1:18 AUTOart CHRYSLER VALIANT CHARGER E38 - VITAMIN C (1971)

Australia has been a pretty lucky country over the years for muscle car enthusiasts. Names like Monaro, GTHO, Falcon, Commodore and Torana all spring to mind instantly when the topic of muscle cars gets raised around any Aussie motoring enthusiast. The Chrysler Charger can also lay claim to being an integral member of the aforementioned group with many passionate punters still claiming that the Charger was the best of the lot!

The Charger was introduced to Australia in 1971 by Chrysler Australia. This short Wheelbase two door coupe was exceptionally popular during this period both locally and in New Zealand where they were imported and built from kits. Even the motoring journo’s rated the Charger highly, awarding it the coveted Wheels Car Of The Year award in the year of its release. Starting with the Charger R/T as the base machine, the E38 was the code applied to the homologation special of the Charger after it had been ‘bulked up’ with a higher power output 280 bhp Hemi 6 and Weber carbs.

As was the norm back in the day, the Charger was destined for the proving grounds of Australian racing and things got off to a perfect start at Oran park in 1971 where Doug Chivas won on the cars debut. This winning success was limited however, particularly at Australia’s Greatest Race which was the one that mattered the most in the eyes of the manufacturers and punters. Bathurst always featured strong opposition from Holden and Ford with the Charger never managing to get to the top step of the podium. The Charger was yet another victim of the ‘Supercar Scare” of 1972 with Chrysler abandoning its official touring car programs in Australia, so it was a case of ‘what might have been’ for many Charger fans. Interestingly enough in New Zealand however, the Charger was almost unbeatable for the better part of the 1970s due to different rules compared to Australia!

While the wasn’t mountains of success on track in Australia, the Charger still received plenty of fan fare. With the E38’s striking array of bold colours, blacked out grille, R/T stripes, decals, optional black paint out bonnet and the vehicles performance capabilities, it wasn’t hard to see why these cars quickly earned their now iconic status.

The 1:18 Scale Vitamin C E38 Charger above is the perfect replication of this amazing Aussie muscle car. Produced in die-cast alloy featuring fully opening parts, high details including the Hemi 6 engine, wheels, interior, undercarriage and impressive interior and exterior finishing, this is one limited edition model that deserves a home in any Australian muscle car collection.