BrewSwillis

Stock photo from SEMA Vegas.....not the Lapeer testing. Two Dodge Challengers Dragging It Up At Lapeer, MI Dragway? We just got the following unconfirmed tip: "There's a rumor going 'round work here that two new Challengers were up at Lapeer (MI) dragway this week. I can't confirm that part (but am trying) but I do know one of the lead engineers (chief?) lives in Metamora, the next town south. BTW, and unconfirmed also, but they reportedly were turning 12s." Anyone know anything else 'bout it -- like for instance, is it true? (Hat tip to Sean!) Link: http://jalopnik.com/cars/new-cars/two-dodg...gway-313101.php ------------------------- Sounds about right, as current SRT-8's are getting low 13's and high 12's.

Well, let them build the FWD Hornet with Chery.....but find someone else to build the RWD Demon with....or build it yourselves!

Edmunds Article: http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do/News/articleId=123040 I like how this sounds!! Say NO to China!!

I think you are actually wrong in that assessment. Dodge was targeting their vehicles to males, and found out that females were very receptive to that type of marketing. They found out that alot of women actually like some badassness in their vehicles. When a couple is married, isn't it always the guy who has to drive the 5 year old Camry?? Women want to be seen as powerful in this day and age. You constantly bring up this accusation that the 300 and Charger are bling-mobiles.....but I think you were either lulled to sleep by all other automakers current offerings, or you live in California, or a ghetto somewhere, where every LX vehicle is riding on 24"s, and has lambo style doors. How can an ultra conservative boxy 300 be a bling-mobile that scares soccer moms? The 300 is a large conservative sedan. It just does it so well, that it looks like a fine tailored tuxedo, instead of a suit from Men's Warehouse.

No need to wait brother. It's already here. It was a 2007 Daytona edition color, and now I hear it's supposed to be an SRT-8 option.

Well, I have a feeling Chrysler will be shutting down plants and consolidating into more flexible plants. A friend that works at SHAP said that they were supposed to be able to build any of the Belevidere cars on their line.....however, it didn't happen. I have a feeling that one of those plants will shut down, and production of both vehicles will combined on a flexible assembly line for the next generation. I'm sure this will happen to other plants as well. So, unfortunately, I think Cerberus does know what to do, and it probably means downsizing and cutting jobs. Thanks Japan and the American government!

Most of you people seem to have no idea how an automobile company runs. They need to produce as many vehicles or mix of vehicles that will keep a factory busy, for at least two shifts. They also have to produce something that will sell, while keeping those plants busy, to keep inventory from piling up. They can't just ax vehicles and leave factories running at half capacity. You can't "get rid" of the Sebring, because Sterling Heights Assembly would only be producing the Avenger, and would not fill the plant's capacity. They just need to fix the Sebring, and make it competitive. This basically just means making the interior more upscale, and getting the new Phoenix engines done, and in the vehicle with 5 or 6 speed transmissions. Give the base 4cyl the 5 speed also. The Nitro is selling slowly because it's a truck based SUV with poor fuel economy. Not much as far as interior upgrades will help the Nitro. The Nitro, however, is built along side the Liberty....so again, there is really no reason to "get rid of it". The Compass helps fill the capacity at Belvidere. As long as it's selling and keeping Belvidere's capacity up, keep it, or replace it with something that will sell better.....but do not just get rid of it, and lose the capacity. Get a new PT Cruiser going to take it's place. While the Commander is helping keep the Grand Cherokee plant running, it does not really accomplish what it was intended to be....which was a Grand Cherokee sized Jeep with a 3rd row. This doesn't work, as the GC platform doesn't allow enough room for a real 3rd row that adults can use. The Commander needs to be redesigned with a real 3rd row...which may mean moving to a new platform (next Durango or Ram)....or it should just be axed. I don't know what it's sales numbers are off hand, but the Toyota Land Cruiser only sold 3700 units last year....and I'm sure the Commander sold at least 10 times as many. There is nothing "wrong" with the Durango. It's problems come from being a large gas guzzling SUV. It should actually go a bit larger, and compete with the Tahoe. If the Aspen were included from the beginning of the design, it could be more differentiated from the Durango, and play in between the Yukon and Escalade territory. This move would however make a smaller car based CUV a necessity, and I don't know if the Dodge Journey and it's Chrysler counterpart would successfully fill that gap. The Dakota needs to be redesigned to be smaller, and get better fuel economy. Besides, it's too close to the Ram in size anyway. They need to go back and look at the M-80 concept. Build a Jeep pickup along side of it to keep capacity up. The bottom line is that American automakers need to keep their plants running. If they are not running at near full capacity, they are wasting money. And if they are running at full capacity, but not selling the cars, they are also wasting money. The Japanese automakers have very few plants and employees in the US, but they have built flexible manufacturing into their plants, so that they can make many different vehicles in the same plant. If one of their models is not selling, they can just chose to build a different one. What the Big 3 really need to do is to close plants and consolidate manufacturing. This is not something that I'm hoping for, or looking forward to....but it's the only way they can compete with all of the unfair competition from the Asian countries. If there was not so much unfair competition from the Asians taking away loads of market share, then the Big 3 could keep all of their plants at capacity, be making money, and in turn be putting some of that profit back into R&D and nicer vehicles. The American automakers are in a downward spiral that will not end until the foreign automakers are put on a level playing field as the US automakers.

The next gen SRT-8's are supposed to have 500 HP. I don't know if the Challenger SRT-8 will debut with that, but at some point, in the very near future, the Challenger will have that engine. I don't see the Camaro ever getting a supercharged V8, and costing less then 50K......which would put it too close to Vette territory in price, and power....which won't happen. Luxurious does not only mean interior, it also means ride and suspension......which like I said, for the Challenger, will probably be a bit softer....ie more luxurious. The Challenger will most likely have more interior space, which could be considered more luxurious. Like it was said by another poster. Chrysler likes to ride the line between segments. The Challenger will ride the line between pony car and muscle car. The Camaro will probably more of a true pony car in terms of size and handling.

You couldn't be more wrong son. I've driven more manual equipped cars then you probably ever will. I've owned a 5 speed Dodge Dakota, and a 5 speed Eagle Talon Turbo AWD......and have driven countless manual Porsches, BMWs, Ferraris, three on the tree cars from the 40's and 50's, right hand drive British roadsters, etc. Like I said, more then you probably ever will. As far as the Challenger, you guys are making way too big of a deal about the car not having the stick available for 5 months. The bottom line is that a six speed pistol grip stick is going to be available......something that has not been available on a full size Chrysler for like 20 years?? Here's how it will break down. The Challenger will be heavier and less agile than the Camaro and Mustang, but will be just as fast, if not faster, in a drag race......all the while being the most luxurious of the 3. It really doesn't need a stick, but will give the enthusiasts one less thing to complain about.....unless they are GM loving or Toyota humping Chrysler haters. American aren't as "involved" in their driving as Europeans are. Americans typically have either long commutes, or bumper to bumper commutes. Then tend to spend alot of time in their cars. Not that many years ago, European cars didn't even have cup holders.

....and then with continuous highway driving, you just throw it into 5th or 6th and drive. American, non-enthusiasts, could care less about a manual tranny. I don't think older people like them that much either....and you know a bunch of mid-life crisis-ers will be buying these. All this complaining about having to wait 5 months for a manual tranny......from the people that hate the car! Man, alot of you people would really be a drag to live with.

You people complaining about the car debuting with a 6 speed auto, are completely ridiculous!! :stupid: They are trying to get the car out ASAP, and the manual won't be ready in time for launch. Keep in mind that the Challenger was built off of a modified LX platform, that only had autos available. Now, this car will have a 6 speed auto, which is exactly one more cog than the Mustang offers. Who knows what the Camaro will debut with. I am also willing to bet that the manual won't crack 30% of the Challenger's total sales.....with SRT-8 version seeing maybe 50% manuals. Also, remember that the C6 Corvette debuted with a 4 speed auto, as the 6 speed auto was not yet available. It did, however, also have a manual option, as it has had for like 50 years.

Here's the Avenger in "Marathon Blue Pearl". Looks pretty much the same to me. If I got an Avenger, it would be this color......or black (everything looks cooler in black).

Here's some real life pics that I took at the Woodward Dream Cruise. I love this color. It's one of my favorite colors that Chrysler puts out. I had and Eagle Talon TSi that was almost this color.

Magnum will have identical interior.

Six speed manual won't come out until 09 model year, probably some time mid 08.

V6 price seems quite steep. The Dodge Charger SXT starts at $25,685. V8 price sounds really good!! ......as the Charger R/T starts at $30,755.

08 Charger interior: New 08 SRT-8 color, "Steel Blue Metallic": 08 SRT-8 Super Bee in "Surf Blue Pearl": 08 Charger Daytona in "HEMI Orange": New 08 SRT-8 wheel option:

Auction link: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Dodge-Chall...QsspagenameZWVW Specifications: Model / Sub Model: Dodge Challenger SRT8 Year: 2008 VIN / Limited production: TBD / #2 out of a Limited Production Special Feature: Vehicle will arrive with a limited-edition numbered dash plaque indicating build No 2. Number of Miles: New Exterior Color: HEMI Orange Exterior with hood stripes Interior Color: Not yet announced Number of Cylinders: 6.1L HEMI V8 Transmission: 5-speed automatic transmission with Autostick® Number of Doors: 2 Condition: New Warranty Specifics: A vehicle warranty as available on other Dodge cars will be available on date of delivery. Condition of Title: New – Never been titled Options: Not yet announced Vehicle is being auctioned by Chrysler, LLC. Winning bidder agrees to have their picture taken with the vehicle, and they also agree to let Chrysler use their picture and/or their likeness for promotional purposes. Q. Will a Letter of Authenticity be provided? A. A limited edition dash plaque will be included with vehicle delivery. Q. What is the estimated delivery time? A. Barring unanticipated circumstances, the expected delivery time to the agreed upon dealer is May, 2008. Q. How many miles will be on the Challenger #2? A. The vehicle will be delivered new. Q. Is bidding open internationally? A. No. Only legal residents of the United States (including Hawaii and Alaska) are eligible to bid on this particular auction. (Thanks to oh2o on Allpar for writeup)

I'm sure that, just like last year, the knobs will have chrome rings around them. You can actually see them in the 08 interior pic if you look hard. They look fairly upscale:

I wonder how long it will be before it gets the Nitro's 4.0L and 5 speed auto??

The faux tortoise shell may still be standard on the 300C. The initial post says that faux wood, will be standard on the Limited, and that additional "Luxury Packages" available for the Touring and 300C will include California Walnut.

I don't know why everyone keeps speculating about softer touch materials, when you can just read the initial post: The 300 already has "soft touch" materials on these surfaces......so now they will probably be baby's ass soft, so you interior snobs will shut up whilst caressing the dash at the auto shows.

Wow, imagine this.....the wood looks 1000 times better in a picture without the high saturation effect: They fixed the only thing on the dash that I think it really needed......which was something across the passenger side of the dash. However, I don't like wood, so I would prefer the fake carbon fiber, or fake aluminum (painted plastic) that they will probably put there on cars without wood. Well, here's the Touring Signature Series without wood. The only thing I with they would have done here was make the door pulls a contrasting color or material.....but other than that the center console and dash look good without wood: Source www.wkjeeps.com

I'm pretty sure you are supposed to raise them up when people are sitting back there, as seen in this pic: I believe they go down into the seat so that you can see better out the back window when nobody is sitting in the very back.

Why is everyone on here humping the Quest?? Is that the new cool thing to do?.....like the ugliest minivan the best?? How can anyone think the Quest's "sea of plastic" dash is nicer than the T&C? The Quest's center stack looks like a joke compared to the Chrysler minivans. Where is the utility? Quest T&C