InsideLine brought together two of the coolest cars America makes right now, the 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8 and the 2008 Ford Mustang Bullitt. The Challenger marks the re-birth of a great classic American muscle car, while the Bullitt is seen by many as the best edition of the 2005 Ford Mustang (and trust us, we’ve seen a few). So, which one is the coolest? Check out the video.
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Finally the Dodge Challenger SRT-8 is here. Unveiled at the Chicago Auto Show this week the striped orange muscle car is running a Hemi V8. That means 425bhp and 420lb ft from 6.1-litres. Dodge hasn’t yet released any performance figures but hopes for a 0-60mph sprint in the low five second range. Not bad considering this Yank tank weighs 1878kg.
But don’t fret, because the SRT-8 will still smoke its rear tires (as the pictures show). That’s despite the five-speed auto ‘box. Whether the SRT-8 lives up to its ‘race-inspired, street legal’ tag is another matter.
It’s definitely not a stripped-out racer though. Sat-nav, keyless go, leather and a 522 watt stereo system all feature in the interior. An aura of quality does not. It’s not retro, or particularly nice.
All 2008 Challengers come in just three colors; the distinctive orange hue, the silver we spotted on a prototype, or black. Each 2008 car also gets a special plaque, and carbonfibre-esque hood stripes. Prices start at a piffling $37,995 (£19,500) but buy one from a UK importer and you’ll be looking at a bill for £40k-plus.
To be shown at the Chicago Auto Show at the start of February 2008, this is the new Dodge Challenger SRT-8. From what we can see there are plenty of of hat-tips to the original, such as the rectangular exhausts the size of letter boxes and a rear lip spoiler like the one on the tail of the 1970 Challenger T/A.
The grille is a mean, tight, dark mesh rather than the horizontal bars shown on the 2006 concept. Dustbin-size alloys are still five spokes, but not the deeply recessed style of the unique show wheels. No doubt we can expect some great graphics packages in the old style; the designers were doodling them from day one.
There’s a 6.1-liter HEMI V8 under that long hood and it’ll have been thoroughly fettled by the hot-rodder in the SRT department, so it'll leave the Bullitt Mustang in the dust.
Chrysler Group dealers have been having a tough time of late, so they were, no doubt, throwing parties to celebrate the books opening for the Challenger SRT8 this past Monday. More than 4300 orders were taken on the first day, and more than 6000 eager owners are now waiting to stomp a foot on the throttle when the car arrives next spring.
This is unprecedented,said Mark Mallie, Challenger brand manager.
Customers were actually coming to us and pushing us, so we thought this was a good time to take pre-sale orders.The Challenger comes in black, silver or HEMI Orange. Guess which one is selling best?
More than half of the orders are HEMI Orange,says Maillie. The suggested retail price is a very reasonable $37,995, making it £18,748 on this side of the Pond, where it almost certainly won’t be coming officially. A massive pity, because it'll look almost as the 2006 concept. Read More...
Dodge Viper SRT10, the Street and Racing Technology division at the Chrysler group's Detroit HQ have dreamed up a hardcore street-legal racing version. It's not for the faint-hearted, as you can tell from the angry body addenda and huge spoilers mounted on the already monstrous coupe.
The ACR bit of the name denotes it's an American Club Racer spec car - it's the first use of the badge on a Viper since 1999. So the huge 8.4-litre V10 has had work to its induction system to liberate a heady 600bhp and 560lb ft of twist. And Dodge claims to have stripped out some of the Viper's weight, to boost performance even further.
Delve into the spec and you'll notice some surprising figures. The ACR weighs in at a sturdy 1533kg - a scant 18kg lighter than standard. Hardly seems worth the bother of adding the costly carbonfibre rear wing and front splitter that keep the thing glued to the tarmac.
All is not lost, however. If you tick the necessary boxes, you can do without the stereo, boot carpets and noise insulation, saving a further 18kg. I have another idea: why not go on a diet yourself, it could potentially make a bigger difference.
But let's not quibble about the weight figures. The SRT10 ACR is monstrously fast, and is likely to be an even more hardcore drive, thanks to its grippy Michelin Pilot Sport Cup tyres, uprated Brembo brakes and fully adjustable dampers and a stiffer front anti-roll bar.
The ACR will play center stage at next week's Los Angeles Motor Show, but it'll sadly not be sold in the UK. Only Stateside buyers will have that pleasure, at the anticipated cost of $100,000.
