked, with the aforementioned 9,880 miles on the clock (just shy of 16,000 kilometers). After the owner’s passing, the car was acquired by a dealership and then sold to the man smiling proud behind the wheel in the video.Chris Lehuede got wind of the car a few years ago and immediately bought it – it was a no-brainer, really, in his case.
Photo: YouTube/Lou Costabile
He rarely takes it out, and last summer, the Charger got a well-deserved short drive for Lou Costabile’s YouTube channel. The short trips the Charger has made under the current ownership have some two thousand miles on the clock, and the odometer read 12,046 miles (19.386 kilometers) some ten months ago.
In 1969, the R/T package was a very hot option for the Charger, and 18,776 examples were ordered with it—432 of them carrying the 426 Hemi. The automatics accounted for 80% of the 440-cube four-barrel grand total (14,739). The car starring in the video is among the best-preserved examples left untouched (its owners kept it in a garage and ensured the car was regularly serviced) and Chris Lehuede openly admits he very much prefers to keep this in his garage. after all, he does five Charger R/Ts to choose from, so sparing this unique survivor won’t take away the man’s lead-footed guilty pleasures.
