2009 Dodge Ram 1500 Crew Cab Trx Hemi 5.7 Bed Liner Boards Tow Pkg Media 56k on 2040-cars

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Dodge Charger Hellcat hitting 60 in 2.9 seconds on drag radials?

The Dodge boys and their cousins from SRT have shoehorned the same 707-horsepower, 6.2-liter supercharged V8 into both the Dodge Challenger and Charger. The former being a two-door, it's lighter than the latter four-door sedan. So it would stand to reason that the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat would be the quicker of the two, right?
Only that's not necessarily proving to be the case. On stock rubber, yes, the coupe beats the sedan: Dodge quotes a 0-60 time of 3.7 seconds for the Charger SRT Hellcat and 3.5 for the Challenger. Same gap across the quarter-mile: 11 seconds flat for the Charger versus 10.8 seconds for the Challenger. But according to recent reports, the story changes when you put both on drag radials.
While visiting Chrysler HQ in Auburn Hills, MI, TorqueNews.com caught wind of performance figures for the Charger Hellcat on drag tires: 0-60 in a mind-blowing 2.9 seconds and a quarter-mile in just 10.7. The latter figure just barely pips the Hellcat-powered Challenger's NHRA-certified figure of 10.8, making the Charger not only the fastest sedan on the market, but also the fastest muscle car. What isn't immediately clear, however, is whether the drag radials in question have any tread on them and are street-legal, or if they're pure slicks confined to a closed strip.

2014 Challenger R/T Shaker, Mopar '14 Challenger bring back iconic hood

Enamored of the Dodge Challenger but wish you could get one with a shaker hood? We've got good news, because Dodge and Mopar have teamed up to bring it back.
The 2014 Dodge Challenger R/T Shaker packs the same 5.7-liter Hemi V8 as the standard Challenger R/T, but upgrades the business end with a through-the-hood exposed cold-air intake system. The retro hood scoop protrudes from the center of the hood in satin black (matching the decklid spoiler) to feed the Hemi and shakes with the engine just like the original from 1970. The Shaker model also comes with a Super Track Pak that adds a new steering rack, brake linings, shocks and 20-inch Goodyear Eagle F1 Super Car rubber. You can also shut off the stability management system completely in this car. A series of interior and exterior trim enhancements round out the look. The whole package adds $2,500 to the price of a Challenger R/T Classic for an all-in MSRP of $36,995.
In case that's not enough, Dodge is also offering a limited-edition Mopar Challenger that follows the 2010 Mopar Challenger, 2011 Mopar Charger, 2012 Mopar 300 and 2013 Mopar Dart. Limited to just 100 examples, the 2014 Mopar Challenger gets the same Shaker hood intake, unique graphics and wheels, an enhanced interior and a long list of optional extras from the Mopar parts catalog. Dodge isn't saying just yet how much the Mopar Challenger will cost, but you can bet it will command a considerable premium for the exclusivity alone.

Killing the Dart and 200 might lower FCA's fuel economy burden

Killing the Dodge Dart and Chrysler 200 could allow FCA US to take advantage of an intriguing quirk in the next decade's fuel economy regulations. By increasing its ratio of trucks versus cars, the automaker might not need to worry so much about hitting the more stringent efficiency rules. At first thought, it might seem harder for an automaker with a ton of trucks to meet the government's mandated 54.5 mile per gallon corporate average fuel economy for 2025. However, every company doesn't need to hit that lofty figure, according to The Detroit Free Press. The exact target varies by the product mix between trucks and cars. "While passenger car and light truck categories have separate CAFE targets, it's still true that more trucks versus cars in a company lineup means a lower combined CAFE target," Brandon Schoettle, Project Manager Sustainable Worldwide Transportation at the University of Michigan Transportation Research Institute, told Autoblog. "While passenger car and light truck categories have separate CAFE targets, it's still true that more trucks versus cars in a company lineup means a lower combined CAFE target." FCA US' current product blend has 80 percent pickups and CUVs, which means the company stands to benefit from a lower fuel economy target. It might not seem entirely fair environmentally, but this is a great move from a business perspective. The new CAFE rules aren't set in stone, according to The Detroit Free Press, but potentially taking advantage of the regulation is just one more reason to cut the Dart and 200. Modern crossovers also aren't gas guzzlers like older SUVs, which could make it easier to hit the fuel economy target. "Utilities offer practicality and versatility that cars do not, and now, built on car architectures, they do not penalize consumers on fuel economy as they once did," AutoTrader Senior Analyst Michelle Krebs told Autoblog. Schoettle warns that FCA is still making a gamble by killing the small sedans. "Depending on the previous sales volumes and how much these vehicles might have exceeded their specific CAFE targets, it's possible that these cars helped earn CAFE credits for FCA that they could bank for future use," he said. "Future sales breakdowns [car vs.