It’s one of those message board threads that gains steam overnight and goes totally viral. We know that’s going to happen with this 30-page tome over at DodgeCharger.com. The funny thing is we’re going to have the first hand inside line on this car for you in a couple of days.

Here’s the deal.

A guy from the board bought a General Lee from a private seller down South who had paid a “professional” shop to build it for him. It ran the original owner nearly $100,000 for the build, which, outwardly, provided a good looking example of the iconic car.

Owner number two scored the car for what was a killer price and then took it home to enjoy. He got to do that exactly once before taking the car into a great shop that’s nearby our East Coast office here in the ‘burbs of Boston, Mass. The owner was looking to have the rollbar looked at.

Once Jon Sandahl of Tube Chassis Designz did that, he called in the owner of the car and started showing him the level of butchery involved with the entire car. The “rollbar” was tack-welded to the floor and was apparently built of exhaust tubing. Amazingly, that’s not even close to the worst thing discovered. Rotted rear framerails coated in fiberglass? Yes. Reverse lights grounded to the gas tank? You bet! Sounds like more of an accurate movie-car clone than the guy was banking on.

The good news is that Jon is one of the most talented fabricators and builders we’ve ever met. Normally he works on small-tire drag cars, alky Funny Cars, and other chassis work for racers. Restoring cars like this is not his normal line of work, but we’re excited for him as this thing is going to be a work of art once he’s done. It’s pure coincidence that we had contacted him about a week ago about heading down to his shop to shoot photos and bring you some neat info on some of his projects. He told us about the Charger and frankly we can’t wait to see this thing in person!

Hit the DodgeCharger.com thread here and grab a cup of coffee or a beer and read the 30 pages of pretty amazing stuff, complete with photos of the hackery. The guy who built the car even responds a few times.

To his credit, the current owner has not gone completely nuts, instead taking the tact that he got the car for a good price and he’s now having it finished by a very capable guy.

Look for an update on this right here on FJY.com by the end of this week!