1958 Fury Christine Hellephant Prototype SEMA Graveyard Carz

CHRISTINE
1958 PLYMOUTH
HELLEPHANT
ONE OF ONE

No car in history strikes terror in the hearts of informed car lovers, like "Christine". So, when MOPAR asked me to install the most evil crate engine ever made, into my choice of car, I could only see one clear choice...THIS IS IT! I thought to myself at the time, 'this will make history', and I was right. Debuting at the SEMA 2019 show in Las Vegas, in the official FCA/MOPAR booth, this car took everyone by storm. Not just the fact that it's one of the most stunning and correct Christine tribute cars, but that his has the world's very first "HELLEPHANT" crate engine and controller. Serial number on the block is "0001"!!! This was one of the top photographed and celebrated cars at the show this year. Written about in many magazines, online blogs and trade publications, this car was an instant piece of automotive history.
It's important to note that this car is not done and ready to ship. There was a rush to have the car at SEMA, so we did what we had to do to get it there on time. Basically, that means we didn't have the time to QC and fit everything like we wanted, so we're doing that now. We do have to rework the bodywork on the left and right quarter due to filler cracking at the molding attaching points. Final assembly and delivery will be May 2020. The car can be inspected at any time and I would encourage you to do so.
There is a lot to talk about on this car so I'm going to break down the details into sections, here goes.
The Car:It started life as a 1958 Plymouth Fury two-door hardtop. It is also a factory Red car with a white painted roof. It featured a 318 Poly engine, which I still have and goes with the car. It was a 2 speed automatic push-button transmission. The car came from Benton Arkansas, at least that's where I bought it from. When I got the car it was very complete and overall, in decent shape. The rust issues were in the floors, inner rockers, trunk floor and bottoms of the quarters. For this operation I bought a donor car from California so it would be correct and rust free. I bought it with a clear, Arkansas title and will transfer it into "Graveyard Carz" name for prosperity, if the new owner wishes.
The Body:
The body panels, trim, ornamentation, interior, dash, drivetrain and chassis, were all original to the car and complete, for the most part. We had the body shell, trunk lid, hood, doors, fenders, front valances (3), rear valances (2) acid dipped to remove old paint, filler, sealers and rust. After returning from the dipper, we mounted the shell on a rotisserie and welded in reinforcements to maintain door openings, width and length of the body. The main floor, inner rocker panels (left and right), trunk floor, trunk floor extensions and bottoms of the quarter panels, were rusty and needed replaced. I opted to purchase a used, rust free, original main floor section and complete rear clip from an original California car. We had the donor parts dipped as well to ensure no rust would survive. We installed the panels as complete as possible to maintain the OE appearance. Spot welding and Mig welding were used to install the new/used parts as well as 3M Panel Bond Adhesive where access with a welder was impossible. The rear body panel (tail light panel) was also rusty and damaged. The car came with an NOS panel, so we installed that with a spot welder to duplicate the factory appearance. Once the body panels were replaced the car was smoothed out using filler. After filler it was primed and blocked multiple times to gain a flat, smooth appearance. Final paint is PPG Concept single stage urethane. All products used on this car are 3M products, from the etch primer to the top coat and all products in between.
The Interior
As mentioned, the interior was originally a Savoy style interior, so we had to make some changes. The instrument panel was sent out to the country's foremost enthusiast (James Rawa) to be restored. He converted the speedometer to the have the Fury's "150" mph version. He also altered the odometer to run backwards, just as in the movie car. The dash assembly was disassembled, media blasted and refinished to match the exterior of the car. The front and rear seats were cut down in the center to appear as the Fury style seat. These were done from templates of originals for accuracy. The door trim panel bucks were made by Jim as well and are exact duplicates to the ones that appeared in the movie car. Including reliefs for the attaching clips. (most people choose to screw them on). The seat frames were media blasted as were the seat tracks and painted Gloss Black. The trim panel fabric and seat material is exact to the movie car, Christine (as near as any of us could tell-but no guarantee). We purchased the exact same fabric, both the tweed and vinyl, from the exact same vendor that supplied the production company, originally, for Christine. The material was all that was left and considered NOS, so the price was insane. Over $4,000.00 just in fabric and vinyl. All of the glass assemblies were disassembled, media blasted, chromed, anodized or painted, accordingly. New glass was cut for the door and quarter glass. The windshield and weatherstrip are brand new. The backglass is original but professionally restored. All of the interior trim, garnish moldings, steering wheel center, window cranks, door handles and bezels were triple plated rechromed. NO EXPENSE WAS SPARED and it shows in the finished product. The interior is trimmed out exactly as Christine the movie car was, right down to the rear seat Fury emblem. The only deviation is the headliner. Originally the headliner was a fiber board, three piece unit. Nobody remakes this headliner or the trim, so we opted for a replacement "bow style" headliner. It looks great but is NOT correct to the original movie car.
The Exterior:
All of the chrome was sent out for triple plating. This includes the very rare "Bumper Wings" as well as every piece of chrome, including pot metal and die cast. The chrome work alone on this car was in excess of $20,000.00. All of the factory anodized aluminum was stripped, polished and re-anodized by one of the industry leaders. These parts look better than factory and will outlast the factory finish. The anodizing was over $10,000.00 The stainless steel trim was sent to a professional trim shop to be straightened and polished. This included the hubcaps, roof moldings, windshield and back glass moldings, exterior handles, etc. Stainless repair was $9,000.00. These cars have a ton of chrome, stainless, anodizing and general plating, but when it's all restored, there's nothing more beautiful.
The Chassis:
The frame is the original frame the Belvedere started life with. It was really nice and the only welding we had to do was the modifications to accept the engine and transmission. After we had the updated mounts welded in and cleaned up, we had the entire frame powder coated in a semi gloss black. The front suspension is original, other than the front disc brake conversion. We installed all new wear items in the steering and suspension with P-S-T Polygraphite, including the idler arm. New front rotors, wheel bearings, seals and calipers were installed. The original power steering gear was sent to Firm Feel in Washington and received a complete overhaul with a "stage 2" upgrade for better response. The front shocks are a factory replacement. The rear shocks are air adjustable. Holley provided the VR2 brushless fuel pump system (12-3000) that was required with the Hellephant's thirst. The pump and regulators were over $2,500.00. New body cushions were installed at all mounting points.
The Drivetrain:
Hellephant-1,000 horsepower, 950 ft. lbs of torque. This is a brand new engine and concept for MOPAR. It's the first introduction of a 426 cubic inch engine in decades and it's all aluminum. The serial number on this engine is "0001". This very engine was unveiled at the MOPAR booth on the first day of the SEMA show, 2018. To be more specific, it was unveiled at precisely 4:26 PM and was covered by dozens of automotive news and bloggers, around the globe. While MOPAR did take orders on April 26th of this year, this is still the ONLY Hellephant in circulation, today. The transmission is a Silver Sport "A41", 4-Speed Automatic Overdrive. Moser Engineering 3.23:1 Eaton Truetrac Positraction with a 489 case. Coker Tire -American Classic Radial. Magnaflow Turbo Mufflers 3".
The Show:
This car was featured last season and this season on Graveyard Carz. This season it will appear in the season finale. Nearly every step of restoration was documented on video and we will compile a DVD with everything we have at the time. This car was written about in many articles online including Fox news, Hot Rod, MOPAR, Mopar Muscle, and many more. Just google "Graveyard Carz Christine". You will never have another chance to own a piece of automotive history, like this car. It's received the best care, parts and workmanship that can be done and still keeping the original spirit of a '58 Fury. The buyer needs to know that we have a commitment for the car to be at SEMA 2020. We will pay for the transportation to and from the show, but it will need to be made available. Please contact me prior to the auction end to discuss details as this is an expensive investment and we want to maintain total transparency about the build. I have decided to sell my personal car to fund our SEMA 2020 build. You won't want to miss that one, I promise!
International buyers are welcome. I can store and help ship this car, anywhere.