New Dodge Challenger

[Mr. dB]

Mopar was never crap until after 73. Up till that time nothing could touch them in performance or looks. Cars like the GTX, RoadRunner, SuperBird (which still holds the nascar record for top speed I believe), challenger, baracuda, charger, aar cuda and challenger, etc. The torsion bar suspension was a solid piece of work as well.

MOPAR could never compete in any series but NASCAR and NHRA. They had no handling or brakes at all. Cudas and Challengers got their asses handed to them by Camaros and Mustangs in SCCA Trans Am, so bad that Chrysler withdrew from the series with their tails between their legs after 1970. And on the street, all the cars you've listed wallowed like pigs if you tried to drive them around a corner.

Chryslers were fine for Woodward Avenue or Industrial Boulevard types, but sucked for road racing or real-world performance driving.

The new Challenger is gonna get its ass handed to it by the Shelby GT500 Mustang and the new Camaro, especially if they fit it with an LS7. And both of those cars can be tuned (especially the supercharged Mustang), whereas the current Hemi products tend to blow up when modified.

 

[chesty]

I own the Cobra and it is a performer no doubt. Mopar never was a road race car and for a 30,000 dollar sports car to compete with 200,000 dollar car which is purpose built for road racing is not a fair comparison. I have seen the Shelby and it is not all that. Especially for the 200k price tag. The challengers I owned handled just fine for what they were built for.

The last Pontiac Ram Air was a pig and built like one and the Z06 and 7's are way too pricy to be considered an affordable sports car like the Cobra or the upcoming Challenger.

I would agree that they did not handle the best in cornering, but then again neither did the Mustang or Camaro save for the ones built for road racing which imo didn't handle all that much better. I have owned most of those cars from that era and for handling they were all pigs.

But then, all I want is pure hp and my Cobra is lacking in that it needs the super charger to produce its hp and a starting base of 425 hp, normally aspirated is a solid beginning.

Most of all though, why then if they are so bad do they routinely pull the best prices at auto auctions such as Barret Jackson's in Scottsdale, AZ? The last time I saw the show, last year the Mopar's were pulling something like 10% more in price than anything else listed, over the vettes, camoros, etc.

I'll give you the full report when I get mine.

 

[cardiomann]

This car looks wicked! I have a 05 Grand Cherokee with the 5.7 hemi and it hauls ass. I can't imagine how fast the challenger will be. I have a SRT-8 Grand Cherokee on order with the 6.1 hemi. Daimler-Chrysler is producing some awesome vehicles!

 

[Mr. dB]

Most of all though, why then if they are so bad do they routinely pull the best prices at auto auctions such as Barret Jackson's in Scottsdale, AZ? The last time I saw the show, last year the Mopar's were pulling something like 10% more in price than anything else listed, over the vettes, camoros, etc

Nostalgia. Wild styling. Big engines. Nostalgia. Purple. Green. Yellow. Auctions bring out the insanity in people.

MOPAR was #3 of the "Big Three" for a reason.

I'll give you the full report when I get mine.

I'll not hold my breath, that event is probably at least two years away. I can't get excited about an overweight sawed-off 300/Magnum/Charger.

 

[chesty]

Now that is hitting below the belt. The 300 is a worthless piece of crap, while this is essentially the Challenger only modernized and looks as hot as the day it was first born. To bad they aren't coming out with a good looking Camaro. It would be really cool to see the old muscle cars back on the street instead of all the rice burners.

 

[mustang_00]

MOPAR could never compete in any series but NASCAR and NHRA. They had no handling or brakes at all.

They weren't mean't to handle. Mopar was designed to "point and go" they were made for straight line racing, that's why you could order a lot of them with a drag pack option right from the factory. You have to admit taking them around corners is fun as hell on purpose anyway. everytime i do it i still get a rush from not having power steering and having to counter steer out of it.

The new Challenger is gonna get its ass handed to it by the Shelby GT500 Mustang and the new Camaro, especially if they fit it with an LS7. And both of those cars can be tuned (especially the supercharged Mustang), whereas the current Hemi products tend to blow up when modified.

i thought it was said that the gt500 can't be modded (besides exhaust,chip,programmer) because of some new pullies??? I haven't kept up on it for a while (i got banned for arguing with a mod on svtp) so i'm probably wrong. I really don't think it's fair to compare a supercharged car to a n/a car. Do you have any proof that the new hemi's blow up when modded? I know paxton made a supercharger for the c300 srt8 that made 565hp on 6psi without problems. I've been trying to find a link to a turbocharged daytona charger that also statted no problems. i'm having no luck finding it though. You have to admit atleast dodge made the new challenger (minus the 6 shooter LED headlights) look like the old one. They totally fucked up on the new charger not just by giving it 4 doors but by giving it a dakota/mini van front end and a stratus rear haha kinda reminds me of the mitsubishi gallant rear end.

 

[Mr. dB]

Now that is hitting below the belt. The 300 is a worthless piece of crap, while this is essentially the Challenger only modernized and looks as hot as the day it was first born.

No. The new Challenger is built on a version of the Chrysler 300/Dodge Magnum/Dodge Charger platform, with the wheelbase shortened 4". That's why it weighs an obese 4100 pounds.

To bad they aren't coming out with a good looking Camaro. It would be really cool to see the old muscle cars back on the street instead of all the rice burners.

The Camaro concept is pretty neat. It's not as "retro" as the Challenger, but it's still instantly recognizable as a Camaro. If they'll put the LS7 in it, it would be my pick of the three nouveau pony cars.

 

[Mr. dB]

They weren't mean't to handle.

I have no use for a car that wasn't made to handle. Accelleration isn't enough, what's the point of attaining a high speed if you can't maintain it?

 

[DieselGunz]

Cant believe they are brining back the camaro, good for GM


Now they have to get rid of that god awful GTO

 

[Mr. dB]

Cant believe they are brining back the camaro, good for GM


Now they have to get rid of that god awful GTO

The new Camaro platform is being developed by the Australian design team that brought us the GTO, and most likely the next-generation GTO will use the same underpinnings. However, unlike the present GTO which is just an Australian Holden Monaro with a Pontiac grille, the new Camaro and the next GTO will be assembled in North America.