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ORIGINAL: ManMuscle
SERIOUSLY GUYS, ITS NOT THE 1960'S!!!!!!!! GET OVER IT!!!!!! The general public does not have the same affection for the charger that they have for the mustang. People consider the mustang the real deal american muscle car. I say only becuase the vette is a lil expensive for most people, and the stang is more affordable. The mustang is the only muscle car(aside fromt eh vette) that hasnt been canceled. That says something about the car. The reason ford can go retro w/ the stang because it has a rich heritage that they can use to sparks memories in people which sparks emotions which makes people want to buy it. What heritage does the charger really have??? dukes of hazzard??? Thats what everyday people think of when they hear its name. I would liek to have seen a few more retro cues but this car does look tough, aggressive and most of all like an AMERICAN MUSCLE CAR!!!!!! They cant use the 99 concept becuase it was on an old platform which has been junked. Its time to move on. There will plenty of special addition chargers and when they refresh them they put more retro cues in, im sure. But til them we have a badass looking hot rod to hand imports thier asses with and now dodge can FINALLY take on other american car companies.
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If there is no affection for the Charger then why even bother reserecting the Charger nameplate?
The Mustang was cancelled in the 70s and brought back later. I have memories of Mustangs. They mostly consisted of the view of them disappering in my rear view mirror. I didn't even know what the tail lights looked like until I saw one in a parking lot.
The Charger's heritage? Are you serious!? From the hemi Charger in "Bullet" to the Daytona dominating NASCAR to the point that they outlawed it, there is a very special heritage. A hemi charger inspired awe and intimidated everyone else. As soon as the hood was opened revealing those monster valve covers and dual quads, the other car owners simply wet themselves and went home. To real Mopar fans the Dukes of Hazard was a stupid show that wasted a lot of good cars (okay, Daisey looked good in the hot pants).
No one wants an exact replica of the '99 concept. That car created excitement because it looked like a Charger, the new one doesn't. Engineers could incorporate similar cues on the new platform if they wanted to but it's less expensive to make a slightly modified 300.
Improve it later? Why not get it right out of the box. That's the problem with the new GTO. They brought it to market looking like any rental GM but promising to make it look better in the future. And they wonder why no one is buying them.
The real competition on the street isn't from America. My kids race Subaru STIs and their friends race EVOs. In stock form these cars go 0 to 60 in 4.6 seconds and run legitimate low 13s in the 1/4 mile. An SRT-8 version of the Charger with the 425 hp hemi should run with these cars but no one at Chrysler will commit to it's being built yet (The 300C SRT-8 will be awesome!). SRT-4s and Magnum RTs are already more than competitive with the other American cars.
A new Hemi Charger needs to dominate on the street and at the track to uphold it's legacy.