For my 3rd gen brethren...KWS's 1972 Charger!

[pettyfan43]

That thing is KILLER!!!!  I LOVE the look of 72 S/E Chargers, they have their own identity!!! Kinda like the 66-67s and the 73-74 S/E Chargers.

He still tours and still sells a LOT of CDs.

I LOVE that car!

[ramit]

Heh just noticed the door handles. Interesting.

to change the handles I would have used E bodies ones

Yeah...I don't care for the door handles either but it is still a badass looking car.  Everybody is always going to have their own opinion on what they like and dislike I just hope this doesn't turn into a "pick the car apart" thread.

[Magnumcharger]

I'm sure KWS must have a computer, and internet too.
I wonder if he checks out this forum??

[Charger1973]

I'm sure KWS must have a computer, and internet too.
I wonder if he checks out this forum??

He is a member here and posts on rare occasion.

[ramit]

He was just on here a couple months ago looking for a superbee hood and he said he was working on a 72 SE that we would hear about soon.

[NYCMille]

Honestly, I think its a nice ride, but to me its just another 100k car that will never see the road - it will go from show to show in a trailer which means it will get no mileage put on it, which means it will never be fully sorted out, thus it will never run, handle or perform the way it looks... just another show piece, nothing more.

Take a look at AUTODYNAMICS '69 Charger "OVERCHARGED" - he built that car in his garage in less than a year, it has 6.1 Hemi beautiful interior w/paddle shifters to boot! Plus it goes like hell and Pete drives the nuts off it... THAT car should be getting press. Don't get me wrong, KWS Charger is beautiful but it won't impress me until I see it actually do something more then back on and off a trailer. Same goes for that "EXTREME LEE" - simply beautiful car, but with all those trick bits it's all but vanished from site.

Just my 

[TK73]

KICKASS CAR!!

Who is this Kenny Wayne Shepherd dude anyways??

[mikesbbody]

Honestly, I think its a nice ride, but to me its just another 100k car that will never see the road - it will go from show to show in a trailer which means it will get no mileage put on it, which means it will never be fully sorted out, thus it will never run, handle or perform the way it looks... just another show piece, nothing more.

Take a look at AUTODYNAMICS '69 Charger "OVERCHARGED" - he built that car in his garage in less than a year, it has 6.1 Hemi beautiful interior w/paddle shifters to boot! Plus it goes like hell and Pete drives the nuts off it... THAT car should be getting press. Don't get me wrong, KWS Charger is beautiful but it won't impress me until I see it actually do something more then back on and off a trailer. Same goes for that "EXTREME LEE" - simply beautiful car, but with all those trick bits it's all but vanished from site.

Just my 

well...no disrespect intended to KWS but since mike brought this up I remember back in 06 i was at year one and one of the guys there showed me around the warehouse and there there all these "movie"cars there i.e too fast too furious etc and there sitting there was the extreme lee. I asked the guy about it and he said (he said this not me) "yeah, it just sits there and he hardley drives it..." of course i have no idea how much its been driven since. And the 72? as mentioned not to pick the car apart but i would have left the stock door handles (or shaved them) but i really, really like this third gen 

[defiance]

Beautiful car, no doubt!  I'm going to give a few points where his taste and mine differ:
1) ugh... Do NOT like the blacked out bumpers!! 
2) Ok, so he blacked everything out --- cool --- so why the windows still clear???

other that that, it's amazing.  I just hope my body work and paint comes out anywhere CLOSE to that nice!

[ramit]

I hear what you guys are saying but none of us really know for sure how much he drives xtreme lee and how much this 72 will get driven.  Aren't the owners of cars  like this sometimes required by companies like year one to let them take their car around to all of the shows?  He seems to be a genuine Mopar guy and I think that alone is pretty cool.  I don't drive my car much but I don't consider myself any less of a mopar (especially charger) fan than anyone else on here.   I grew up with chargers and I love to drive them but believe it or not I get pleasure just by looking at it in my garage.  It might sound kind of strange but it is true.  Sometimes I just like to sit and look at it. 

[RallyeMike]

As far as 72's go, that is the 2nd nastiest looking one I have ever seen.

Sorry KWS   

[Goldfinger71]

Nice! Wish there were more pics!
I saw this ca a month or so before it's rebuild on popular hot roddings website.

[General_01]

Looks awesome! All black looks great on just about any car.

[mikesbbody]

I hear what you guys are saying but none of us really know for sure how much he drives xtreme lee and how much this 72 will get driven.  Aren't the owners of cars  like this sometimes required by companies like year one to let them take their car around to all of the shows?  He seems to be a genuine Mopar guy and I think that alone is pretty cool.  I don't drive my car much but I don't consider myself any less of a mopar (especially charger) fan than anyone else on here.   I grew up with chargers and I love to drive them but believe it or not I get pleasure just by looking at it in my garage.  It might sound kind of strange but it is true.  Sometimes I just like to sit and look at it. 

I hear ya ramit and agree with you. For sure none of us really know how much the xtreme lee, or this 72 will be driven and i never even thought about how KWS is probably required by the companies like year one to take the car to shows etc plus the fact i have no doubt he's a super busy guy as well. I just thought it was interesting to hear what the guy from year one told me and to see it just sitting there...Just because you dont drive your car much doesnt make you any less of a mopar/charger fan we are all in different situations (work, family, time or lack of) etc. Im like you ramit, i get pleasure in just looking at my charger and im sure we are not alone  As a third gen guy im stoked KWS chose a third gen 

[NYCMille]

I absolutely agree - even if the cars are not driven much it does not in ANY way may that person less of a MOPAR or Charger guy - my point was that if a car is built with all the latest and greatest technology and then never used what the hell is the point? I understand that he most likely gets a bunch a free parts from the manufacturers and they'll use KWS name for publicity, but honestly I think it does nothing for the them. Call up RallyMike or Pete (AUTODYAMICS), guys that have blood, sweat and tears in there cars (as do we all) and that run them hard. These are the guys that should get the publicity. Look at the Chargers we have on this site - look at all the variations/configurations that we're built in small garages and then tested and drag raced or road raced on the weekends, these are the cars in my opinion that are the real super CHARGERS...

Look at RallyMike's car - BADASS!!!! - it's a proven road burner and honestly, if KWS Charger and RallyMike's car pulled up next to me Mike's car is the one that would make me say: "uh oh.."

[ramit]

Yeah...I totally agree.  The sad part is the big companies rarely seem to help out the "little guy".

[Brock Samson]

you'd think Mr. Shepard would be on here alittle more...   

thanks for the pics Ponch we'd wouldn't know if you haden't been nice enough to post the pics...

[KWS]

Hello guys. One of the reasons I never post on here is because I don't want to get drawn into any drama or controversy. I will make a short post to address a few things that have been said.

The car is not complete yet. We had to get it together as much as possible for that reveal date for Hot Rod TV. It will be 100% complete in the next 2 weeks. The car was at about 75% that day.

I am still debating on wether or not to tint the windows.

The door handle was my personal preference.

There aren't any shots of the interior yet because that was the least completed part of the car when it appeared at that car show.

I actually like the plug in the window on the SE. It's different.

I color matched the bumpers to the body because I wanted a minimal amount of chrome on the car, and I think it helps complete the shape of the car.

I designed 95% of this car inside and out.

I helped tear it down, strip the paint, I did the parts list, inventory,  ordering of parts, reassembly.... I know this car inside and out, and my fingerprints, sweat and effort are all over it.

As far as wether or not I drive my cars... I did the 1st run from Phoenix to Vegas for Mopars at the Strip with MCG. Later that year I did the Power Tour with Year One. The ENTIRE trip in the Extreme Lee. That's why Year One had my car. They were working out the bugs from the shake down trip to MATS. Believe me, that car gets driven and has the road scars to prove it. I have racked up thousands of miles on that car.

My 1970 Plymouth Duster that was just on the cover of Popular Hot Rodding also ran the ENTIRE Power tour last year with me in the drivers seat. That happened 2 days after it was completed, and it is driven by me around town on a regular basis.

This car, the 1972 Charger is being completed right now so that I can again do the run from Fender's headquarters in Arizona to MATS. It will also be driven on the Power Tour this year by yours truly.

All of my cars have been built to be driven and that's just what I do. I love this hobby, and I love MOPARS. Forgive me if I don't post much. I like to lurk and learn and keep a low profile.

Thanks for the comments and compliments.

KWS

[moparstuart]

  thanks kenny awesome car    I love the fact you work on your own car , when you can afford to have someone else do it . 

[Charger1973]

Nice pics dude!  Can you give any details on what it took to get that motor to fit in there and everything to match up?  I thought about doing something similar with another '73 I have, but thought it would be pretty tough and expensive. 

[TruckDriver]

Well, like I said, I like that car, but I don't like the wheels. I prefer the old school look on muscle cars. I think Torq Thrust wheels would be a better choice, but to eaches own. As a recent owner of a '72 S.E., I also think they look better with a vinyl top. Check out my Third Gen only site Kenny, we have a lot of guys that own '72 S.E.s. One member owns 2 in fact. The link is below 

[ramit]

Thanks for posting more pics.  I can't wait to see it at MATS!  Will it be there on friday?

[NYCMille]

KWS - thanks for posting up man

I am not sure how it works with sponsors but I do have a question for you and if you can't answer it I completely understand. When you build a car like the '72, Extreme Lee or Duster are you limited to what you can do by your sponsors or do you have free rain on how the car is built? I ask this because cars like Extreme Lee and the '72 are not only rare but beautifully executed and I was wondering if you are "limited" so to speak by what you can do with the car, i.e. road course, drag racing etc... then again, you may just like to cruise around... don't know.

Either way you have a pretty cool stable of rides in your possession that most of us can only dream about.

Post up more Dude - we're opinionated and can be a**holes (myself OBVIOUSLY included here) but I'm sure the lot of us would like here your views on our rides as well - praise and criticism only help these cars get better.

Cheers man - Mike

[Charger74]

Kenny, glad you posted on this topic.  I'm glad to hear that you do actually drive your cars. Hopefully it does put to rest some of the comments here (not that I'm ragging anyone).   All in all, I really like the car.  Maybe a little too much black, but like you stated, it was your choice.  Most people tend to be a little too hardcore "It's gotta be stock or it's nothing",  it's sad really.  Hot-rodding in general has always been about personal taste and builds.  I can understand if the car is worth something in a restored state, but 3rd Gens especially are somewhat of the b@stard child of the muscle car era so they well never be worth what 2nd gens are.  So as far as I'm concerned, why not modify a 3rd gen more to your taste than stock.  It's not like it's a hemi car or something really rare.    I know I have no intentions of putting my 73 SE back to stock.  And yes, I do plan on going with slightly bigger wheels, around 17"front/18"back, why because it fills out those wheel wells better....

[Nacho-RT74]

The door handle was my personal preference.

Yeah I guess... to feel more close to a second gen ( or A body )? LOL... just a joke. But at least my personal option would it be the orginal one, and for a custom job, an E body one.

There aren't any shots of the interior yet because that was the least completed part of the car when it appeared at that car show.

Shame... thats the part I normally enjoy more ( or not ) ... I hope they show up pretty soon

I color matched the bumpers to the body because I wanted a minimal amount of chrome on the car, and I think it helps complete the shape of the car.

I'm a chrome lover, so once again is just personal tastes.

The car is COMING GREAT REALLY, is an honest opinion, but, who knows, maybe because we enjoined that much the Extreme Lee I would have expected something more impressive or extreme on this one.

The worst part of this... I DUNNO WHAT COULD IT BE MORE IMPRESSIVE LOL... but, dunno... something