We were not attempting to replicate the infamous 1969 Charger ad. Honest.
This originally ran in November, 2017. But it’s the only decent thing I’ve done wrote in the last 12 months so here it is again. Lucky you. Update at the end!
One day in the Fall of ’16 I came home from a hard day of hard daying and declared:
“Wife! You need a new car!”
Without so much as a glance up from her Hamster Collector game on the phone she retorted, “I like my car. There’s nothing wrong with my car. Go away, leave my car alone, I know how you are.”
And what, you ask, exactly was wrong with her white ’08 Honda Accord Sedan with a mere 62k on the odometer? Simple: I’d grown weary of looking at it. La Esposita was perfectly content with her beast I’d dubbed Moby, the Great White Honda, and she’d a puttered about the Union of the States for most likely the rest of her days happily cocooned in it’s five star crash rating, mouse fuzz seat material that my aunt in Arkansas proclaimed “really nice”, and haplessly inept Honda AC, which from day one had received a “tries his best” comment on it’s report card, but was sadly outclassed by Central California’s 8 months a year of Bessemer Process sizzle. So how to talk her out of the Great White Honda?
Moby, the Great White Honda. The challenge was how to get my wife to fall out of love with him when he’s everything every woman ever wants: handsome, reliable, loyal, rock solid, and mildly fun.
Don’t get me wrong, Moby was a nice car. Bought when we had to shuttle the godda–, er, uh, the kids around, but his usefulness in that regard was ended since the young’ns had all flown the coop for greener pastures. Frankly, Moby’s only redeeming quality in my mind was his 5 speed manual, La Esposita has a thing for sticks. But she also has a thing for white Hondas, before Moby was a ’95 Honda Civic EX Coupe, 5 speed as well, which she also kept for an unholy length of time. (why anyone keeps cars forever is beyond me)
Her ’95 Civic on a long ago camping trip to Sequoia. Upon showing her this pic she said, “I look happy. That’s a lie. It started raining. I was happy to be gathering sticks to burn, I like burning things.”
I think I know just the tactic.
“Get something fun,” I offered, “something you really want.” That ought to reel her in, I know her weak points, fun is one of them.
“Really??” she mused, looking up at me for the first time and leaving the digital Hamsters to fend for themselves for a moment, “Such as…”
“Whatever you want, anything that strikes your fancy,” I affirmed. “The kiddies are all gone, no need to be practical, no need for four doors, have fun.”
Without missing a beat she said, and I directly quote, “I want a Challenger.”
She wanted one of these back when she was in high school and they were new, but a host of family paddy wagons came instead.
My wife’s personal cars have been a long string of unremarkableness. Starting out with this:
When you ask a 5 year old to draw a car this is what you get.
Yeah, that’s some sort of AMC product, Ambassador perhaps? I’m sure one of you know.
A 1971 Toyota Corona Wagon:
Okay, this one is cool.
There was an early Mazda MPV, which is sort of a forerunner of the CUV’s of today I guess:
Not her actual MPV, but close enough, same color and year I guess. Yawwnnn…
There was a hand me down first generation Mercury Sable:
Again, not her actual car because no one ever took a photo of it. Why would any living human take a photo of it? I mean really?
Then the Civic and the Accord. Pretty much sums it up. Aside from the Civic they are all classic family haulers for a classic family needing hauling.
I was a little apprehensive giving her carte’ blanc to pick anything, afraid something like this would show up in the driveway:
Spreading like a virus.
Are those things old or new in the picture? Oh old ones I guess, they are still jelly beanish, the new ones are all origami like, folded, spindled, and mutilated. Ragingly popular though, and in a Borg-like way all cars will be assimilated into CUVs eventually. Resistance is futile.
But bless her little heart, she immediately wanted a car, a two door coupe no less, one with horrific blind spots, absurdly retro styling, and insane engine choices that probably ought to be illegal in such a eco-conscious state like the one we hang our hats in.
So cool, let’s go looking.
But first, feeling like she needed to be True To Her School, she wandered back to Honda to lookie-loo at the most fun and sporty thing they can muster these days:
Oops. Nope, not the Fit, that would be the Civic Type R. La Esposita closely studied the outrageous Type R, it’s specs laid out before her like an alien autopsy on the kitchen table as her Fitbit announced her pulse soaring upwards at the Type R’s unabashed fury. Yet in the end she concluded that, while super happy fantastic cool, it was too wild and video gamey for her taste.
Toto, we aren’t in Beige-land anymore.
Then she seriously looked at this:
Even test drove one, me stuffed in the back seat while La Esposita helmed and the saleslady rode shotgun. Here’s my review: It was surprisingly cramped in the back seat. My head brushed the roof, there were no AC vents in the console for me, and the rear seat was not very comfortable. The wife was also unimpressed. That Coupe was fast for sure, but she said the interior was “busy” and “kinda disjointed”, and it was overall, “not exciting” to her.
We hit up a big local car show with all the makes, and she tried out the Camaro and Mustang. The Camaro was pronounced, “smooshed”.
Windows are so overrated.
And the Mustang was “oddly proportioned” and “fish-like”.
I rather like these, but perhaps the snout is a bit on the catfish side.
Feeling like she needed to see what all the fuss about Lexus was, she tried out a Lexus RC and declared the seats to be “amazing!” However, the button heavy, patented Japanese Technolord™ interior left her chilled.
Whatever you do, don’t press THAT button!
Nothing from Mercedes or BMW even managed to entice her to stroll over to their displays at the car show. And as for Buick, “Do they still make those?” Fiat got a lot of Esposita love with the 500, especially the Abarth. Here’s my review, I don’t fit in the backseat. Indeed for a time I thought she might actually want to adopt an Abarth and vroom vroom about the town, melting tires and blowing away the loKaL tuNer boYz in their auto-trannyed, lowered, 93′ Civic LXs, you know the ones with full decal packages, surplus Soviet Space Agency rear wings, and JC Whitney body kits all providing that extra boost of downforce to unleash the full power of the fart can. But in the end she passed.
Is that me looking at the door?
Which brings us back to the Challenger. Being a Car Nerd™ you already know the history of the car, so I don’t need to go into that, but did you know that the back seat is surprisingly roomy and comfy? Yup, I fit with ease back there. And bonus points because it has AC vents in the console.
I seem to spend a lot of time in the back seat of La Esposita’s car. You get used to it.
After test driving the Challenger she was more sold than ever. Now time to pick one, there are Baskin-Robbins levels of flavors. They were blowing Hellcats out the door at $499 a month leases when she was shopping in the Spring, why the Hellcat not get one!? 707 horsepower! Sweet Lord Jesus I get all tingly just thinking about it, I’d be hunting for tuNer BoYz all day, stamping little Civic hatches on my front fender each time I blew the doors off one.
And I even like the color.
But alas, it wasn’t my choice. She felt that 707 horsepower was, “excessive”. (now how can power be excessive??)
After obtaining a copy of the latest Dodge Challenger brochure we quickly determined that she was going to need a ton more tattoos in order to be a Challenger owner.
Not sure these two attend Star Trek conventions like me.
La Esposita poured over the brochure, worked through the option lists, and carefully crafted the exact car she wanted; then discovered that it simply didn’t exist.
Would you say I have a plethora of wheels?
Seems that her combo of options/colors/trim levels was a no go. Not one single car set up the way she wanted it on the entire North American continent. None.
Ahhhhhhh….too many choices!!!
What made her car such a special little unicorn? SXT Plus which means V-6 and 8 speed auto along with all the auto safety stuff, the fancy bright headlights and such, and no track package, blackout package, 10 million watt stereo package, or Boy Racer™ package. Apparently those heavily tatted pretty people in the brochure weren’t really into the safety package or the decent headlights and no one ever ordered Challengers with those options. Who knew? As Esposita said, “I want a young persons car with all the old people’s options”. (the dealer told us that the big seller is the base R/T, you get the V-8 and not much else, “more engine, less car”)
But does it come in brown and with a diesel?
So now what? Do special orders not upset us at Dodge? All the dealers we were talking to were not in the least bothered to special order Esposita a car to her specs. So bam, why not?
On her birthday in April we went down to our local Dodge guy who is 0.6 tenths of a mile away, and who oddly enough was offering the best price we could find anywhere on the entire freaking planet, and La Esposita pulled the trigger on the Challenger order. Pressed the order button herself.
Her order form, all the geeky details of the car.
Waiting game. They told us 6-8 weeks and Ayup, it was 8 weeks and a couple of daze before the car arrived. One day I was feeling my spidey-sense tingling away as I was buying gas, and I just knew that the car was close by. So I buzz-bombed by the dealer and found this:
Thar she be capt’n!!
Esposita’s car was still on the car-carrier about to be unloaded. So I snapped some pics for her.
See that little radar sensor in the lower front grill? Yeah, no one orders those.
Man they stuff them on these rigs eh? Tight fits.
All nice and hermetically sealed up in there.
La Esposita was more excited than I think I’ve ever seen her. More than when she married me? Uh, hmm. More than when the kids moved out? Uh, Hmm. More than when she won a Claymore sword at the Highland games? Well no, of course not that one.
Later that afternoon we went and picked it up. The dealer had cleaned it up and by golly it was pretty. I have to say that the colors/wheels/interior colors she picked are quite fetching.
Picking it from the dealer. He was also pretty excited about it.
Normally I don’t like black wheels. Me, I’m a serious chrome man, bling all the things, when in doubt CHROME! But this works for me. Personally I’d a probably gotten an orange or lime green Challenger, I’m all about loud colors though, tacky is me.
My idea of way cool! But then I still eat Spaghettios.
La Esposita is more sophisticated than I. For example check out her Challenger’s black/white leather interior. It works perfectly with the exterior colors.
The seat goes up and down, which is handy for the shortness that is my wife.
Final price out the door was $28,007 after some “discounts” the dealer magically found in his left shirt pocket for such a time as this. What do you suppose it really costs to make one of these? A buck eighty five? Anyone know? I hear that’s a closely guarded secret, actual costs to make a car, guarded like exactly what’s in the 11 herbs and spices at KFC and what’s so “special” about “special sauce” at McDonalds.
Parked with Moby for a brief moment.
We sold the Moby the Great White Honda to one of the kids for 2500 bucks. Meh.
If you hate retro you’ve come to the right place.
What to do with a brand new car with 3 miles on it? Immediately went for a little drive.
Kingman, Arizona
La Esposita named her new whip “Dixie”. Now I’m here to tell you that a Challenger is one fine ride for a Great American Road Trip. Comfy, smooth, quieter than the Accord was at freeway speeds (measured by the decibel thingie on my phone) and it even gets decent gas mileage, knocking down an honest to Dog 30 mpg on the highway at speeds and blasting the AC.
Remember the old Twin Arrows gas station on Route 66? Yeah, like the rest of our memories it’s all plinker toast now.
She’d optioned out Dixie with that radar Adaptive Cruise Control gizmo, and good God it’s incredible! The car slows down for traffic ahead on the freeway, and speeds back up when its clear. Utterly worth every single dime it cost! Our first taste of our coming autonomous overlords who will eventually scrub us puny humans from the planet in order to save us, and it’s crunchy, chewy in the middle, and so good. Oh yeah, I almost forgot, all those extra-cost safety gizmos; blind spot radar, backup radar, and backup camera- negate the appallingly bad blind spots that are a standard feature on these cars. Don’t bother owning one without the electronic help.
This is, uh, Berryville, Arkansas where Esposita’s people hail from. Her dad pronounced it “Variable”.
Dixie attracts a HUGE amount of attention. More than anything I’ve owned this car gets comments and turns heads. People come up at gas stations and start talking about it. People comment all the time in parking lots, “Nice car!”, “Cool car!”, “I love your car!”. People look, heads turn and follow it, men rise up in pride, women swoon, children laugh and play and the sun comes out and shines brighter as you drive past in Dixie the Challenger. The dealer warned her that it would get attention and sure enough it does. As both Mr. and Dr. Spock would say, “fascinating.”
Carry on my wayward son
Thus far Esposita is loving it. And no regrets yet about losing her stick for the auto 8, which surprises me. Once in a while I get to drive it, but not much, I’m usually in the shotgun seat or even relegated to the back seat. I once rode back there for about 5 hours through Nevada in late summer, it’s not so bad, got cupholders and a map pocket and everything back there. How long will she keep it? I dunno. But it’s a keeper.
La Esposita somewhere in Utah flying low.
Update: December 2018. Let’s ask her how the car is doing and if she still likes it after a year and a half of rolling.
“Hey Wife! Do you still like Dixie?”
“Yeah. Why?” suspiciously…
“I’m re-posting the tale of you and it on the car site,” as I clickity-click on my laptop.
“I love my car.”
“Anything you don’t like?”
“Nope. And don’t go getting any ideas.” as she listens to The Lumineers…
“Any problems with it?”
“Yeah, that software problem with the radio. It crashes every so often, then it reboots itself. But that’s not Dixies fault, it’s the makers fault. I love my car.”
And there you have it gentle reader, some buggy software issues on the head-unit and that’s it. (fewer problems than Moby her Accord had 18 months into ownership) One highly satisfied car owning wife. Not once did she ever utter, “I love my car” when she owned Moby. Dodge did well.
Feeling emboldened by your opening, and in need of a cup of tea to accompany in reading the rest, I called: “Wife!..”
Now unable to read for the swellings, can someone kindly let me know what happened next?
Great stuff, as ever, direct from Fresno. And a very tasteful Challenger for sure. I wouldn’t rise up, necessarily, for fear of arrest, but I would wave.
Wonderful, hilarious article, and I’m glad the Challenger’s working out so well for you. There is just something about them. A friend of mine – not at all a Car Guy, normally – got one as a rental and was instantly transformed into a cruising, drag-racing motorhead. Wishing you and the Wife! many happy miles together.
Paul, that’s a testimonial that we really like to hear. From someone that previously cars were essentially just another appliance, now to something to get passionate about. And, all you have to do is go and visit your friendly Dodge dealer and take that test drive.
Great story, but honestly, the topic matters less with writing like this. I happily devour all your writings.
I’m afraid he may be too quick to judge the two people in the “Dodge Gear” ad, though. She’s probably thinking “So help me, if he confuses the USS Reliant with the Defiant _one more time_ I’m Vulcan nerve pinching him into the next county!”
Yes!! Exactly! I mean, how freaking hard is it people?! The USS Defiant is from DS9! The USS Reliant is from movies! Geesh…
What?! No, no, no. The USS Reliant is the one where the wings make an “X” shape; the Defiant is the ball- or moon-shaped one. Sheesh!
“I like burning things”!
AND she has a sword!
Hilarious! Great to see someone so excited about their car. Long may that last.
And now the only way to top the acquisition of the new Challenger is, of course, to acquire an old Challenger*. Hurry!
*E body – not Mitsubishi, just to be clear.
Actually, the REAL way to show your credit is one have one of each, all three Challengers. Anyone can get a first and third generation. It’s finding a second generation that’s the challenge.
I like the way you think, dude. Couldn’t afford a new one when they first came out in the fall of ’69. Yes, I still remember when they were BRAND NEW, never seen before. I wanted one but couldn’t afford one. Of course, I was only 15 at the time. Did get a used 1971 Challenger in the mid-seventies. But, then my brother borrowed it and wrecked it. He then bought it from me and got it fixed. Anyway, also wanted one of the second generation, Mitsubishi-made Challengers. Couldn’t quite swing a new car loan at the time. Later bought a used version of the near identical Plymouth Sapporo. In recent years a close friend has encouraged me to go ahead and get a new, current edition Challenger. Haven’t taken time to drive one yet but leaning more to the current Charger. Have owned a number of used Chargers over the years. Well, actually 8 Chargers ranging from 1969 to 1976.
A Challenger is very high on both mine and my wife’s cost-no-object next car list. With a daughter to marry off and saving for retirement, we may put it off for a few more years, though.
Glad to see it’s working out for you folks, I’m very envious.
Great read. Love the car she chose.
And the picture of the Camaro is laugh out loud funny.
I should point out that the Camaro picture was done by CC’s Barry Koch, for my article on the sneak preview of the 2020 Camaro:
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/cc-exclusive-2020-camaro-revealed-the-future-has-arrived/
I’m not sure whether Heath found it at CC or through a Google search.
Found on a Google search, but I recall the CC article about it. It’s a hilarious pic.
Great read. You and your wife seem like interesting people. Are you related to Jon Stewart? You two could be brothers.
I always liked these new Challengers from the moment I saw them arrive about a decade ago. Even though Dodge has kept the design around a long time now, I think it looks good still. Hope your wife enjoys it for a long time to come.
Not sure I would bother owning one period. My brothers FCA products have been rather friendly with the dealer service department a little too often. (both RAMS)
That would be my concern as well. The Abarth, for instance, looks pretty appealing, but I just can’t get past the potential reliability issues. Here’s hoping La Esposita’s Challenger is trouble-free.
If it’s any help, I’ve got a 2013 500c Abarth, the wife has a 2015 Dart GT. We love them both, and have had no problems whatsoever in the year and a half we’ve owned them.
Over the course of our car owning lives, between Maggie and myself we’ve owned 8 Chrysler/Daimler-Chrysler/FCA vehicles (’82 Omni, 84 Caravan C/V, ’91 Dakota, ’96 Daytona, ’96 Dakota, ’90-something Concord, plus the two current cars).
Except for the Concord, which was a back of the lot buy here/pay here car, we’ve had better luck with Chrysler products in general than anything else we’ve ever owned.
Glad to hear you’ve had good luck with yours. The Abarth in particular must be a blast to drive, from all I’ve read.
You know, I almost didn’t read this thinking meh, it’s a new car. But oh, wait it’s by Heath, so it’ll be a good read.
And so it was, great way to start my day!
Nice car too. I like the Challenger the best out of the three retro muscle cars available. I think I’d go manual transmission and some fromage-like stripes on the outside myself but that’s just me. Sure looks blocky next to the original Challenger, but manages to look good nonetheless.
Heath is quite likely the only person who could get me to read an article about a Challenger. And not just that, but after reading this, a piece of me actually wants a Challenger.
This was a great read, Heath — I strongly urge you and your family to buy a few more cars, so that we can have the pleasure of reading about it.
I always though the “special sauce” at McD’s was just Thousand Island dressing. Any former employees here who can verify this?
The guy who cuts my hair is a real motorhead. When I first started going to him he had a black on black Challenger, that shared it’s parking slot with a Harley Davidson. Then, about 2 years ago he decided he needed a new car. He bought a white Ford Mustang GT that has a Shelby treatment added to it (or is some kind of Cobra…I haven’t heard the specifics, yet).
I asked why he bought the Dodge and not the Chevy, to which he replied that he was able to get a better deal on a car he felt was just a bit better than the Chevy….and the then current Ford. I’ll bet the Ford dealer gave him a really good deal this time around.
Berryville? You passed up the opportunity to shoot that beautiful car against the backdrop of Eureka Springs??? ?
Just kidding, of course. Great story, and nice to see one that is set at least partially an hour away from my adopted home of the last 20 years.
Ordering a car to my specifications is on my bucket list.
We were all over northern Arkansas and southern Missouri this past summer, Eureka Springs included. Such greenery! Hurts the eyes of us brown staters. Lovely land and great people.
You should have ventured just a little further east of Eureka and sampled the wares of Highway 7 which runs north to south thru the Ozark and Ouachita mountains.
It made C/Ds ten best roads list and it is a joy to drive when the leaves are changing in the fall. Go from Harrison (it starts just a little north of there) to Hot Springs and it’ll take up your whole day. If you stop in Hot Springs, I’ll say Hi in person 🙂
I’m sure it was just bad luck, but my vacation on Lake Ouachita years back was marred from really unfriendly people that whole trip… So beautiful though. Hot Springs was really beautiful as well, and the old bath houses were so interesting.
If you head north – and I’ll admit I’m biased toward Northwest Arkansas, since I live there – the people tend to be friendly, although there are bad apples in the occasional bushel.
If you’re also an art and architecture buff, the Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville is breathtaking. The Moshe Safdie-designed building is a piece of art unto itself, and the collection often features cars…with some artistic embellishments.
Funny you should mention the green, as we just finished up with the fall color. If you were here over this past summer, it was unusually green…because it was unusually wet!
Ironically, I recently returned from a week in San Diego with my significant other, who kept commenting on how brown things were!
What fun! Is this the only recorded instance of someone going from a white Accord sedan to a Challenger?
La Esposita sounds a lot like Mrs. JPC – she is pretty cool about her car for a long time but when it is time, her specs can be pretty exacting.
You are clearly a better husband than I am, because I am not sure I could have avoided elbowing the Mrs out of the way in order to check the “Hemi” box on that order form. Go big or go home.
I’ve got one-
A good friend of mine went from a 2001 Honda Insight to a 2017 Challenger GT just last year.
Like La Esposita, his life circumstances were changing. When the Insight was totaled in a Colorado hailstorm, he was eight months short of retirement, so he no longer needed a high mileage commuter car. His weekend toy was a ’74 Challenger, so a new Challenger fit his preferences. While big RWD sedans don’t always work in Denver weather, Dodge has an AWD model (the GT), and he bit.
Great article! Your wife’s Challenger is pretty much spot-on with the car I’ve built and priced dozens of times online (only missing a sunroof to further brighten the still-cavelike interior.) Each time I’ve talked myself out of it… so far.
Great tale of someone who clearly, when she’s determined to do something, does it properly.
Lovely looking car, and fascinated by people who carefully spec their drive, and even belter when they enjoy it.
It does sound like a keeper: you’re lucky people.
Great going! Fabulous and funny recounting of the experience of buying and enjoying a change in travel modality. You made my day with this article (maybe I am REALLY BORED OUT OF MY MIND), Of note, in 1969 a middle-aged couple who were relatives’ relatives had one son who was almost finished with his undergraduate education. No longer did they need a people mover for him and his friends. It was time to regain some youthful time in their lives. They bought a new, and loaded, 1969 Chevrolet Camaro and just loved it. So, three cheers to you and La Esposita! Enjoy this new driving experience. Chal;lengers had the looks back in the 1970’s and they still do.
Great read. Great car. That’s pretty much the car I would like except as you pointed out, in orange or something bright.
Very well written and fun to read. Reminds me a little of my wife and her ’82 Camaro. She would say there’s just something about that car that makes you feel good driving it. Cars are fascinating that way sometimes.
With regard to the Challenger, I’ll just say this: I’ve owned cars from Acura to Volvo, and so far, overall my 2010 Challenger is the best car I’ve ever owned. One of very few that if something happened to it, I would buy another.
Congratulations on the new ride, it looks fantastic! I do enjoy a coupe with enough room in the back for real people, this is one of the few (the only one?) left.
That engine is a peach, and pairing it with the 8-speed is a great combination. I’m sure you (y La Esposita) will have many happy years with it.
A very fun read and I’m glad it turned out happily! Before reading the “rest of the entry,” I was deeply suspicious that a happy Honda hausfrau had been hoodwinked of her happiness for her husband’s happiness.
I was initially reminded of a co-worker in the mid ’90s who married one of the top salesmen in our company – who left to become the top salesman at an even higher paying company. One day he came home and said “Wife, you need a car fitting the wife of the company’s top salesman.”
So, wife dutifully traded her beloved Honda Accord for a shiny new Lexus LS 400. While a very admired car at the time, it rubbed her modesty streak the wrong way, felt to her like driving a barge, and felt too old for someone about 32 years of age.
I guess is the moral is that to be a top salesman you need to be a pushy salesman.
Your cultural references are a lot of fun, but one your were looking for was Carte Blanche, an upscale travel and entertainment charge card that is still around as a sub-branded Mastercard, apparently for people over 95 years old that recall this was the elite credit card to have in 1958.
Source: That co-worker and I worked for a credit card processing company, and we accepted Carte Blanche.
Yup, that’s what I meant, Carte Blanche. Thanks!
Three years ago I had to help my then 22 year old daughter buy a new car in L.A. Her old ride, an ’03 Durango with about 200,000 miles on the clock, got side-swiped and totaled by an armed car-jacker who was trying to evade the police.
To my surprise, she wanted a Challenger! So I helped her negotiate a deal on a new one from a Dodge dealer in Long Beach. It was at the end of the model year (and calendar year) so the price was really right.
She definitely surprised me; she says that when her friends find out what she drives they are always so surprised. Best of all, it has been a really solid, reliable car.
It’s time for a new car for my wife and adaptive cruise certainly is on the radar.
I’m not a fan of silver/grey cars because of how they blend in with road surfaces. Otherwise, it’s puzzling why there are zero dealers that carry a car optioned up like this one. The minimal ‘just right’ suite of options (with or without a sunroof) seems great for someone wanting an affordable, adult ponycar that can be driven regularly and as safely as possible (the poor outward visibility of these cars definitely would make those options worth the price). A lot of enthusiasts lay into the Challenger as ‘old school’ when compared to the more modern, speedier, better handling Mustang and Camaro (the Challenger is, after all, just a two-door Dodge Charger). But the heavier Challenger seems pretty okay when it comes to comfortable, relaxed cruising in an understated, attractive car. The Pentastar V6 is plenty for that. Unfortunately, as the dealer remarked, most people likely forego the optional equipment and pay the same price for a stripped, V8 R/T.
In fact, this Challenger almost seems like an homage to the original E-body version that was known as the SE (Special Edition). All it needs is a vinyl roof with a smaller, custom rear window.
Ayup. I’ve rented the 4-door equivalent of this car and the V-6 has plenty of power to get the job done, along with excellent fuel economy, as mentioned already.
But if I were going to spend that kind of money on a car for myself, I just would have to no-two-ways-about-it get the V-8, just for the exhaust sound alone. And I would be at extra-legal speeds shortly after leaving every stoplight, just to hear that glorious exhaust sound, which would get me into no end of trouble.
Therefore, and sadly, I will never own one of these!
Great read and thanks for sharing!
When I was shopping for my Challenger, actually before I was really shopping and just killing time at work(Too long to explain, but I basically sit and watch TV and browse the net all night, and get paid to do it!) and I was building and pricing Challengers the way I wanted one to be, and it was almost impossible to find a Scat Pack locally in one of my acceptable colors without a sunroof. Month after month, I found ONE car that 100% matched up, in TorRed. One. When I got close to pulling the trigger, I pushed my search out and hit the jackpot when I found not one, but 5 exactly as I wanted, in Plum Crazy, B5 blue, Octane Red, TorRed, and Go Mango. I took the TorRed one after the dealer just missed on another 100% match in Yellow Jacket, my #1 choice. Of course, two weeks after I got the car, a Yellow Jacket one appeared at a local area dealer, but except for that one, I still haven’t seen a Scat Pack in a decent color without the sunroof at a local dealer. Meanwhile, the dealer my car came from has them all the time. The Plum car is still available at a nice price.
And I’m sorry, but the 5.7 hemi is the minimum acceptable engine in a modern Challenger.
“I’m here to tell you that a Challenger is one fine ride for a Great American Road Trip. Comfy, smooth, quieter than the Accord was at freeway speeds (measured by the decibel thingie on my phone) and it even gets decent gas mileage”
I noticed that on my last trip down I-40 to visit my sister- Watching the oncoming traffic, about one out of every eight cars were either a Chrysler 300 or Dodge Challenger.
I’m sure the demographic of cross country drivers and big Chryco buyers are very similar, but it’s clear the new Challenger is one of the go to options for Road tripping.
Happy for La Esposita! And love the description of a “young person’s car with old people features”
I love these Challengers. And the interior that came with the MCE was a huge improvement. I’d get an R/T myself, though, although the Pentastar V6 is plenty powerful and you can get it with AWD.
A Camaro or Mustang may handle better but if I’m driving long distances or even if I’m just driving a few friends around town, the Challenger is the better option. Gotta love the ’60s-style engine hierarchy in the Challenger lineup too!
I enjoyed reading your post. Sounds like the right car for your wife. BTW the Rambler Ambassador pictured is either a ’65 or ’66, I learned to drive in a ’65 in ’66.
What a great write up!
That’s one of the nicest Challengers I’ve seen! I don’t like them when they’re overloaded with decals and spoilers.
Kudos for the photo of the stop in the Flint Hills, and the marker talking about bluestem. See PraryErth by William Least Heat Moon for more on this region.
“(why anyone keeps cars forever is beyond me)” – because I HATE car payments. I haven’t bought a new car since the 80’s, either. Nor do I want to. They cost too much and depreciate too fast.
Your wife does not look old enough to have been in high school when the original Challengers were out. Congrats.
Hard to believe that the Challenger has been out for almost a decade now but they still look great and I still turn and look at them when I see them on the road.
I too am a happy Challenger owner; I have a ’10 R/T that has been a reliable, fun to drive car but it has the cheap interior that came in the 08-10s; the interiors in the new ones are so much nicer, and yes, they are almost perfect as road trip cars.
My ’10 Challenger R/T is almost exactly 7 years old and I like it so much I plan on buying another one in a year or so. Not because my car has had problems, it’s been pretty solid, it’s mostly I want the 6.4L engine and the 8 speed and the nicer interior.
Just for grins, I’ve gone on the Dodge website dozens of times since 2015, and built a car as I want it.
R/T Scatpack
6.4L V8
8 Speed auto.
Black leather interior.
Sound group II, all you need to do is toss some better speakers in the dash. My advice is to avoid the HK “upgrade”, it’s just not right.
Remote start, heated steering wheel, etc.
NO SUNROOF.
The sunroof is the killer. I won’t buy one, I know a lot of people with them and they all have problems, eventually. Since I started doing the builds, for about 4 years, I’ve found TWO cars equipped perfectly. Two. One was silver, and that’s a no for me, and the other was TorRed. I came very close to buying that one, but financially, it would have been a severe strain. So I will probably have to order one too. My real problem is color and wheels. If it was a perfect world, I would order Petty Blue with white stripes and a black interior. Why black? Because I hate any color interior but black. But FCA doesn’t seem to want to make a car in Petty Blue, so it will be red, orange, or yellow. Probably yellow if it’s perfect, with silver wheels, NOT chrome, I’m chrome phobic in general, but I’m not a black or “brass monkey” wheel fan at all. But, if a car was otherwise perfect, I would get the black wheels, and save up for some better ones, and sell the originals on a forum.
Good story! I agree, some cars can just make you feel good driving them.
I am a big fan of the Mustang, obviously. However, if I was in the market for a new car it would have to be the Challenger. I really like my ’09 Mustang but didn’t like the refresh of 2010 and don’t like the current model at all. Then Ford dumped the V6 and it’s either a 4 or a V8. I like V6s for the gas mileage and medium level performance. I don’t like four bangers no matter how much Ford tries to tell me how great they are. With me it is a matter of principle.
I once owned a ’73 Challenger that the previous owner had dropped a much modified 440 in. It was very fast but a little too twitchy for my kind of hobby car driving. Dodge did a very nice job of reflecting the original’s looks, both inside and out. I have never driven one of the new ones but have ridden in a couple including a Hellcat and liked the size and feel.
As I said, if I was looking to buy a new car it would have to be a Challenger.
“Then Ford dumped the V6 and it’s either a 4 or a V8.” Just like with the Fox-Body from 1987-93. Per Wikipedia: “The V6 option was discontinued while the 2.3 L four-cylinder gained fuel injection, leaving only the 2.3 L four-cylinder and the 302 cu in (4.9 L) V8.”
Heath, I don’t like to compromise when it comes to cars, so very happy your lady went ahead and ordered hers exactly the way she wanted. The interior looks really great! Thanks for sharing your great story.
Great story as always Heath. I hope you keep contributing your writing to CC. My brother was shopping for a “Pony car” last year and we looked at the Challanger. I too noticed how much roomier than the back seat was on it versus the practically useless seats on the Camaro and Mustang. IIRC the truck seemed to be significantly bigger too. I am glad I am not the only one who finds the nose on the current Mustang unattractive. It’s too bad, because I really like the side profile and roofline.
Aaaaaa – THE ’69 Charger ad. Absolutely the sexiest automotive ad….EV AR.
I love the writing!at la esposita be forever happy with Dixie!
The lx is hands down the best vehicle Chrysler has ever produced. It has the perfect combination of room, comfort, speed, handling, reliability, and price. The charger starts, after incentives, around the same price as an accord or Camry but feels much more expensive and is much sportier and more comfortable. The 300 can be equipped with every Bell and whistle known to man for about 35k, which renders Cadillacs and lincolns silly. The v6 is plenty of power but the v8 is a nice idea.
I’ve seen a couple of challengers with two tone paint to mimic the vinyl roofs of the originals. It’s very attractive. Odd that that isn’t a factory option.
I desperately wish Chrysler would make this as a convertible. It’s bigger Enough than the mustang and Camaro to have a habitable back seat, which the mustang and Camaro do not, plus, as la esposita observed, the Camaro is squashed
Indeed, a factory vinyl top would have been great. In fact, the aftermarket offers chrome strips and trim that mimic the original E-body’s chrome bumpers and hood and trunk edging very well. All of this stuff (when done right) goes a very long way to enhancing the retro experience, as well as separating the Challenger even further from the Mustang and Camaro. As stated before, an ‘SE’-style package would be perfect.
That’s a grand story, well told.
Er-ruh…angonnaminnit…
Wait, what? Five? My ’07 Accord would have a six-speed stick if it didn’t have the five-speed automatic. Honda subtracted a gear for ’08?! Sheesh.
Aw, heck, that’s no secret, it’s public knowledge! The Colonel’s Secret Blend consists of 11 herbs and spices, 23 of which are salt.
Yup, they reduced the gears from six to five on the ’08 redesign. Nice huh?
And exactly two years into owning Moby the entire transmission had to be rebuilt. Nice huh?
And here I thought the Colonel’s Secret Blend was 23 parts MSG. Turns out it’s just salt…
Well, yeah: it’s a blend of 11. 23 of them are salt, 44 of them are MSG, and the last one is black pepper.
As for Honda’s transmissions: I’m still chuckling wryly about the Kafka-esque experience of shopping for a transmission fluid filter for my Accord (I won that round), grumbling about its drunken, sloppily-programmed shift “logic”, and hoping it holds up.
No, there’s definitely some black pepper in there as well. As someone who spent a couple of his teenaged years in a KFC kitchen I’m in a position to know 🙂
Glad you reposted, Heath, this is a great read. Please buy a car every year so we can get more of these.
I gotta say, your wife is absolutely CUTE in that outfit! The name “La Esposita” applies to her very well. As far as the overall pose next to her Challenger, there are definitely similarities to the ’69 Charger ad Marshall Loveday posted. Obvious differences though: the car is facing in the opposite direction, and I don’t think anyone was wearing flip-flops with a dress in 1969. But as you mentioned, y’all weren’t attempting to remake the ad in the first place. I DO understand the dilemma of finding your perfect car with everything you want (and nothing you DON’T) WITHOUT having to order brand-new–sometimes that’s your only option, albeit a pricey one. And the issues people are having with software in the radio & other electronic tech in the center console (touchscreen, MP3 player, SYNC, Bluetooth, satellite radio, GPS, smartphone connectivity…you name it!) are reasons I tend to stay away from newer, loaded-up vehicles; heck, I hardly use the radio in my Ranger at all! Why pay extra for stuff I don’t really need? This picture is from someone else’s Ranger but mine is pretty much the same.
The picture of the Ranger radio makes me wax nostalgic over how freaking easy it used to be to change out a radio for a better aftermarket unit. It took me all of about 30 minutes to upgrade the radio to a CD unit in a 1996 Plymouth Neon. There was even an intermediate wiring harness that made the whole thing a complete plug-and-play affair.
Today, I’d be scared shitless to try it with a new car for fear of fouling-up the car’s software.
Thanks for the update. Just a few days ago a Challenger went rumbling past and I thought to myself, “Wonder how that one from CC is holding up.” Glad to hear that Dixie is still living up to expectations. Happy New Year to you and La Esposita.
Fun read! And brilliant to let your wife get the car she wanted… as they say: happy wife,
happy life!
With that in mind I encouraged my own bride to get the car she that she’s wanted ever since it came out in April 1964, however in the newer, and safer, version. Also a V-6, which is perfect for her and plenty quick as far as I’m concerned. Over 9 years it’s now accumulated 52,000 miles of fun! That said, it’s not the best long trip car, but it is great for jaunts over Vermont country roads on a beautiful summer day, which is just what it’s best at! Here’s a pic of my bride and her pony…. doesn’t every little girl want one?
Missed this the first time. Prefer the green myself, but who’s going to argue with some gorgeous woman driving a silver one?
I know what you mean about the 2008 Honda Accord. I had one of those, dark gray with 5-speed automatic, for 3 months last year. It was rear-ended in the dead of night by a drunk driver at just about this time last year. I went to the impound yard, and the rear bumper was about even with the rear window. The passenger cell was intact, so I wouldn’t have been hurt if I’d been it.
It checked the refinement box but not the fun-to-drive box. The a/c might not have cut it in Fresno, but it did in Seattle.