Some people say that this pic is pretty close:

http://www.chargerforums.com/attachm...ttachmentid=41

 

And one more tidbit that I just came across....

The SRT version will not only have a 6.1 HEMI....but also.......[drumroll]..........a six speed manual!

And, eventhough Charger is larger than what you'd consider a ponycar to be, ( well, 3 or 4 inches longer than the massive 4th gen, anyway), DC is is planning a number of special Charger models. R/T, Daytona, SRT.

Why?

Because they want US! With no F-car...they are aiming to fill the vacuum that Mustang doesn't fill.

 

WOW!! that is beatiful!!!

 

4doors? I'll pass... just another '87Nova,'88 Lemans coming back into production

 

Very nice looking car, and a V8 and 6-speed? Hmmm, I wonder if I just found my new mountain bike hauler?

Serious question though. I'm still of the impression that DCX engineering isn't as 'robust' as some other brands. Anyone have any opinions how far they've come since the 'K-car'? My brother, who's on the Dakota board, had told me stories of the Hemi engine having 'crtitical failure issues'?

 

That doesn't look bad. A bit pricey though if you have to get into the mid/upper-30s to get a true manual transmission.

GTO, Charger, ...what's next? Talk about an exciting time for re-introductions.

 

Chrysler is a whole different company since the K car (that was almost 20 years ago!).

Chrysler had some rough spots about 10 years ago, but that was all quality of materials and contractor issues. Chrysler, while great at bringing cars to market in record time, often brought their cars out 4/5 done and usually settled for the cheapest vendor they could find. Like Ford was a few years ago, you'd be better off not getting the 1st year models from 1990s era Chryslers.

They started getting serious about quality with the PT Cruiser and the 2nd gen Neon, both which are actually really good (especially the PT). Daimler when they took over started putting the squeeze on vendors, demanding higher quality parts on the cheap.

Chrysler's current lineup is very competitive with the other big 3 from a quality standpoint. The new Hemi is looking to be bulletproof, Chrysler's new interiors seem to be top drawer (for a US company, anyway), and with the development time everything from the new Pacifica & Dakota onward has had, these new cars should be darn near perfect.

One exception. The early SRT-4 Neons, though not fragile or problem prone, do seem to be sensitive to proper break-in & timely oil changes. There's a couple of instances I've read when this wasn't done and the engine had to be replaced.

Just to show you a huge difference between the way Ford & Chrysler does business, even in those instances where the customer was obviously at fault, Chrysler went on and replaced the engines no charge. Ford wouldn't even recall or cover their V6 engines with weak head gaskets & faulty cooling fan berings till most all the ones with the problem were well beyond warranty and could be excluded from the recall.

I have issues with how Daimler has chosen to run Chrysler (pilfering their cash reserves, blocking every new product they could, then laying off as much as a third of the workforce when things backfired), but Chrysler's vehicles and their customer service is actually very good.

 

Good to hear. Most of what I've heard is from the truck side (bad Ram trannies, Hemi failures in Dakotas) and the first gen Neon.

 

Are you sure about Hemi failures in Dakotas? Hemi is only in the Ram and new Durango. Maybe they were talking about the 4.7?

 

wasn't there a 5.2 hemi in the last gen Dakota? Or maybe he heard of the failues in the new Rams. Can't remeber. Appearently there was an alarming number of them.

 

The 5.2 was the old 318. I think it was replaced by the OHC 4.7 though.

The only HEMI version is the 5.7.

I've heard about the bad tranny's though.

 

Right about early 1st gen Neons. They weren't the best cars Chrysler made the past 10 years. After the 1st couple of years, first-gen Neon's were hit & miss. I suspect it depends on how you break them in. Run them rough early, and they'll have a short life span.

Like Z28 pointed out, Hemis were only installed in full size Ram pickup trucks. The Dakotas had only the 4.7 overhead cammer shared with Jeep, and the 318 (5.2) liter. The 5.2 is the last incarnation of the 360/340 wedge V8, not the Hemi.

The Hemi just spread this year to the Durango, and will be in the 300C & Magnum next.

I think the 300C is getting Mercedes based transmissions, or at least re-engineered versions using MB parts, so that issue shouldn't exist on the cars at least.

 

And, the Dakota 5.9 R/T was severely torque managed by the ECM to let it's tranny live. The 5.9 had the potential to be much faster....if all it's power could be used.

This may be a preview of what we might expect on the 5.3 Impala SS.

 

I think I'm thinking of the 5.2 Magnum.

If I remember right he had heard of Hemi failures in the Rams. He got this off the Dakota board. I haven't lookied there becuase it didn't really interest me too much.

 

I know '04 Jeeps 4.0 straight 6 and Pacificas have been recalled for a faulty computer program or a sensor (nothing mechanical), but no Hemis.