On the Highway to Hell: Lucifer’s Ride

Once you’ve seen this car, you won’t forget it. Lucifer’s Ride is emblazoned in cut-out Spectrafoil decals along the flanks, and a bold tunnel-ram intake rises from the engine bay like a nuclear mushroom cloud. Whether you’re behind the wheel or just watching it roll by, this Dodge is a riot of noise, presence and provocation. Here’s the story of a creative car guy from Dalarna county and his wild creation.

“I was gonna make up some wild story about the car, but now that you know the truth…”

So says Urban “Ubbe” Lindström with a laugh. He’s the man behind this 1965 Dodge Coronet build. Lindström lives in Vikarbyn, in the heart of Dalarna county – one of Sweden’s most Mopar_®-saturated regions – and it’s safe to say he knows his Chryslers.

“Lucifer’s Ride is built to look like a barn find from the U.S., a car that’s been sitting for decades and then had an engine thrown in, just to get it out on the road and go fast,” Lindström says.

He bought the Coronet from an American buddy named Alan Rutter, a fairly well-known Mopar guy from Willows in Northern California. When Lindström got the car home, it was in good condition and he put it up for sale – but no one bit.

So, instead of selling it, he decided to have some fun. Out went the 360 cui engine, and in went a 400 block stroked to 500 cubic inches. Sitting on top is a Weiand tunnel-ram intake and a pair of 600 cfm Holley four-barrel carburetors.

Little by little, a tribute to the mid-’60s A/FX (Altered Factory Experimental) drag racers began to take shape – though without the shortened wheelbase that some of the originals had. In that class, Chrysler squared off against contenders like the Ford Fairlane Thunderbolt (remember the badass HEMI^® Hunter?!) and GM’s Chevy II/Nova. So, yes, this homage means business.

There’s no Hilborn injection, straight front axle, or HEMI engine under the hood like many of the original Mopar factory racers, though.

“Those racecars had HEMIs, but that was out of my budget. I was planning to fit a straight axle too, but then I’d run into problems with the Swedish vehicle inspection,” Lindström says with a grin.

Aside from those details, Lindström stayed remarkably true to the A/FX aesthetic – from wheel and tire choices, to the white paint job, retro lettering, cool decals and more.

“Mark Willhans did the lettering and shaded the Spectrafoil decals. I touched up here and there with rattle cans – like the engine bay, which was originally turquoise. I also painted the red side panels myself. It’s candy and lace, like they used to do in the ’60s. It was my first try, though, so you can’t really see the flower patterns through the red,” Lindström says, laughing.

The lettering, by the way, is a story in itself and plays a big role in the car’s identity. Take “Fresno Dodge 6128 Van Ness Blvd,” for example – a fictitious dealership name and address.

“I was surfing around Google Maps and picked the address at random. Later, after the lettering was done, I posted pics of Lucifer’s Ride on a drag racing forum. Some guy commented that there actually had been a Dodge dealership around that location. I got a real kick out of that. If you’re going to fake it, at least fake it well,” Lindström says.

He adds that Doug’s Headers were the go-to exhaust manifolds for many racers at the time, so including that text is historically accurate. Same goes for the STP decals.

“Honest Charley was what Summit Racing is today – and that logo is just badass,” he says.

“What’s missing is more sponsor logos and the driver’s name on the car,” Lindström adds.

Mark Willhans, who did the lettering, shares his perspective on the job:

“It was a blast to work on a car with this much thought put into it. The owner came up with a fake address for the rear fender. Combined with the vehicle’s name and some well-chosen logos, it gave the car a whole personality. It all had to look aged, too – just the patina took a full day to create. The end result really works. The car looks like it came straight from another era, and it sparks the imagination. It truly tickles the senses,” Willhans says.

Lindström paid attention to many other small details to make the car feel like a direct import from the golden age of drag racing. For instance, he removed the front fender braces so they flap in the wind – a nod to how the originals, with fiberglass fenders, behaved.

“That’s how they were back then. So it’s authentic, or at least period-correct,” he says.

“I also spent about 10 hours cleaning the gas tank, using a steam cleaner to get rid of grime and bring out the surface rust. To make it look original. But nobody notices,” Lindström says, chuckling.

The front bumper, however, is hard to miss.

“It had some rust and was a bit bent, so I sanded off the chrome and hit it with chrome spray paint. It looks like aluminum – and those old racecars had aluminum bumpers – so it fits,” he explains.

The whole build, including the engine, took about two months. And while the car nods heavily toward ’60s race heritage, Lindström never wanted it to be too nice.

“I don’t build show queens. If it’s too perfect, you stop using it. I want it to look old and a little worn. You shouldn’t be afraid of a scratch in the paint – that just becomes part of the story. That’s the beauty of it”.

He then adds “If you’re scared something will break, you didn’t build it right. These cars were made to be beaten on. They’re toys. Cool toys,” Lindström says.

Current owners Marléne Jeffler and Peter Lundström agree – though Peter is arguably a bit harder on the toy. Lucifer is clean enough to turn heads, yet rough enough to be used – even on the drag strip now and then.

Lundström drove the car to the Mopar at the Strip event in Dalarna through rainstorms and pitch-black darkness both ways. It was, as he puts it, “an exciting experience.”

Having test-driven the car myself, I can confirm: it’s not for the faint-hearted. The steering reacts to the tiniest movement – barely a few millimeters – and the whole car darts off in that direction.

“It has no power steering, and the front tires probably aren’t suited to the weight. Plus, only one shock absorber is actually working. That might have something to do with it,” Lindström says, laughing.

The engine, which hasn’t been dyno-tested but is theoretically good for 500 horsepower, adds to the drama – in both acceleration and sound. Many parts come from 440 Source.

“Their 400-to-500 stroker kit is the best. I’ve used a lot of their stuff, and it’s damn good,” Lindström says.

So Lucifer is packed with 440 Source gear – aluminum heads, forged steel crank, H-beam rods, forged pistons. The drivetrain consists of an 8¾-inch rear axle with a limited-slip diff and 3,55:1 gears, a 727 TorqueFlite transmission, and a manually shifted valve body.

Lindström has built several cars for himself and friends over the years – and has owned an impressive stable of wild rides, not just Mopar vehicles. He recalls a particularly memorable 1970 Nova with a Ford rear end and a 454 up front – a true race machine. Another standout was a ’62 Nova convertible with an LT1 and a Muncie 4-speed. He drove that one year-round.

“These days, it’s all about Mopar in Sweden. In the ’80s, it was all Chevys,” Lindström says.

He also mentions that he’s got a new project brewing – one that’s going to be even more extreme. He shares a few juicy details, then gives me a knowing look.

“But you can’t write about that yet. It’s under wraps,” he says with a grin.

Still, even the few hints he offers are enough to make the hair on your arms stand up. If he pulls off even half of what he’s planning, you’ll be hearing from me again about this high-octane, big-hearted builder from Dalarna.

Editor’s note: This story was written some time ago, but as of 2025, the car still features the same setup and looks virtually unchanged. It’s been driven on dragstrips in southern Sweden since, and is currently owned by Niels Andersen in Stockholm.