Midstate Mopars highlight – 1974 Dodge Charger SE

This year’s 18th edition of Midstate Mopars highlighted the passion of the Chrysler community. The weather was far from ideal, but the spirit of Midstate was strong, with around 60 cars taking part in the cruise to Castlemaine, and more than 150 turning out for the show ‘n’ shine a day later.

Presented by the Central Victorian Chrysler Club Inc., Midstate Mopars welcomes all vehicles from the broad Chrysler family, so Aussie Valiant Chargers were seen alongside American Dodge Chargers. Big 1950s DeSotos, compact ‘70s Sigmas and Centuras, and many other makes and models with a Mopar connection were on show, too.

While Aussie Chargers outnumbered the American equivalent in the show ‘n’ shine, the popularity of the Yankee Charger here means there’s always several examples that take part. These include ’68-’69 models that were the basis for the ‘General Lee’ from The Dukes of Hazzard, as well as versions that Dodge produced after that high point in Charger history. One of those was the 1974 Charger SE featured.

By 1974, the Charger was a shadow of what it had been. The wild, winged Daytona was history, with the R/T version also dropped as the nameplate moved into ‘personal luxury’ cruiser territory. For 1975, an all-new body style was introduced, and the Charger essentially became Dodge’s version of the Chrysler Cordoba coupe.

The 1974 Charger pictured is an ‘SE’, which was the premium variant available for that year (above the base Charger pillared coupe and hardtop), and also accounted for the bulk of Charger production, with 36,399 examples built. Finished in factory ‘Frosty Green’ metallic, the part-vinyl roof trim was in a different pattern to the base Charger hardtop, while louvred side window inserts were unique to the SE. A full gauge set, thick carpeting and lots of woodgrain applique on the dash and door trims were also part of the SE spec.

The side stripes on this car were part of an optional ‘Rallye’ package that could be added to all ’74 Chargers fitted with a V8. For a 1974 Charger SE like the car featured, a 318 V8 was the standard engine, with 400 and 440 V8s optional. Other Charger variants came with the 225 Slant Six as standard, but could be optioned with a V8.

The weather this year meant American Chargers weren’t seen in the same sort of numbers as past years, but this one still stood out and received the JUST CARS award on the day for Best Charger.

To see JUST CARS’ report from the 2025 Midstate Mopars, click HERE.