why dont you like the new chargers?

[Nacho-RT74]

I question the criteria in which we compare the new Chargers (not necessarily judge). Are we to compare the new Chargers to a '67, a '69, a '71? We all have different views on what constitutes a Dodge Charger.

all of those ( 1st to 3rd gens ) are 2 doors "sporty" cars and bad ass front clip. You can like more or less, get your fav gen but still the concept is there. BTW mostly of us would build its own Charger with a mix of those 3 gens ideas. ( we already did it on a thread )

5th gen is a mistake, but what brand made it good on those years ? I think just GM Camaro/Firebird... ( but hey, Can we stop to compare Chargers with Camaros ? they are on diff lines ) They saved the concept a little bit with the Magnum

6th gen, maybe not the best but they returned to the original concept of the sporty car ( according with 80s designs so we know what 80s cars bring to us ), and they did it on the best 4 cilinder american car ever made

Now we have a... bad ass sedan ( yes bad ass, but SEDAN, far away from kinda sport look yet ) and powerfull... that we already had on a 300, or just making a sedan Magnum, but not the Chagnum they made. 2011 ? yes, a little bit better but, still same $**T

I will remember a phrase from Top Gear 68 Charger chapter. I can't recall how exactly spells  but they something about a comparison between Mustangs and Chargers ( once again, a mistake since once again they are diff car lines ), with Marlon Brando and James Dean.

If you won't revive the Charger on the way it was, WHY REVIVE IT THEN ? let us the Charger name RIP happy with the smile of what it was.

WOULD YOU revive your father in a woman body ? JUST BECAUSE WOMEN RULES THE ACTUAL CAR DEMAND, with sedans because families, you don't have to revive a man like a woman!

[Richard Cranium]

Now we have a... bad ass sedan

The new tail is definately an improvement, but the front end is still fugly, so to add to your above statement...."Now we have a bad nose-nice ass sedan.   

[mauve66]

nobody talks about the 80's CHAR**** , sorry i just couldn't call it that,  cause its was 30 years ago. the new Changum (i like that name Nacho) was only 5 years ago.  yes everyone hated them back then just like the mustang crowd when the MUSTANG 2 KING COBRA came out. i'm suprised they didn't storm the buildings in dearborn back then, but nobody is bitching about them now cause they are irrelevant to todays discussion.  just like in 30 more years we won't (yes i plan on still being here  ) be argueing about the name of this vehicle.

and for my .02, the rear pics of that 2011 with the taillights and wing (spoiler, sorry) make it look more like an Intrepid than ever now

Miss/Mr. Mopar executive,you can't ask us to be passionate about a DODGE CHARGER and then turn around and slap our hands when we express that passion over your creation
just like having R/T badges on a FWD intrepid/stratus or a 4 wheel drive durango, one has nothing to do with the other

think of it this way, in your family history there was Dwight D. Eisenhower (sp)....... if you don't know who he is...............
anyway, you really respected this person, lived by their values, even named your pets after great events in their lives (operation overlord, d-day) (hemi, 440, big block, r/t)
you would even consider naming your son after them to honor them..................................... but not your chia pet.......................... simple enough??

[skip68]

Well said Nacho.   I remember saying this long ago "it will take dodge 10 years with baby steps every year to make the change if at all".   I just don't understand how they can do so good on the challenger and F&%# up on the charger.   It's clear they are trying to change it but how long will it take ?.SHIT OR GET OFF THE POT DODGE.    One more thing is for all who fall in love with a car, looking at it gives as much pleasure as driving.   You all know just what I mean.   How many of us love just looking at our cars as they sit all shiny & clean ?.  EVERYBODY DOES, even if it's a brand new pride & joy. 

[Bobs69]

The new charger looks nothing like the 2 gens that everyone is DESPERATELY trying to compare them too and photoshop them to resemble.  In my own opinion if anything they could resemble the 66 & 67's more.  Look at the window in the back door.

Now the new challenger is amazing looking.  Too bad the biased media still talks shit about it saying it's too heavy and 100th of a second off from the mustang and camaro.

[AKcharger]

They smell like cabbage

[Brock Samson]

 from rusty muscle:
"I don't feel that I had to have been old enough to have witnessed Ricardo Monteban hocking "rich Corinthian leather" to know I don't want it".  

That shows how far off the beam your expectations are - as the Cordoba was a Chrysler sold in the mid to late '70s... and That's what you'r judging the Charger by?..  

OK moving on... what do these CHARGERS all have in common?..

1966-1967


1968-69-70


1971-74


So if your memory doesn't include the formula of Charger = Two Door hardtop, your probably not gonna mind that the Apple is labeled an Orange and go with the co-opting of the name... for a four door sedan.

[Grim Jhaixus]

Am I the only guy on this site thinks the new Mickey Mouse Challengers look like caricatures of real Challengers? "Close but no cigar". I'll just buy a 1971 Chally if I get the itch.

[bull]

Am I the only guy on this site thinks the new Mickey Mouse Challengers look like caricatures of real Challengers? "Close but no cigar". I'll just buy a 1971 Chally if I get the itch.

A caricature can refer to a portrait that exaggerates or distorts the essence of a person or thing to create an easily identifiable visual likeness. Close but no cigar? Maybe. But the new "Charger" isn't even close. So yes, to answer your question, you probably are one of few or possibly the only person on this site who thinks that way about the new Challenger. I don't think anyone really is confused/disappointed to the point of frustrated annoyance over the Challenger like they are the "Charger." I sure don't see dozens of threads dedicated to five pages of outrage over it like you'll find about the Dodge Ram Silverado sedan.

[Grim Jhaixus]

Thanks for the definition! 

[UH60L]

"but the Charger name was dead until after the 06 car was designed"


hmm hmm hmm.....COUGH!-'99 Charger R/T Concept-COUGH!

That'd be 1999, like 7 years before 2006.....

Just sayin.....

[UH60L]

I've got an 06 RT Daytona and my bride has an 08 SXT with the 26h pkg and sun roof.  Love them both.  Great rides and good performers.  If you're old enough to have had a Charger when they were the big deal street machine and gas was 24.9/gallon, you appreciate the convenience of four doors for the grandkids and decent gas mileage.  

I think a lot of members here own 'em and just don't acknowledge it.

And you would be mistaken.  I own a '69 charger, a 2002 Honda XR650L (dual sport) motorcycle, and recently purchased a 2007 Impala (although I feel that chevy guys should be as ticked about that name as we are, 'cause that aint no Impala neither!)

I'm making a bumber sticker for the Impala that says: Yeah, I know, but I'd rather drive this POS than a 4 door "Charger" any day!

Also, I appreciate having room for kids and such, but I don't buy muscle/performance cars with the intent of having conveniance.  I buy them for the intent of having muscle/performance cars.  I don't have any misconceptions about my "impala" being a muscle car.  It's just the family car, and what I could afford at the time when the other car's engine blew up (2000 Pontiac Grand Prix, also not a muscle car).

That said, my kids (15 and 17, 9 and 11 when I bought it) have no problem climbing into the back seat of my '69 charger.  Before I started the body work, all four of us would go to car shows and cruise-ins in it, no probelm.  There is plenty of room, and the trunk is HUGE.  I can get groceries and dead bodies in that thing!

[tan top]

Well the background seems similar but in one photo it looks all happy with blue water and brightness whereas the other seems sorta drab. 

[chargerjy9]

"but the Charger name was dead until after the 06 car was designed"


hmm hmm hmm.....COUGH!-'99 Charger R/T Concept-COUGH!

That'd be 1999, like 7 years before 2006.....

Just sayin.....

that was not a production vehicle, wasn't real, in fact the "99" was just a fiberglas prototype. however, its success on the show circuit was probably responsible for the name given to the 06

[chargerjy9]

"Given the state of their business, I would be inclined to say they most definitely should be kissing our butts and kissing them damned hard.  Forgetting that the customer is king is exactly why they are in the mess they are."

that is exactly why the new Charger has 4 doors, the demographic that Ma Mopar is aimed towards demanded 4 doors... OK, bad name choice for that car is a given. Hell, they asked me to use my 73 Charger in a publicity shoot with other 1st and 2nd gens in background of 06 model, I refused. Chrysler doesn't need to kiss our butts, us old time Charger fans are the minority, now. the Daimler group didn't know who we were. the new guys listened to our complaints and did the best they could on the 11 platform given time and money constraints they had to work with. they tried to please everyone this time. it is their bread and butter vehicle. the 4 door sells well, they are not goimng to take the name off it, most of today's buyers don't relate to the golden age of Charger years.

While I am on my soapbox....
Everyone keeps on saying that Chrysler got it right with the new Challenger, so why is the Charger so f#$&*ed up. the success of the Charger in the marketplace and it's criticisms  from us spawned the idea of the Chally. it was designed on the west coast as a study/showcar to let the world know that Chrysler still had it. the public loved it. a business case was made. the Chally is a  niche vehicle like the Viper or Prowler, it is not bread and butter, so to have two 2 doors competing against each other makes no sense.
Yes, Chrysler was in a mess, it had nothing to do with not listening to a few of us fanatics still trying to hold on to what we deem as dear and passionate. They are climbing out from the morass, and it appears that they will once again be building great cars that people desire. My pension depends on that

[chargerjy9]

"Given the state of their business, I would be inclined to say they most definitely should be kissing our butts and kissing them damned hard.  Forgetting that the customer is king is exactly why they are in the mess they are."

that is exactly why the new Charger has 4 doors, the demographic that Ma Mopar is aimed towards demanded 4 doors... OK, bad name choice for that car is a given. Hell, they asked me to use my 73 Charger in a publicity shoot with other 1st and 2nd gens in background of 06 model, I refused. Chrysler doesn't need to kiss our butts, us old time Charger fans are the minority, now. the Daimler group didn't know who we were. the new guys listened to our complaints and did the best they could on the 11 platform given time and money constraints they had to work with. they tried to please everyone this time. it is their bread and butter vehicle. the 4 door sells well, they are not goimng to take the name off it, most of today's buyers don't relate to the golden age of Charger years.

While I am on my soapbox....
" just to rub our noses in it, they make a new Challenger that looks like the old ones. Brilliant! Who would ever notice such a strange, schizophrenic dichotomy other than people with functioning eyes?"

Everyone keeps on saying that Chrysler got it right with the new Challenger, so why is the Charger so f#$&*ed up. the success of the Charger in the marketplace and it's criticisms  from us spawned the idea of the Chally. it was designed on the west coast as a study/showcar to let the world know that Chrysler still had it. the public loved it. a business case was made. the Chally is a  niche vehicle like the Viper or Prowler, it is not bread and butter, so to have two 2 doors competing against each other makes no sense.
Yes, Chrysler was in a mess, it had nothing to do with not listening to a few of us fanatics still trying to hold on to what we deem as dear and passionate. They are climbing out from the morass, and it appears that they will once again be building great cars that people desire. My pension depends on that

[XS29L9Bxxxxxx]

If Dodge made a 2 door Charger, I might have bought one. Instead, I just ordered a 2011 Camaro Convertible 

[SRT-68]

If Dodge made a 2 door Charger, I might have bought one. Instead, I just ordered a 2011 Camaro Convertible 

The fact that the Charger has four doors is a lame reason to buy a Chevy. Dodge does make the Challenger you know?

[bull]

While I am on my soapbox....
Everyone keeps on saying that Chrysler got it right with the new Challenger, so why is the Charger so f#$&*ed up. the success of the Charger in the marketplace and it's criticisms  from us spawned the idea of the Chally. it was designed on the west coast as a study/showcar to let the world know that Chrysler still had it. the public loved it. a business case was made. the Chally is a  niche vehicle like the Viper or Prowler, it is not bread and butter, so to have two 2 doors competing against each other makes no sense.
Yes, Chrysler was in a mess, it had nothing to do with not listening to a few of us fanatics still trying to hold on to what we deem as dear and passionate. They are climbing out from the morass, and it appears that they will once again be building great cars that people desire. My pension depends on that

I disagree that the Challenger is a niche vehicle along the lines of the Prowler and Viper or SRT10 Ram. I personally know several people (four right off the top of my head) that use a Challenger as a daily driver/commuter who would not do the same with something like a Viper or Prowler. It may not be as bread and butter like a Camry or Accord but it's definitely not a niche vehicle as you describe it. Not where I live anyway.

[SRT-68]

While I am on my soapbox....
Everyone keeps on saying that Chrysler got it right with the new Challenger, so why is the Charger so f#$&*ed up. the success of the Charger in the marketplace and it's criticisms  from us spawned the idea of the Chally. it was designed on the west coast as a study/showcar to let the world know that Chrysler still had it. the public loved it. a business case was made. the Chally is a  niche vehicle like the Viper or Prowler, it is not bread and butter, so to have two 2 doors competing against each other makes no sense.
Yes, Chrysler was in a mess, it had nothing to do with not listening to a few of us fanatics still trying to hold on to what we deem as dear and passionate. They are climbing out from the morass, and it appears that they will once again be building great cars that people desire. My pension depends on that

I disagree that the Challenger is a niche vehicle along the lines of the Prowler and Viper or SRT10 Ram. I personally know several people (four right off the top of my head) that use a Challenger as a daily driver/commuter who would not do the same with something like a Viper or Prowler. It may not be as bread and butter like a Camry or Accord but it's definitely not a niche vehicle as you describe it. Not where I live anyway.

Here in LA,CA  I see several of them back and forth on my way to work. 2 of them are SRT8s. So not really a niche vehicle.

[chargerjy9]

niche vehicle is probably the wrong word.The Challenger is not meant to be built with the high production numbers as other cars that share the same production line. keep it somewhat exclusive. also, like the Prowler it will have a finite shelf life. there is an end in sight, eventually it will grow long in the tooth, you really cannot change the design and stay true to it,s retro look.

[Brock Samson]

 I read '12 is it's refresh date. Definatly has more appeal in the practical sense then the Prowler or Crossfire or Viper for that matter,.. not so much as the "sedans"  most folks will appreciate the trunk and back seat, but as marketing studies have shown, two doors sell less than half as well as four doors...
In the case of the '11 sedan It's good they finally backed up the Charger name with some metal cues from the second gen. but it's sure no two door hardtop and neither is the Chally for that matter...
Even Toyota dropped the Solara.

 

[bull]

niche vehicle is probably the wrong word.The Challenger is not meant to be built with the high production numbers as other cars that share the same production line. keep it somewhat exclusive. also, like the Prowler it will have a finite shelf life. there is an end in sight, eventually it will grow long in the tooth, you really cannot change the design and stay true to it,s retro look.

I like the Prowler but I think it was a screw up to a degree. The should have offered a V8.

Anyway, I think the Challenger might have surprised Chrysler, at least early on. Not sure what the production numbers say, I'd have to try looking it up, but I'm willing to bet the sales outdid their projections. Perhaps it was initially meant to be a niche vehicle but I rarely see it being used as such.

[DustinSimmonds]

In my opinion I think the new Chargers look an awful lot like the 66 and 67's. If you look at that generation they could have easily fit in an extra set of doors. So I believe that the new Chargers do have some retro look but still hold their own as a new installment in the series. Also with the new 2011 coming out it does show cues to the 2nd generation but not a whole lot it actually takes a lot from the 99 concept... The current Charger excels in its class right now and with the Challenger and Viper taking the two door slot the Charger will not be a two door again till the Challenger disappears. We all want the Charger to go super retro but think of it this way, the Charger can't always live in its 60's and 70's shadow. Right now it is a muscle car but a practical one. So again till Dodge ditches the Challenger we wont see a two door.

Personally here I really enjoy the new Charger. I have my 72 for when I want to really show off, but I would like to have a new Charger to cruise around with the guys and tear up the streets. It may not look like we want right now but it still has the spirit.

[chargerjy9]

[Anyway, I think the Challenger might have surprised Chrysler, at least early on. Not sure what the production numbers say, I'd have to try looking it up, but I'm willing to bet the sales outdid their projections. Perhaps it was initially meant to be a niche vehicle but I rarely see it being used as such.
[/quote]



yeah.I think you are right