I will be the first to admit that I was not around during the beginning of the pony car wars.  Luckily for me, I am around at the rebirth of the pony car wars.  The Ford Mustang really never left , while the Challenger had been off the market for some time.  The Challenger beat the new Camaro to market, but the Camaro is making up for lost time with killer sales numbers.  So back to the Challenger SRT8, is this beast one blast from the past or should it just be left in the past?

The exterior really is a retouched 21st century take on the original formula.  The exterior lines and design is unmistakably Challenger.  The SRT ups the formula with a chin spoiler, larger wheels and brakes, along with a small trunk lid spoiler.  Up front you have what almost looks like a sucker mouth front clip with four round lamps, the two inner lights being parking lights while the outer two are the headlights.  The fog lights below put out a surprising amount of light.  The character line that flows from the headlights down the side of the fenders and door flows into the rear haunches, which are exaggerated and quite large.  They look terrific.  The rear end is somewhat tall but stays true to the retro recipe set forth by the rest of the styling.  The rear tail light is a strip across the back that is really three pieces – but usually if you look quick, you would not notice.  Two squared off polished exhaust tips peek out from the bottom of the bumper to let you know, “hey I’m here, I can and will let you hear me.”  From the retro metal fuel cover to the raised hood with functional air inlets, I love the exterior lines.  They are classic – pure and simple.

Some have called the Challenger’s interior bland or boring.  I really actually feel it fits the car.  It is not over done, but the materials are all soft touch and have a feeling of quality.  The seats are nothing short of terrific.  I did note the seat bottoms were a little flatter then the seats in the Charger SRT8 I recently tested.  That said, they are terrific ,with great bolsters for your backside.  They were all-day comfortable and then some.  The gauge cluster consists of four round barrels with the tachometer and speedometer in the center and the fuel and engine temp gauges to the side.  The SRT8 model had a built in performance meter set up.  This included everthing from the ability to time 1/4 miles and 0-60 runs, to braking and even a G meter.  I must say this is very trick.  The head unit in this Challenger was the optional Uconnect system.  It is hard drive based and easy to use.  Something of note is that automatic climate control is not currently available in the Challenger.  While this does not bother me, it seems to irk some when they see the price tag on this particular car.  Did I mention the seats?  Overall, I liked the interior.

Like the other SRT8′s, the engine bay is filled with a 6.1 liter HEMI V-8 pumping out 425 horsepower to the rear wheels.  The power is channeled through either a pistol-grip six-speed manual or a five-speed automatic.  I had the later and it was acceptable.  I noted the block of the engine was painted orange in a nod to the history of this vehicle , and I really liked that little detail.

I drove this car in town during the week and went up north during the weekend.  On the open highway the car was a very comfortable cruiser.  Composed at any speed, it enjoys straight lines.  When the turns start coming the car can handle it, but this is no light weight.  The car weighs over 4,000 lbs!  On the way back from up north I had my mother, girlfriend and sister all in the Challenger SRT8, along with a full trunk.  After the nearly four-hour drive I asked how they fared.  Only the person behind me (the driver) said it was cramped.  I still managed to average 22.7 mpg on that highway jaunt with the cruise control set at 77 mph.  In the city I averaged 16.5 mpg, and that included downtown stop and go along with suburb and highway driving.  The car is rated at 13/19, which I easily exceeded.

So what do I make of this modern day remake of the Challenger?  It’s big, it’s comfy (did I mention the seats?) while being somewhat practical for what it is.  A ton of fun, but at a price.  Ringing in at $44,940, this is no cheap trick.  That is a lot of coin considering what Ford and Chevrolet are offering now with the new Mustang and Camaro.  Still, this car has a different personality then both of those cars, and I think it sells on its own merits.  Would I recommend the Challenger? In a heart beat!  Now, if you asked if it is better then the Mustang or Camaro? I would say that is all in your definition of better.

Full Disclosure- The review vehicle was provided by Dodge

Source- AutoBlog

The Dodge Charger hit the scene back in 2005 and made quite a splash.  That splash was two fold:  firstly the fact that many people were less then thrilled that the Charger name was applied to a four door sedan.  If you remember, the original Dodge Charger was a 2 door.  The second part was the bold and in your face styling, which was fresh and really spoke to many people.  The Charger has now been on the market since 2005 with only a few major changes (depending on how you look at it).  So lets dive in and see how this once-popular muscle car has fared.

The Charger has a bold styling that can be described as chunky by some.  The SRT8 kicks it up a notch, but in a subtle way.  The hood has an integrated scoop that is functional, funneling outside air into the engine bay to keep that large engine nice and cool.  The front end is lower to the ground and slightly more aggressive.  There is a belt line that runs from the top of the headlights down the side into the rear “haunches” that begin at the rear of the back doors.  These haunches go over the rear wheels and into the tail lights.  The tail lights are one piece but they have been refreshed and now have four (two on each side) circles.  The trunk has a small but raised spoiler.  It is tasteful, but I still wonder if I would want it on my SRT8.  The spoiler is attached by four bolts and I think it could be removed (not that I tried).  The wheels are 20-inches, and ride on low profile tires.  My favorite line on the whole car is the intersection of the belt line and the shoulders in the rear.  It almost looks like a lightning bolt.

The interior was originally a horrible mess.  The materials when the car launched were all hard plastic.  I am not talking about just any plastic.  We are talking about plastic that even Lego would reject for quality control.  Back in 2008, a mild refresh fixed that, and everything you touch and even most things you do not are now soft touch.  Very little hard plastic is still left.  The belt line is high, which makes it feel smaller then it really is.  Sight lines are surprisingly good.  The interior has tons of space both in the front and back.  The rear seats fold down almost flat – the bolsters prevent them from being perfectly flat.  That said, it is nice to see that they are able to fold.  This increases functionality for hauling large items.  The seats were very well bolstered and more then comfortable.  The bolsters are leather and the center of the seat is a suede-like material that keeps you from sliding when driving aggressively.

The SRT8 is powered by not just any HEMI but the HEMI.  The 6.1 liter HEMI puts out 425 horsepower and 420 pound feet to the rear wheels.  The power is channeled through a one-choice five-speed automatic transmission with manual shifting capabilities.  No manual is offered, though how cool would it be if they offered the pistol grip six-speed from the Challenger?  This engine just sounds terrific. You literally just want to slam the gas to hear it over and over again.  Of course you would expect with this amount of power this car has, mileage suffers- -and you would be correct.  It is rated by the EPA at 13/19 mpg, I saw an average of 14.3 mpg with a mix of city and suburb driving.

This car drives like a big sports car.  Wait – well not like just any sports car.  This is not a Porsche, rather this is a large car.  It will push in the corners and you will feel its weight.  That said, it is very composed. It drives European-like which should be no surprise, because the basic frame and transmission is a hand-me-down from the 1999 generation Mercedes Benz E Class (W210).

I actually was moving when the Charger SRT8 was in my possession.  I used this vehicle to see just how practical it was in daily service.  The seats folding down helped and the trunk swallowed a surprisingly large amount of boxes.  The subwoofer in the corner of the trunk did eat into some of the cargo space, but that is minimal.  The practicality of this vehicle was demonstrated in spades.

Alright so what do we have here?  Well, it is practical for a sports car.  A large trunk and large interior while still going like a bat out of hell.  I already know what you are going to say – but Joel it gets crappy gas mileage.  To that I say this – it gets no worse then my Jeep and many other SUV’s that Americans love, yet it is a heck of a lot more fun to drive.  This Charger SRT8 was fully loaded and had a sticker price of $43,730 and that is a lot of coin.  You can get any of the other new muscle cars such as the new Chevrolet Camaro SS or Ford Mustang GT with just as much power, better fuel economy and for a lot less coin.  But they do not have four doors.  It is all about what you need and or want.  I would say this is a great family sedan for the guy that simply wants fast but can not compromise and get a two door. With the Pontiac G8 GXP now dead and gone, this is one of the cheapest four-door sports sedans that houses over 400 hp.

Full Disclosure- The review vehicle was provided by Chrysler

Episode 30 starts with introducing this weeks guest Drew Dowdell owner of CheersandGears.  Moving into the garage we talk about the 2011 Ford Fiesta I was in for the past week along with the Chevrolet Malibu Drew was in. We then move along to the major news of the week segment.  This week included-

• 2011 Honda Odyssey (Link)
• 2011 VW Jetta (Link)
• 2011 Dodge Challenger details (Link)
• Hyundai Equus, Genesis to get 5.0 L Tau V8 (Link)

We then proceed to the clip of the week segment.  This week we featured an ad by Daimler proclaiming the best or nothing. (Link)

This week we introduce a new segment called car spotting.

Next came our main topic which was discussing Tesla and their upcoming IPO and everything that comes along with that.

Last we discuss we plug our respective blogs, Cheers and Gears,  AutoBird Blog and Accelerate Mpls.

The question many people ask me is if there is a replacement for displacement.  I have had this discussion at length multiple times recently. With all the new CAFE requirements and the public’s demand for better fuel economy, some people are worried about fun cars.

While it is true things need to change to achieve better gas mileage numbers, that does not mean the fun will end.  New technologies are making different things possible for this new age.  The use of direct injection and forced induction will likely play a large role in the future of the combustion engine  Many automakers are already downsizing their engines and starting to implement these technologies.

Ford is utilizing twin-turbo charging in combination with direct injection to create more power from smaller displacement engines.  They are calling this technology EcoBoost.  Using two turbos spooling up at different times, it reduces the old problem of turbo lag.  Achieving maximum torque under 2000 rpm’s is one benefit from using this set up.  Even better is that the torque curve is flat!  Ford is getting 365 horsepower and 355 pound feet of torque out of a EcoBoost V-6 displacing only 3.5 liters!  The engine could undoubtedly handle more boost and produce much higher numbers than that, but long term durability would be called into question at some point. Some theorize that the 3.5 liter EcoBoost could have an output of 450+ hp and 450+ ft-lb.

2010 Audi S4 Supercharged 3.0 liter V6

I mentioned earlier that many companies are downsizing the displacement of their engines.  Ford’s EcoBoost powerplant is just the beginning.  In the 2010 Audi S4, a supercharged V6 is used.  This replaces the 4.2 liter V8 found in the previous generation S4.  Many worried about the hp and torque ratings of the car when the smaller displacement engine was announced.  The fact is, the 2010 S4 with its supercharged V6 has more torque and only slightly less hp than the V-8.  The gas mileage has improved greatly and the driving dynamics are still intact.  The only real loss was the deep burble from the throaty V-8.  Problem was, that V-8 was thirsty.

Mercedes has also announced they will start downsizing their engines and will begin to offer more forced induction on future models.  Mercedes’ performance arm AMG will be following suit with downsizing and forced induction as well.  BMW has already started this with the latest M models, which utilize twin-turbo V8′s instead of naturally aspirated V10′s.

2009 Chevrolet Corvette LS3 6.2L V8

All this talk about forced induction is great.  Downsizing is definitely going to play a role in the future.  However, that is not to say you can’t get decent gas mileage out of a big, naturally-aspirated engine.  A base model Chevrolet Corvette is rated at 26 mpg on the highway.  That is 26 mpg from a 6.2 liter V-8, producing 430 hp!  That isn’t terrible – in fact that is down right great!  No direct injection, no turbos, no superchargers – just good old American muscle.  The 2010 Ford Mustang 5.0 V8 achieves 25 mpg on the highway.  Again, naturally aspirated, with no forced induction.

Back to the original question, is there a replacement for displacement?  It really can be answered either way.  Yes, you can get the power of a naturally aspirated V-10 out of a blown V-8, or V8 power from a technology-infused blown V-6.  And now, we are just starting to see V-6 power from inline 4′s with direction injection and turbos.  What you do lose when you try replacing displacement is the sound and feel of the engine.  A turbo V-6 just doesn’t have the same rumble when you start it up.  Everyone’s opinion will differ on this topic.  In the end, mine is that you can replace the power of a larger displacement motor and even get some better characteristics, but in the end you can not replace the feel and experience of a larger, naturally-aspirated engine.  It will always be different, but not necessarily worse.

Episode 29 starts with introducing this weeks guest Drew Dowdell owner of CheersandGears.  Moving into the garage we talk about the Chevrolet Camaro Colin was in for the past week.  We also take time for a special report on the Local Minneapolis Fisker Karma unveiling that I attended last week.  We then move along to the major news of the week segment.  This week included-

• May Sales
• 2011 Dodge Charger Leaked
• Nissan Leaf will break the EV silence with a digital whistle
• A myriad of GM talk surrounding Ex-CEO Richard Wagoner Jr. and the possibility of a real RWD flagship for Cadillac

We then proceed to the clip of the week segment.  This week we featured Toyota, finally, although indirectly, is now acknowledging their safety failures for the first time in an ad  which Features their new Star Safety System. This system includes ABS, Electronic Stability Control, and the much needed brake over-ride system. (Link)

Next came our main topic which was discussing Mercury’s death and Lincoln’s future.

Last we discuss we plug our respective blogs, Cheers and Gears,  AutoBird Blog and Accelerate Mpls.

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At the MAMA spring rally I had the opportunity to take the new Ford F150 Raptor with the new 6.2 liter V8 off roading.  This was not the ridiculously awesome off roading this beast was made for.  We were not flying over sand dunes or even flying through the mud.  We were going slowly over muddy trails, up and down steep grades, and through the woods to grandmothers house we pretended.  Needless to say other then scraping a running board on a rock (sorry Ford) the new Raptor 6.2 handled everything as if it was child’s play.

Notes about the video – This was my first time through the course so I was unfamiliar with it.  I let the guides tell me when and where to throw it into first gear and also when to lock the rear differential.  The guides in the green shirts on the trail were representatives from Land Rover.  They set up the course at Road America Raceway.  Last but not least, the man to my right taking the video was Thomas Bey.  The man in the back of the truck you sometimes hear talking was a Ford Raptor representative.

After taking time to digest everything I wanted to share some experiences from the MAMA spring rally.  MAMA is the Midwest Automotive Media Association,  a non-profit group that brings automotive journalists and public relations people together. A quick recap: the spring rally was a two day event spanning a Wednesday and Thursday.

Getting right into it, we were first unleashed onto the track at Road America Raceway on Wednesday morning after a quick breakfast and safety seminar.  During breakfast the various manufactures in attendance gave quick speeches about what they had brought with them for the rally.

Once we were unleashed we had choices; cars were lined up and each car had a sticker on the windshield stating either “road” or “track”.  If a car had a track sticker we were allowed to take it on either the public roads or the track.  Cars with road stickers were not permitted on the track.

Some things to note about the day: we were asked to keep stability control on at all times in the cars.  They were trying to avoid people over-reaching their abilities and wanted to minimize any damage or injury that might occur and while this most likely hindered some people’s lap times and severely hindered some autocross times, it was fine because part no major incidents occurred.

I focused much of my attention on the track in the early morning.  I drove everything from the Mazda RX8, Audi S4 and Mercedes Benz C63 to the Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2.0T R-Spec.  I instantly found the Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2.0t R-Spec underwhelming.  I was not in love with the manual, it felt slightly mushy and the shifts were not clean and crisp.  The engine needed to stay high in the revs to keep going around the course.  When I asked the Hyundai rep about this he admitted that this was too much track for the car and went on to state that the car is better in shorter track scenarios.  I can easily believe that.

The new 2010 Audi S4 was just tackled the track.  I set all the settings to dynamic mode and took off.  I loved the six speed manual transmission in that car.  Through the corners, the car felt much more neutral then the last generation with the heavy V8, though I will admit I do miss the V8 exhaust from the previous generation S4.  The car pulled itself through the corners pushing power to different wheels with the sport differential in the rear.

I did not take the time to properly set up the Mercedes Benz C63 or the E63 before hitting the track and this hindered some of the fun.  I did not tinker with all the settings, thus the car was not to my liking.  The paddles did not seem to do what I wanted them to do, the steering was not how I predicted through the corners, and the E63 was just simply hard to place in the corners.  You really need to play with the settings to get these cars to your liking and I did not take the time.

For the road portion I took out the upcoming Suzuki Kizashi Sport with the CVT transmission.  The paddles responded nicely and overall, the car was very nice.  The slightly more aggressive exterior body kit is welcomed and the larger wheels and tires looked great.  This was no barn burner but it went well enough.

The Rolls Royce Ghost was another trip all together, hitting near illegal speeds in no time. The interior of the new Rolls Royce Ghost is just plush.  Everything is made of quality materials.  I determined if I can ever afford a house with carpet as nice as the floor mats in the Ghost, I have made it.  The umbrellas in the doors have ventilation ducts that dry them, giving the ability to put away the umbrellas wet (coming in quite handy when Jeeves picks you up at the gallery opening).  Speaking of Jeeves, this car is much smaller then the Phantom (though still quite large) and many owners may prefer drive it themselves instead of having a chauffeur.  Sorry Jeeves, you’ll be taking the other car.

I also took the new Ford F150 Raptor with the 6.2 liter V8 out on the roads.  This big truck finally seems to have the much needed motivation to move like it should.

You know what they say, it’s not a party until a tree falls on an Aston Martin Rapide.  If nothing else, many people will remember this from the 2010 MAMA spring rally.  Upon getting back to our hotels (tired and stinky from being in the sun all day) it started to downpour and I mean a torrential downpour.  Within minutes of the rain hitting, hail rolled through.  The chunks of hail were about the size of a pea.  Of course, my thoughts quickly rolled to the millions of dollars worth of cars sitting outside of the hotel and the track.  Once the storm passed, I walked to dinner.  As I was walking everyone was heading to the parking lot.  I asked why and they only could utter something about a tree and the Aston Martin.  Uh oh, that is not good.  To my (and everyone else’s) horror, a pine tree had fallen on the Aston Martin Rapide.  We lifted the tree off as they backed the car out from under it.  Upon closer inspection, the passenger side mirror was gone, the hood was dented, the windshield broken and the worst part was that wood had gone through the windshield and into the dashboard, more then likely ruining the dashboard. Not good.

Thursday morning we had an autocross course set up next to the track.  The Ford Fiesta was a ton of fun due to its handling.  The new 2011 Ford Mustang V6 was much better then I anticipated.  The Mercedes Benz C63 was a beast though the E63 was a boat through the course, mainly due to it’s size.  Its power was what pushed it through.

The rest of the morning was spent off roading in everything from Range Rovers to the Ford F150 Raptor 6.2.  The Raptor 6.2 was my first vehicle I took off road and its size made it a handful.  The course was somewhat tight in some areas and I had to back up to make some corners.  The truck handled everything like the beast that it is.  After going through the course in the Raptor, I decided to go for something a bit smaller.  The new 2010 Range Rover Sport was next up and this thing was ridiculously nice.  Something crazy to note is that the Range Rover Sport was also labeled Wednesday as a track car.  This vehicle was put through its paces both on the track and off road.  Not many vehicles can be pushed through the track one morning and then stuck onto an off road trail the next.  I was curious as to how the stock 20 inch wheels and tires would handle the off road portion seeing as they had been used on the track the morning before.  To my surprise, the Range Rover Sport (I should not have been surprised) was an off road machine, shrugging off everything I threw at it.  Driving the Range Rover next was a very cool experience.  The all digital gauge cluster is really useful.  Being able to change what is displayed based on what you are doing comes in handy when off road.

The entire experience gave me the opportunity to drive many different cars in varying situations throughout a two day period.  The track portion was a blast, as was everything else.  The people were friendly and inviting.  Sitting and having lunch with two gentlemen from Consumer Reports lead to quite an interesting conversation.  Everyone from freelancers to Cars.com writers were in attendance.  Overall it was a great first experience and I look forward to whatever the next MAMA rallies should bring.

Another month means another gathering for Cars & Café out at the AutoMotorPlex in Chanhassen.  As I woke up at 5:50 am to get ready and then hop into the 300ZX, I looked out the window to see rain coming down.  I instantly decided taking the 300ZX was not happening – not this month.

By no means did this mean I was not going, rather I just did not feel like taking the 300ZX out in the rain.  I went back to bed, because the reality is if you do not plan on showing a car, getting to the AutoMotorPlex ridiculously early is not a huge deal.  After getting a little more sleep, I found myself pulling into the event at 9 am.  Things were already hopping.  There was a line of cars still flowing into the complex, although a few Porsches were actually leaving.  As I was walking down the hill, a Carver County Sheriff pulled in and asked if he could show his car (jokingly of course).  Gotta love the panther cars!

The fact that the weather was not amazing did not stop car lovers and onlookers alike from flowing in and filling up the AutoMotorPlex.  In fact, certain cars ended up being turned away to park at the top of the hill due to the sections filling up.  Notably missing (at least I did not see it) was the Scion XB with the taped on LED strips to the headlights.  I also did not see the 240SX with the zip tied body kit.  That was all fine because the first thing I saw was a black BMW Z8 and I just love that car. The license plate on the Z8 read HOUSPMT, and while I did not meet the owner the car was in great condition.

Other notable cars included a terrific looking Saab 900 (I assume a Turbo but it was debadged and the hood was not open).  I was really digging the car – until I saw the rear which has what can only be described as – you know those aftermarket lights that can go on trucks, with four squircles to make it look similar to a Corvette?  Yeah, those!  Anyways, they were um …well ugly compared to the traditional taillights or even some other aftermarket options.  The rest of the car, I lust after.  A very nice R Design Volvo C30 was in attendance with the license plate BORK.  That is just classic.  I really loved the Audi GT Coupe with great blue paint.  A very nice black 300ZX Twin Turbo was there – and while it may be fast its not Uncs Z (that story is coming someday).

A 1964 Volkswagen 1800 convertible was being shown and it was just classic.  A true Michelle Naranjo vehicle if I have ever seen one – she probably dreams of it now that I sent her a picture of it.  Another cool car I had yet to see in the flesh was a Shelby GT500 Super Snake.  Blue with a black and white interior the car was just gorgeous.  Other cool appearances included the VW Bus that been at all three Cars & Café’s so far this year.  I spoke with the owner and he mentioned a new paint job would be coming towards the of the summer.  Sad, because I actually dig the current look.

Overall, the turnout was great.  Even though it rained the lot was packed.  Good times, donuts, coffee and great people – all with a common passion.  Maybe next month we will get sunshine instead of clouds and rain.  Until next month,  heres to good motoring and safe driving.

Mark this down next to Pontiac, Saturn, Hummer and the rest of the fallen brands (Oldsmobile and a long list we will not go over). Today Ford announced that Mercury is dead. They will wind down by the end of the fourth quarter this year. Remember how Mercury was going to bring back the Tracer based off the new 2012 Ford Focus? Yea that is not going to happen. More attention will be focused on Lincoln and that division will get seven all new or severely refreshed cars. Ecoboost will spread throughout the Lincoln lineup including the next generation Navigator. That essentially just confirmed there will be a next generation Navigator. Ford went on to say that Lincoln will become a technology powerhouse, with more features and better fuel economy than the competition. It also confirmed that a C segment car based off the 2012 Focus will come to Lincoln now. I actually believe that something can be made of Lincoln is Ford really works at it. Ford will have to either really do something and put its weight behind Lincoln like they say, or else it too will probably have to be on the chopping block at some point. Time will tell.