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The Family Customs Dodge Charger R/T 5.7L Hemi V8 is like no other you’ve ever seen! One look at it and the first words out of your mouth will be, “Damn! That’s a hot ride!” And because it’s such an impeccable build, it was chosen as one of the “Hottest Dodge Sedans” at the 2016 SEMA Show by SEMA News Magazine. The mastermind behind the ride is Nick Lopez of Family Customs, who has long been building custom cars with his father, brother and son.
Since 2004, they’ve featured 12 of their builds at SEMA and their last one is their masterpiece. Combining his love for everything “Star Wars” and his passion for cars, Nick came up with #VaderCharger to show what his shop is fully capable of. “Nothing goes together better than an iconic American movie, such as ‘Star Wars’ and modern American muscle,” he describes.
To get it to look like one one of the most legendary villains in cinematic history, Nick and his crew started with their exclusive 4K carbon fiber body kit – a Family Customs specialty. “We never really embraced our options for body kits that were available for our projects, so we started designing our own,” he reveals. “We make them in a very high-quality 4K carbon fiber and have also created our own in-house composite of fiberglass reinforced with aluminum body kits.” To give it a dark side demeanor, the Charger was dressed by Daley Visuals in a black wrap with red stripes, while its red accents are reminiscent of the lightsaber wielded by the most infamous Star Wars villain, Darth Vader. The Charger can park low and hard thanks to Airride equipment with an AccuAir E-Level air management system, sitting on a set of one-off Triumph Forged 22” CV.EX 3-piece wheels, which sets off its aggressive stance.
The Charger was already packing heat in terms of power thanks to its Hemi V8 engine, but that wasn’t enough for Nick, who added a Corsa Performance Cat-Back exhaust with X-pipe and black chrome tips, a Corsa Performance cold air intake system and a DiabloSport modified PCM and Trinity combo. To help curb that power, R1 Concepts 8-piston front and 6-piston rear forged calipers paired with two-piece rotors, give it the necessary control and stopping power.
And if you thought the outside made a statement, the interior is just as impressive with its themed headliner of the original 1977 movie poster of “Star Wars” designed by Wuz Up Headliners. Custom two-tone Katzkin leather is used in the seats and throughout the interior to complete the package. A “Vader Mask” trunk and audio display designed by 7D Customs loaded with Kicker audio products for massive sound is another highlight of their complete theme ride.
Since this build went beyond normal bolt-on mods, it took roughly 10 months to get it all done for SEMA. But it was all worth it when it was finally unveiled because it was one of the hottest customs displayed at the renowned auto aftermarket show. It has since then become a social media sensation and was recently sold for another automotive enthusiast to enjoy. But that doesn’t mean Nick and his shop are simply going to bask in the success of #VaderCharger. “We are always trying to achieve the latest and greatest in our builds and already have two projects in the planning stages that we think are going to be totally different from our usual projects,” he confesses. “We always like to challenge ourselves and push ourselves out of our comfort zone when developing a new custom. We are about to break your necks on this next one!”
TECH SPECS : 2015 DODGE CHARGER R/T 5.7L HEMI V8
Wheels & Tires
- Triumph Forged Wheels 22” CV.EX 3 piece forged wheels
- Toyo Proxes T1R Tires
- Tire Stickers for tire personalization
Performance
- R1 Concepts 8-piston front and 6-piston rear forged calipers paired w/ two-piece rotors
- Doug Thorley stainless steel long tube headers
- Diablo Sport Modified PCM & Trinity Combo
- Corsa Performance Cat-Back exhaust system w/ X-pipe
- Corsa Performance Cold air intake
- HPS Performance red high performance cooling hoses
Suspension
- AccuAir E-Level Air Management
- Airride Equipment for air ride installation
Exterior
- Family Customs 6 Piece Carbon Fiber body kit
- Exclusive Image Paint & Autobody for customs paint and body mods
- Daley Visuals for exterior graphics and interior wrap
- Tintman Online 20% all the way around with 5% front windshield
- Trufiber A80 carbon fiber hood
Interior
- WuzUp Graphic Headliners “Star Wars” Headliner
- Katzkin Leather kit w/ two tone interior
Audio
- 7DCustoms audio design and installation
- (2) 10” Kicker Q10 subwoofers
- (4) Kicker CSS67 component sets
- (2) Kicker CX1200.1 amplifiers
- Odyssey 48-720 High Output Battery
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SOURCES
Family Customs – FamilyCustoms.net
| FB – /Ca.FamilyCustoms | IG – @FamilyCustoms
