Challenger brand manager reveals that median age of Challenger buyer is two years younger than average age of new-car buyer.
Typically, teenagers are concerned about being cool. They want to hang out with the right people, wear the right clothes, and say the right things that make them look that way. But you can be cool at any age. Look at Steve McQueen. He passed away nearly 40 years ago and he’s still the “King of Cool.” As a recent article from Muscle Cars & Trucks shows, 51-year-olds are pretty badass, too, because many of these “younger” customers buy the Dodge Challenger.
According to the site, research published by the Federal Reserve shows that the average age of a new car or truck buyer these days is roughly 53 years old. Buyers who are 55 or older have increased by 15 percent since 2000.
However, those who sign on the dotted line to bring a Dodge Challenger home have a median age of only 51. Not only is that south of the new vehicle buyer’s average age, but it’s also below the age of the typical Mustang or Camaro customer. Kevin Hellman, brand manager for the Challenger, told Muscle Cars & Trucks, “For the Challenger, it’s the youngest buyer in the segment, so there’s something to be said about that.”
There sure is. Although 51 is a long way from being a teenager or a 20-something, it’s certainly not so far away that people that old forget what a fun car is. Once you hear a big V8 at WOT, you always remember it. Putting your foot down in a powerful muscle car like a Challenger Hellcat Redeye is a memory that stays in your mind. We took one down a 1/8-mile drag strip at the Texas Auto Writers Association’s Texas Auto Roundup several months ago and we still can’t stop telling people how fun it was. Our grandkids will be hearing about the experience one day.
Dodge definitely hasn’t forgotten what the Challenger looks like. Out of all of the Big 3 performance cars, it’s the most faithful to its old-school design, which is easy to appreciate at any age. The new Challenger may not be as sleek and Hot Wheels-y as the modern Camaro, but it still looks cool….especially when it’s passing up one of its rivals.
Derek Shiekhi's father raised him on cars. As a boy, Derek accompanied his dad as he bought classics such as post-WWII GM trucks and early Ford Mustang convertibles.
After loving cars for years and getting a bachelor's degree in Business Management, Derek decided to get an associate degree in journalism. His networking put him in contact with the editor of the Austin-American Statesman newspaper, who hired him to write freelance about automotive culture and events in Austin, Texas in 2013. One particular story led to him getting a certificate for learning the foundations of road racing.
While watching TV with his parents one fateful evening, he saw a commercial that changed his life. In it, Jeep touted the Wrangler as the Texas Auto Writers Association's "SUV of Texas." Derek knew he had to join the organization if he was going to advance as an automotive writer. He joined the Texas Auto Writers Association (TAWA) in 2014 and was fortunate to meet several nice people who connected him to the representatives of several automakers and the people who could give him access to press vehicles (the first one he ever got the keys to was a Lexus LX 570). He's now a regular at TAWA's two main events: the Texas Auto Roundup in the spring and the Texas Truck Rodeo in the fall.
Over the past several years, Derek has learned how to drive off-road in various four-wheel-drive SUVs (he even camped out for two nights in a Land Rover), and driven around various tracks in hot hatches, muscle cars, and exotics. Several of his pieces, including his article about the 2015 Ford F-150 being crowned TAWA's 2014 "Truck of Texas" and his review of the Alfa Romeo 4C Spider, have won awards in TAWA's annual Excellence in Craft Competition. Last year, his JK Forum profile of Wagonmaster, a business that restores Jeep Wagoneers, won prizes in TAWA’s signature writing contest and its pickup- and SUV-focused Texas Truck Invitational.
