Question of the Week: Do You Think That Chrysler Will Kill Dodge?

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2013 challenger rt 600

So a few months back, there was an unsavory rumor floating around the automotive world that the Chrysler Group was planning to kill off the Dodge brand as part of the new management’s efforts to do away with redundancies between the brands.  Fortunately, Dodge brand President Tim Kuniskis made comments that seemed to guarantee that the brand we all love so much isnt going anywhere anytime soon.  Since Kuniskis stated that Dodge had a bright future ahead, there hasn’t been much talk about the demise of the Dodge brand but with our question of the week, we want to know what our members think.

Do you think that there is – or was – a chance that the Chrysler Group would kill off the Dodge brand?

This rumor first surfaced when the Dodge trucks were split off to create the Ram Truck brand and the expected discontinuation of the Dodge Caravan lineup bolstered those rumors.  At the same time, even with the Ram trucks and Chrysler minivans being included elsewhere in the company portfolio, there are still a bunch of vehicles that are very important to the company which would go away with the death of the Dodge brand.  The Charger is one of the company’s bestselling models even with the Chrysler 300 being based on the same platform.  The Challenger and Dart are both unrivaled by any other models in the company lineup and while Jeep offers a huge spread of sport utility vehicles and crossovers – the Trail Rated brand doesn’t have an answer for the Dodge Journey.  Unless the company designed replacement models for other brands to “cover” for the Charger, Dart, Challenger and Journey, the Chrysler Group would risk losing the buyers of their most popular models and that leads me to believe that the Dodge brand was never on the chopping block…but what do you think?

Click here to head into the forum to tell us whether or not you think that the Dodge brand was ever at risk of being axed in the near future.

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com


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