Wednesday, June 20, 2007

'General Lee' turns heads

Kenn Rodriguez News-Bulletin Staff Writer; krodriguez@news-bulletin.com

Belen There's a certain mystique to customized cars, said Robert Auge, co-owner of Belen's Auge's Dodge-Chrysler-Jeep.

That's what made the 12th annual Hub City Mopar Fest such a success, he said.

"It's a great fun thing to do," said Auge. "These guys are truly enthusiasts when it comes to restoring their old cars. It's just phenomenal what's happened in the market these days."

Auge said the car show, which is put on by the New Mexico Muscle Car Club, attracts cars and car enthusiasts from around the state as well as out of state. Auge said car enthusiasts came with their cars from as far as Colorado, California, Nevada — even Mexico.

Auge and NMMCC organizer Todd Swanson said that attendance for Saturday's event was high.

"I'd say we've seen well over 1,000 people today,"said Auge. "We don't charge admission so it's hard to say.

"But we know we,ve been through more than 600 hot dogs," he said as he and Swanson laughed heartily.

Auge and Swanson both said the mystique of old muscle cars is a phenomenon that is very much American.

"Even with $3 a gallon gas, people love their automobiles," Auge said. "Even if you go out here, you'll see cars from the '20s up to a 2007 Charger SRT-8. The love affair that the American public has with the automobile is a long ways from over. I can tell you that."

Among the cars on display Saturday were a restored 1920s-era taxi cab, high-rider trucks and new cars as well as a replica of the red 1969 Dodge Charger "General Lee" car from television's "The Dukes of Hazzard."

Auge said the value of the cars has grown over the years. "Cars that were at the time new — we saw them in our showroom for $2,500 and $3,000 — are now worth close to half a million (dollars)," he said.

There's a lot of pride in the cars — not only from enthusiasts but from people who've owned the cars and still love them.

"Anybody who has a Hemi or a 440, driving down the road we're proud to know we have a vehicle that's in the condition it's in," Swanson said. "When we do our show at the State Fairgrounds, when we leave, it's a parade (of cars) and you can see all the guys sticking their chest out and say 'That's the car I used to have.' It's just awesome being able to drive."

Auge said that even without an iconic car to stoke people's imagination like the General Lee or K.I.T.T. from the '80s TV show "Knight Rider," people still love muscle cars.

"The resurrection of the muscle car, the mystique that it holds — it's a really, really neat thing," he said. "The oil companies, the government, the $3-a-gallon gas — they might try to dampen our enthusiasm, but the fact is that when you're behind the wheel of your own car, you are as independent as you can possibly be."

"It sort of replicates the freedom that we enjoy in this country simply to get out there and go like hell if nothing else," he said.

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