It's A Wrap (Really)

WE SEE MANY MODIFIED YET STREET-CAPABLE CHALLENGERS IN OUR TRAVELS. STEPHEN GORDON’S 2015 DODGE CHALLENGER STRETCHES THE DESIGN AND MODIFICATION ENVELOPE, STOPPING JUST SHORT OF THE LINE.

- Richard Truesdell

Attending this year’s LX Fest at Auto Club Speedway, one could not help but be blown away by more than two thousand examples of Chrysler 2005 and newer rear-wheel-drive performance legacy. Over the event’s 15 years, it has gone through several transitions in its focus, having started out primarily as a Chrysler 300–centered event. But in 2008, with the introduction of the Dodge Challenger SRT8, all that changed. The focus first shifted to Dodge and then specifically to the Challenger.

This year the field was dominated by all sorts of Challengers, from deadstock to modified to barely street-legal. Of course, Dodge offers its own take in the barely street-legal category, but none as outlandish as this 2015 Dodge Challenger Hellcat owned by deeply-committed Dodge enthusiast Stephen Gordon of Bakersfield, California.

His enthusiasm is infectious, as was proven to us when we introduced ourselves as being from Mopar Muscle. He couldn’t wait to show us all the upgrades he incorporated into his Hellcat. Like many younger enthusiasts who have come of age in the period since the original Chrysler 300 and Dodge Magnum were introduced in spring 2004 for the 2005 model year, Stephen grew up with a love of cars at an early age. This included a pedal car, Mattel Hot Wheels, and a series of remote control cars.

“My first car,” says Gordon, somewhat ironically given the origins of the LX platform, “was a used 1985 Mercedes-Benz 190 E purchased when I was around 17 years old. As anyone could imagine, it had well over 100,000 miles on it when I took ownership yet I took so much pride in that car. I kept it in pristine condition, washing and waxing it probably more than it needed to be. I’d say the only downside to the vehicle at the time was that it didn’t have enough power for me.”