Get Ready For The Dodge Cuda and a Restyled Charger

[kellycom]

well be prepared to be a little more unhappy with the new Charger and Cuda as they more than likely won't have a v8 in them. Turbo 4s and v6s are the direction they're going. Just google "Alfa Romeo Giulia RWD platform" and it will give you a good idea of how both cars will look.

 

[uwss]

front end looks terrible.

 

[Seventy]

I like the nostalgia of the old names, but Dodge does NOT do it correctly, they have been ******* up the charger name since that mess of a 4cyl in the 80's, that was just insulting and then to add some more trauma to the name they make the "new" charger a 4 door, if they wanted to call it something old it should have been a coronet, then a 2 door super bee and R/T, that would have made sense... Then to compete with the pony cars they have the challenger and lastly they should have made the Dart available in a RWD v8, now that would be fun and make a bit of sense...
So if I was designing the line up it would look like this...

Challenger- 300hp v6, a 5.7 with a few trim package in there, and then the fire breathing hell cat...

Coronet- 4 door v6, 4 door v8, 2 door super bee 5.7 and 6.4, then lastly a fire breathing R/T with the hell car driveline.

Dart- Hybrid and current driveline both in FWD, then a 5.7 RWD or maybe all wheel drive model.

Viper- flagship no medium, make a new hemi to turn the world on it sear, 526 super charged 1000HP, super car, charge what ever you have to, make the car mid engine and get it over with...


Sorry charger guys, no room for it , truth of the matter is the viper should have been called charger..

As far as convertibles go they are getting to be tough sells, how many convertibles do you see anymore? Companies have tried everything from volvos hardtop C's to the new soft seal triple thick tops, issue is people buy cars to drive year round and in the south they are too hot and in the north they are too cold, sure corvettes will always need a vert, BUT the market dictates the production (or it should) so I expect to see less and less convertibles in the future...


The fact of the matter is when you have the best sports cars you sell the most cars, not the most sport cars, but the guy who is at the dealership drooling over a challenger will buy his wifes mini van there and his daughters compact hybrid also...

If anyone from Fiat wants to contact me for more ideas just PM me, lol...

 

[Bruzilla]

I like the nostalgia of the old names, but Dodge does NOT do it correctly, they have been ******* up the charger name since that mess of a 4cyl in the 80's, that was just insulting and then to add some more trauma to the name they make the "new" charger a 4 door, if they wanted to call it something old it should have been a coronet, then a 2 door super bee and R/T, that would have made sense.

Dodge, like Checy, got caught totally flat-footed by the success of the uber-retro 2005 Mustang when it debuted in 2004. They just wanted to get a car with a retro name on it out the door as quick as possible and the fact it looked nothing like a Charger and had four doors didn't matter. GM did the same thing when they rushed out the bogus GTO that went nowhere.

 

[ECS]

I'm sorry but a "Dodge Cuda" sounds about as stupid as a "Chevy Mustang" or a "Ford Corvette". Just doesn't work, hope the idea lands flat on it's face!

Apples & oranges. Chevy was never part of Ford or vice versa. Plymouth, Imperial and Dodge were part of the parent Chrysler Corporation.

The Barracuda is NOT being built like the 1999 Charger. It's being built on the Challenger platform, was displayed on Tuesday (a metallic green 2 DOOR convertible) to a select group of FCA members, along with some select owners of Dodge Dealerships. It is a reality.

 

[wild bill]

SWEET! dodge cuda is a way to continue interest in present day muscle. what about a new Road Runner!!!!!!! YEA!!!:headbang:

 

[Seventy]

Dodge, like Checy, got caught totally flat-footed by the success of the uber-retro 2005 Mustang when it debuted in 2004. They just wanted to get a car with a retro name on it out the door as quick as possible and the fact it looked nothing like a Charger and had four doors didn't matter. GM did the same thing when they rushed out the bogus GTO that went nowhere.

I think the GTO was a good idea, just not enough appearance appeal on the car, car should have been much less "cavelier" and more muscle, the driveline and weight was fine, but it needed a wider stance and more aggressive look, too narrow and pitched in the front.. But they got the idea right, power to weight ratio....

 

[satman72]

The issue with the GTO was not the idea, but the execution. Charger...same thing. But, unfortunately in this day and age, it seems that people prefer 4 doors. Which is all well & good, but to then ressurect a classic name that was used on 2 door muscle cars gives a wee bit of a disconnect to the consumer that would appreciate the nameplate on the car.

 

[coronet340]

ressurect a classic name that was used on 2 door muscle cars gives a wee bit of a disconnect to the consumer that would appreciate the nameplate on the car.

I agree. I love the new '14 and '15 Charger RT and Hellcat. The first few years they just looked soft.

But I still disagree with the fact that it's called a Charger. Coronet would have been a better name, at least it had a 4 door option.

 

[Darius]

IN SPITE of the FEW here who insist on the 4 door "thing" being a travesty, Chrysler- in ALL of it's variants- has sold a **** ton of them! So what do YOU know?

 

[Seventy]

IN SPITE of the FEW here who insist on the 4 door "thing" being a travesty, Chrysler- in ALL of it's variants- has sold a **** ton of them! So what do YOU know?

Of course 4 doors sell more than 2 doors, just like hamburgers sell more than new york strips, doesn't mean anything in this conversation, the charger was known as a 2 door car, think of it like this- in 15 years they make a 4 door viper, its just weird..

Coronet was the 4 door, should have went with that, BUT because the charger has more recognition they went with it. I hate to say it but if I am buying a dodge, its going to be for fun, not for transportation or a daily driver, I don't like their trucks or normal passenger vehicles, really the only thing I would buy is the wrangler ( I have a 14' rubicon unlimited, but its a toy, it has like 3K miles on it still, lol) and the challenger (viper too BUT, I think the vette is more car for the money)..

I think they hurt the future of the name making the charger a 4 door, If they made it a 2 door and made just some generic 4 door with either the coronet call outs or a new name all together I would have bought one. The truth is if you buy a 4 door car the future value is trash, where if I buy a challenger I can feel OK about putting 1500 miles a year on it because it will have a bit of value left in 15 years, where in 15 years a 4 door charger is going to be worth more in scrap metal than on the market for sale.

 

[niteshift70]

Everybody can say what they want about the charger, it sold like hot cakes. So it's got four doors, big deal, it's a good looking car in its own right. Large two door coupes have not typically sold well in the last 20-30 years, so the four door was just good business sense. Besides, if you put the first version of the lx platform chargers up next to a '66 or '67, you can definitely see where their inspiration came from. Long blunt nose, sloping fastback profile, short trunk line. The later updates (especially the last) were applications of the second generation charger 's sleeker, coke bottle body line. To me, it looks like the shape of the first gen with the added sleek style of the second gen. Like a '66 and a '69 got together and had a baby. Love em for what they are, dont what hate em for what they arent. I'm thankful that the new challenger, charger, and 300 have kept a good car company from going the way of other great car companies such as studebaker, nash, etc. They have evoked memories of times when cars were more than just a way to get somewhere. The other American car companies have only used nostalgia to boost a niche performance market. Chrysler and dodge's complete lineup is built on nostalgia, and it's worked wonders. There I no mistaking a chrysler or dodge product on the road, they stand out. The rest of the big three just blend in with the imports. You can't tell it's a Chevrolet until you see the badge! You can't say that about the new mopar!

 

[Kern Dog]

Coronets were available as 2 doors or 4, at least until 1971.
I never liked the Coronet name. It was probably tested in focus groups against other names. Charger is a name that surely had more POP to it. Every time someone mentions the Coronet name as a better alternative, I want to kick them in the ***.
The new car market is a very different place as compared to 1970.