Those pictures didn't help it.

I was e-mailed a picture of the NASCAR Charger well before the actual car was unveiled, and it's swoopy front end had me believing the production car would have the same front profile. I refused to believe the Charger would have the nose it did even when C&D ran a drawing of it a month or 2 before the Detroit show. Needless to say I was flabbergasted when I saw C&D had it right.

In pictures the thing looked terrible. At the autoshow, it was intresting, but not the least bit impressive. Then I began seeing the thing on the streets around other cars. That made me do a 180 on it's design.

The car has unbelievable presence. It looks hella mean and muscular, especially in black or dark blue. The most agressive front end since the pre-98 Camaros. Needless to say, I've warmed up to it.....

The '99 Charger has nothing to do with the 2005 Charger outside the name.

The '05's inner body structure's hardpoints wouldn't work with the '99's lines. Also, the '99 was built with the expectation of using a variation of the LH chassis, and so had lower beltlines.

In retrospect, it's all for the better I'd say. If Chrysler stuck with that design, it would be an old design by the time it came out 6 years later.

 

most charger purists hate that show because it destroyed so many 69 chargers. your point is very vague, but i dont think the color had anything to do with it. any other mopar in hemi orange doesnt have that mentality attached to it. i dont even think any hemi orange chargers do unless it has the 01 on the doors and the stars and bars on the roof. all that aside ive yet to hear anyone make any connection between the new charger and dukes of hazzard. when most people think "dukes of hazzard" they think "General Lee" not "Charger" ... and im willing to bet several of those people dont even realize the General Lee is a charger. i can only hope the same goes for challenger and it doesnt get related to a space shuttle.


strongly agree

 

How long will GM have been working on our RWD V8 design by the time it gets out, espeically if 2009-2010 is the timeframe.

 

Curious how DC will revise the LX line over the years. Will they implement what they learned about high-strength steel and aluminum and try to lighten up the next generation by a couple of hundred pounds? How will the interiors improve over the years? Is the chassis easy to shorten, lengthen or widen?

-B

 

I realize the topic has been covered before.

This was my point as well. I don't think people can grasp the concept that 2 door big coupes don't sell, and DCX is in business to sell cars. Whether people like the styling or not, at least DCX didn't toss us a V6 FWD jellybean like everyone else.

 

I think the 300c looks great..a chysler mercedes type car but very classy and powerful if you want it to be depending on what engine you get.
I like the magnum wagon its cool and powerful and also pretty unique. Not a big fan of the pt crusier but it has some appeal.4 door charger..yep can't get past the 4 door part..magnum sedan would be fine name for it..its pretty boxy and kinda ugly don't really care how much power it has. Don't care if one blows the doors off my car its still a big fast pretty ugly four door sedan to me. They could have made a nice two door out of it..smaller lighter ,mustang competition with 350 hp and 425 engine options would have rocked. But they say they might do it with the challenger in a few years..
mistake I think..they already have a great selling four door in the 300c and the magnum why did they think another 4 door would make a good addition to the line..redundant and have zero interest in every buying one of these things.
Also the neon srt 4 should be offered in 2 door coupe and in awd also. That might even tempt me to mabye get one someday instead of my talon.

But right now would never trade any of my current cars for a big four door charger box. It can have a million horsepower.

 

My problems with it: WAY TOO HEAVY!!!, NO MANUAL!!!, the four doors sort of bother me, it's stance isn't very good, and the styling, in some colors I think it looks good and others I don't like it...That chrome grille doesn't help, definetly needs to be an option to get all the chrome crap blacked out, I have a hard time excepting it after the '99 concept and the drawing hot rod had in their magazine like 2 years ago...

 

I've warmed upto it and acutally like it now.

 

If you are talking about Camaro, it's probally a no-brainer to say GM was in the process of developing a new Camaro well before the run of the 4th gen was over.

That probally means 8-10 years, and counting.

 

I think its a great car, I concur on the too heavy. Maybe a T-56 could help shed 100lbs.

I saw what may have been a charger SRT8 in Royal Oak michgan in june. I thought it was weird that I saw it only a few blocks from what used to be Royal Oak Pontiac (bobcat package). What color was the concept? This was a orangeish red with black stripes. Maybe it was just a funky graphic package, it did have different wheels though.

 

I have warmed to the style as well, but just because I've warmed to it does not mean that I really LIKE it. I certainly don't LOVE it. It stands out, but not necessarily in a great way. I mean in all honesty, I think an '04+ GP looks as sporty as the Charger, as IMO that nose kills the Charger.

Neither car is a knockout style to me...the Charger is bolder, but I'd rather live with a GP every day. At least I can see out of one!!! I had a customer come in on Saturday after test driving a Charger RT. He was looking for a GXP, and I showed him the closest thing I have right now...an s/c GT. He said he liked the style better, thought the interior looked nicer (imagine that????), and said the power was "perfectly fine." He came in not expecting to look at anything below a GXP, and was surprised by the power of the GT. In his words, "it doesn't snap my neck like the RT, but its still fun." Its also $7k less...

So what did he do? Ordered a GXP from me With Pontiac quoting a 5.7 0-60 time for the GXP, it appears to be as fast, and his costs $4k less than a loaded Charger RT. Maybe the GP will be ok after all? I thought the Charger would decimate it...

 

I was in Florida for the past week. There are Chargers everywhere! They look better and better to me all the time.

Hell, I even saw the Dukes of Hazard Charger that they were selling on ebay on my way from Orlando to Clearwater. I caught it out of the corner of my eye going the oppisite way. it was behind a white fence but I recognized it immediately and spun the rental Magnum I had around to check it out. It was no where near as bad as it looked in the pics. Not worth what they were asking though.

On a side note, even the v6 Magnum (first v6 lx car I have driven) was pleanty powerful and fun. I like the variants more all the time.