We feature a great many modified vehicles here on DodgeGarage, but as late model cars go, Steve Smits’ Dodge Challenger 392 Shaker that he has named “Angry Bee” might be the most heavily customized machine that we have showcased. Inside and out, very little of this 2017 Challenger has been left untouched, creating one stunning Shaker car that turns heads at every show Smits attends. After seeing him post the most recent upgrades on social media, I reached out for the full details on his Angry Bee.
Prior to getting his Dodge Challenger, Steve Smits had long-been a custom SUV guy, having previously owned several, including a 2017 Dodge Durango R/T that was featured at the Dodge brand’s 2015 Woodward Dream Cruise display as part of their Dodge Rocks Woodward competition. However, as Smits put it, the Challenger opened up a whole new world of Mopar® for him and while it was stock when he got it, that didn’t last long.
Once Steve Smits decided on the Angry Bee theme, he began modifying the appearance of his Dodge Challenger 392 Shaker and he was happy with the performance of the stock 392 HEMI® engine, but he soon found that he wanted more power. To achieve that goal, Smits turned to the modern HEMI engine experts at High Horse Performance in Smyrna, Delaware. Josh Schwartz and the HHP team added a Procharger D1SC supercharger and the supporting upgrades needed to safety add forced induction, leading to the power and performance that Smits wanted. He was loving the car and all of the power – perhaps a little too much.
“I belong to a Mopar Car group NORTHEAST MOPAR. Although we are centered in the North East of the country, we have members all over. We travel to shows as far as Florida, Tennessee and other states north as well. We also host a few local shows, as well as many events and cruises.
“Over the past few years, we attended the 8FO3 Mopar event in Myrtle Beach, SC. A group of about 16 of us attend the event and do an extended stay a bit while there. Part of the event last year was charity laps on THE LADY IN BLACK, Darlington Speedway. Although the laps were limited in speed by a pace vehicle, we were able to get on it a bit and have some fun.
“Our group of about 10 of us went out on the track to do our laps and we were moving along at a great pace through the corners, somewhere in the 75-mph-to-80-mph range (keep in mind this is a 1-mile or so track). We all began to start dropping the hammer midway through the corners and going down the straights at WOT reaching speeds of 120-130 mph or so, often with spinning tires. Not to be outdone by several of the Hellcats in my group, I pushed my supercharged scat to its limits and it didn’t let me down. I stayed right with them on the straights and left a few other stock ones. The only problem was stock 392s will take a supercharger, but you can’t overdue it because of the stock ringland gap on the stock 392 pistons. When I returned to the pits after my run, my Scat was yelling at me with a MIL light and a bunch of codes and running really rough. Did some resetting and the car still ran rough and I knew something was wrong.
“We enjoyed the rest of our stay in Myrtle Beach and even claimed best engine award at the 8FO3 Mopar show (it still looked pretty). Decided to drive the car home anyway from Myrtle Beach to Jersey and we barely made it. At this point, the car was a mess. I am no technician, so I contacted HHP and asked if I could bring it down. I loaded it on a trailer and dropped it off to Josh and his team at HHP for diagnosis. At first glance, it appeared to be nothing major but as they got into it they found 1 or maybe more broken pistons. I def went too hard on trying to not get shown up by the Hellcats. But I paid the price. HHP informed me I would need a new engine, as well as a host of other goodies to do the job right. I agreed and a few months later due to parts delays I got back a way better car with a much stronger engine. The now stingy dyno at HHP yielded me 676 rwhp and 625 lbs torque … that translates to 800 crank hp … I am happy to say the least.”
Here is the full rundown of every modification made to Steve Smits’ Angry Bee Dodge Challenger 392 Shaker – so far. Smits’ future plans for his Challenger include an SRT® Hellcat transmission and an upgraded torque convertor, but points out that his vehicles are always constantly evolving and there may be other changes along the way. He also explained that he often sells a vehicle and gets something new when he gets bored with a build, but he “loves this car and hopes to give it to someone special in my family someday.”
Engine
-Fully forged HHP/BES 392
-Manley valve springs and titanium retainers
-Manley H-beam rods
-ARP main stud upgrade
-PROCHARGER DISC-H supercharger with intercooler upgrade running a modest 10 lbs of boost
-Fore Innovations L2 dual fuel system
-Fore innovations billet fuel rails and injectors
-ATI super damper
-HHP custom limiter camshaft
-MOPAR MDS delete
-SRT Hellcat oil pump
-COMETIC SRT Hellcat head gaskets
-Borla ATAK Cat back exhaust
-Fastman True 85mm throttle body
-Trinity Tuner by Diablo
-Full dyno tuning by Josh at HHP
-Fully dressed up with Custom Hydrodipping by Mike at RI HYDRODIPPING
-Some American Brothers and Billet Tech goodies as well
Transmission
-Stock 8-speed automatic with tuning by HHP
Suspension/Chassis
-Stock Scat Pack with the Dynamics Package
-Petty Strut tower bars front and rear
-Per4Mance Development DIRS rear differential brace
-JXB driveshaft support bearing
Brakes
-Brembo 6-piston front and 4-piston rear, all custom painted white
Exterior
-Ferrada FR4 staggered wheel set, 20×10 front and 20×10.5 rear
-Nitto NT555G2 tires, 275/40/20 front and 315/35/20 rear
-Burnt Blue titanium lug nuts
-Phillips performance Lil Devil custom flares
-Custom vinyl striping
-Downforce Solutions side skirts, rear diffuser, front half splitters and rear wicker bill
-Forged Concepts custom badging for the Angry Bee theme
-Mopar hood pins
Interior
-Katzkin Custom leather seats to replace the factory Alcantara seats
-Mopar rear seat delete
-Cipher harness bar and harnesses
-Beith Performance custom carbon steering wheel with HELLGATO custom embroidered air bag cover -Barton shifter handle
-Speedlogix dual overhead gauge pod
-AEM digital boost gauge
-AEM wideband AFR controller gauge
-Diamond plate floor mats by Diamond Mats
-K40 radar detector
Aside from participating in unique on-track experiences like the one at Darlington, Smits does not race his Dodge Challenger, but his club is thinking about renting a road course for a fun track day. The Angry Bee is mainly a show car and a cruiser on nice days, but it is not uncommon for Smits to drive thousands of miles with his wife to attend a show or event far from home with his Mopar club.
In closing, Steve Smits has an array of people and companies to thank for the role they played in the progression of his Angry Bee.
“First off, HHP for giving me what I wanted in this car the first time around and now again the second time around with the new engine. Chris Sytsma at THE COATING LAB for always making sure the car is fully polished and protected on all surfaces and always looks outstanding. Mike Broggi at RI Hydrodipping for all the time and patience with my chosen theme and patterns for the engine dress up. Downforce Solutions for the body add-ons, Mike and Mariah at SITY STICKERS for all their help along the way, REVOLUTION WRAPS for replacing the stripes after they were damaged at Darlington Speedway as well from rock chips and adding a little twist to them. My entire car club, NORTHEAST MOPAR, we all support each other’s rides and respect each other’s rides as well as work together to make sure we are all in the game. My wife, Kelly, for her patience of the years with this never-ending car hobby, she only has 1 rule moving forward with car modding: It must look clean and classy! My daughter, Kaitlyn @streetstyledesign, for always making sure I have the proper show sign to show off my car. Finally, my son-in-law, Matt, and the shop he works for, JD Automotive in Dover, NJ, for getting the drivability spot on for the Angry Bee, even though I think Matt liked the road test best of all!”
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