1991 Dodge Stealth Es Hatchback 2-door 3.0l on 2040-cars

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2013 Dodge Charger SRT8 Super Bee

I can pinpoint the exact moment when I fell in love with this car. It was starting down a nearly straight entrance ramp at 15 miles per hour when I buried the throttle. In a moment, I was thrown back into my seat as the big SRT8's engine came to life with commensurate sound, fury and force, bringing me up to 75 mph in what felt like two blinks of an eye. This thing feels so much quicker than its 470 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque would lead you to believe. And mashing the right pedal never, ever gets old.
But beyond sheer speed, I found a whole lot to like about the Charger SRT8 during my week with the Pitch Black test car here in Detroit. And while the whole Super Bee kit isn't really my style, it's really easy to overlook those badges for a package that offers so much for so little.
Driving Notes

Our video tribute to Star Wars with a Stormtrooper Charger

When the refreshed Dodge Charger debuted, the white one was immediately compared to a Star Wars Stormtrooper helmet. Chrysler recently ran with that idea and decorated a fleet of cars, including some Chargers, for use in a marketing stunt to hype its wares alongside the no-hype-necessary Episode VII: The Force Awakens film. We got our hands on one for a day and had some fun making a few videos. Above are a few shorts with names that we at least think are funny. There's one that includes the latest example of video producer Chris McGraw's patented nightlapse technology (it's a hyperlapse shot at night, which just looks plain neat). In the clip below, you can see all of the car's various Stormtrooper-inspired details. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. The car started out as a bright white Charger R/T Scat Pack and was treated to a partial vinyl wrap on the body and the glass. The fantastic 485-horsepower Hemi V8 was left alone. Watch the videos and then tell us how they're non-canon in the comments. Humor Dodge Videos Original Video star wars dodge charger scat pack

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.