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Retro Rocket: Reborn Challenger worthy of attention
Submitted by SHNS on Thu, 10/02/2008 - 17:30.
Nobody does retro like Chrysler.
Prowlers and PT Cruisers have proven that.
But nothing in years has married the passions of past and present like the 2009 Dodge Challenger.
I'm not exaggerating when I say that I couldn't go anywhere in this car without attracting notice.
At a community college parking lot a squad car pulled up beside me. It had been following for several blocks, and I assumed I was going to get a ticket.
"Trade you!" the cop proposed. Apparently, he and his partner had been reading about the Challenger, and this was the first one they had seen in the flesh.
In the parking lot of a health food store, a minivan full of recently licensed teenagers approached.
"Great car!" they shouted. "What is it?"
In every fast-food drive-thru, same question. Broad smiles and blatant admiration.
To each and all, I had to agree: "This IS a great car!"
What surprised me about all the attention is the fact that the rear-drive Challenger is like the muscle cars of the '60s and 70s: cool, but not ostentatious. While a Dodge Viper provokes a "WOW!" this car draws an understated "wow." It sneaks up on you. You glance at it once and think, "cool." You pause, do a double-take, and you start to study it: "wow."
Before you realize it, you're madly in love.
Virtually stripped of ornamentation, the Challenger is the first car in years to make a convincing case for coupes. The doors are integral to the design, as is the raised deck that codified the pony cars of the 60s and 70s.
After bonding with the bright red review car with the black interior, I couldn't imagine it in any other color.
Unlike some models that capture your eye and disappoint with their performance or comfort, the Challenger is strong on the follow-through. Ride and handling are terrifically athletic, front-seat comfort is flawless and the ergonomics were nearly ideal. The steering wheel just feels great in your hands, the brake pedal feels just right, the seats cushion you the way they should but hold you in place in the hard turns.
A lot of great cars win your affection, and then break your heart with their price tags. Not the Challenger. This is an attainable dream car. The base version SE with a 250-horsepower V6 engine is priced at $21,995. The R/T with a 372-horsepower, 5.7-liter Hemi V8 engine rises to $29, 995, and the awesome SRT8 with the 425-horsepower, 6.1-liter Hemi tops out at a perilously enticing $39,995.
Like the original pony cars, the Challenger can be an overpowered monster or just a really fast quarterhorse. The V6 SE is that fast, affordable pony.
With Ford's Mustang as the ranking pony car, Chevrolet is getting ready to join the rally with a reborn Camaro next spring. It was sorely missed, and the concept version is dazzling.
What's great about these retro designs is that you get the memories of the past with all the conveniences of the present: Satellite radio, air bags and alarm systems, remote keyless entry, remote start and numerous other advances.
If there's a downside to the design, it's a bit of a blind spot at the rear roof pillars, but it's not much of a problem. In keeping with Chrysler's lower ratio of glass to metal to create a beefier appearance, the windows in the Challenger are somewhat small.
To make the Challenger irresistible to young drivers, Dodge offers a nice array of sound systems, from the four-speaker standard version to the Sound Group II with seven Boston Acoustics speakers and 368-watt digital amplifier with trunk-mounted subwoofer.
The 2009 model is the second attempt at a comeback for the original 1970 Challenger that shared a platform with the Barracuda.
The second generation from 1978 to 1983 was an utterly regrettable and forgettable re-badged Mitsubishi that captured the spirit of mediocrity afflicting American automakers in those dog days of design.
The SRT8 arrived in April as a 2008 model, but Challengers did not show up in volume until the debut of the SE and R/T in September.
To make the new Challenger memorable, the clay modelers couldn't just hit a home run. It had to be a grand slam.
"Our designers captured the mind's-eye view of what people today remember about the Dodge Challenger from nearly 40 years ago," said Trevor Creed, senior vice president for design at Chrysler. "Their challenge was to excite today's customer by capturing the emotion of the original Challenger, while offering today's comfort and performance."
WHAT'S NEW: All-new model, rebirth of 1970 pony car.
PLUSES: Styling, performance, safety, price.
MINUSES: Blind spot in rear pillar, small windows.
BOTTOM LINE: Great car!
(E-mail Richard Williamson at motorfriend(at)sbcglobal.net)
My new Challenger and our First Road trip
My 2008 ORANGE CHALLENGER SRT (or Sr Rapid Transit as my wife calls it) arrived last July. We spent the rest of the summer enjoying the car in the NYC Metro area not going to far from home.
Ten days ago, we headed south for a 10 day trip across TN and Alabama for some college football. Although our beloved Vols did not fair so well (lost to florida and Auburn), we made lots of new friends in every small town we drove through and everytime we stopped for gas.
There was the young man in the tricked up mazda in Alabama who pulled up next to us with a huge camera and took a shot. He then gave it his best shot on an open stretch of highway, but could not compete with the hemi.
On highway 52 (a local road running across the northern part of tn), there was the Impala SS who thought he'd show us how to run the back roads of Tn... he never had a chance as the challenger handled the windy roads with ease.. and on the few straightaways with passing lanes, he could not keep up!
There was the barber in Lafayette, TN; who after giving me a haircut, followed me back to the parking lot and spent 5 minutes checking out the car. As we cruised back to grandmom's home through town, all of the kids parked on the strip hanging out stopped their discussions and watched us drive by.
At every gas station (and, with the big engine, we did see quite a few on our 2,500 mile journey), we made new friends as everyone came over to checkout the car.
Only the GA State Trooper (who caught us doing 96 in a 70 zone early on Sunday morning as we were headed home), did not seem to be a fan. We blamed that on the BIG ORANGE color, the TN fuzzy dice on the rear view mirror and the UT Alumni license plate holder. In the south, GA and TN fans just don't get along.
We spent 10 days and covered 2,500 miles in the challenger. it was a blast!
dave madison NJ USA
Dodge Challenger IS AWESOME!!!
I LOVE my new 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT!
I got the chance to order mine back in December 2007 when dealers were 1st allowed to order one. My local Dodge dealership owner asked if I wanted it and I said YOU BET! What was even better, he let me buy it with NO DEPOSIT and NO EXTRA MARKUP, unheard of at the time! You heard right, I got to pay only the window sticker and not the $10-$15K many dealers were jacking them up for.
I had hit up my local Dodge dealer 2 years earlier at concept and ask if he would be getting one. He didn't really know back then, but by last December he got the news that each dealer was assured of get one car per dealership.
In mid July my car finally arrived (about a month late).
WOW! It was every bit the looker and beauty I had expected! It drives great and rides very nice for such a POWERFUL machine! From the first time I took it out for a before sale "test drive", the stares started. EVERYWHERE I go, even after 4 months, I STILL get the heads turning and checking out this beast.
It just SCREAMS..."HOT, HOT, HOT". I constantly have phone cameras poking out of passing cars taking shots and video. I have never seen anything like it! You can't go anywhere with out kids, guys, and yes girls, giving you the thumbs ups and telling you how hot you car is. It NEVER stops. Some will stop and ask what it is and when did it come out. The 2008 SRT CHALLENGER team definitely a hit a home run with is incredible car.
Back in 1973 as a crazy 18 year old kid out of high school (yes, I'm that old, 53), I bought a used 1970 Dodge Challenger 440 Magnum off the used car lot. It was a lot like today with an energy "crisis" going on and gas prices "soring" from 28cents to 38cents per gallon! It was horrible. The world was coming to an end! Well I got a smok'en deal for the time and bought it for $1200 cash.
What a car. I got an incredible 10 mpg and required "peak out" tune-ups about every 2 months. It ate me alive for upkeep! But, hey, I was a kid having a great time.
I smoked most Mustang's & Carmaro's. It was fast, but compared to my new Challenger, it was much slower. It could go 0-60 in about 6 seconds, compared to my new 2008 SRT Challenger at 4.9 seconds. EVERYTHING in the new Challenger is WAY BETTER.
The look, road handling feel, traction, POWER, interior gauges, sound system, driving seats, interior room, trunk, tires, etc, is just about PERFECT!
Hold on if you step on the gas a little and it hits about 2500rpms! This baby wants to fly!! The power curve REALLY kicks in at 2500 rpms. It's a rush!
So you know all the thing I really like, but could be added to improve it? Ok, I'm a power freak. I would love to see a SUPERCHARGED version Shelby KILLER! Vortech MaxFlow just came out with a Supercharger made specifically for the new Challengers. It will boost the SRT 6.1 Hemi horsepower from 425hp to 540hp for around $6400 plus installation.
So what else would I improve next? The stock exhaust system and mufflers are too quiet for me. I like the rumble a good set of pipes & glass pack muffles could bring (Jay Leno said the same thing about his new Challenger SRT).
Other than that, this is one heck of a car. I plan to keep it forever!
Happy Challenger Hunting, you can go wrong with this one!
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