Sunday 10 September 2017
2015 Dodge Charger R T Road and Track Review with video
The first car I bought was a new 00 Chrysler LHS . (I single-handedly lowered average population age of the model.) It was the same height of Iacocca Chrysler turn-around. It was large, competitive and made from bin Chrysler universal parts. Then Mercedes came on the scene promising to "synergy" product development with their luxury brand. The plan was a promising start with the concept 300 HEMI C, but the reality of the production was a big sedan with plastacular hand-me-down inside and Mercedes parts.
Now that Mercedes and Chrysler divorced, we re starting to see what a real German-American synergy looks like. For 2015, the Dodge Charger is going under the knife to look leaner and meaner with a new German transmission. As my LHS in 00, this may just be the top of the Marchionne turn around. It is big, its bold and it will make you forget why you stopped watching Toyota Avalon last week.
Identify competition
charger is a segment of quirk, because this is the only four-door muscle car after the Chevrolet SS leads into the sunset. No, the Hyundai Genesis does not really matter - which is a luxury entrance and is American multi-boutique is the Chrysler 300. This leaves the charger to combat Avalon, Taurus, Impala, Cadenza, Maxima and Azera. (Or, if you buy the Hellcat, a ballistic missile.) Of course, you can compare anything to anything but the charger is difficult to classify, so Ill just focus on the main segment.
Exterior
As the only RWD entry in this segment, the charger is very different proportions than the rest of the crowd with his still long hood. Since 2015 is an update rather than a redesign, hard points remain the same as before, but the style has been modified substantially and essentially every panel has been changed. Im not quite sure that the "Papa Dart" look forward to is the style I would have chosen, but it seems much more grown up than the model 2014. In the back, we get tips from exhaust better integrated and a refinement of the "race track" Dodge light band.
Interior
While the affected engineers each panel outside, the interior changes are minor. the same 8.4 inch touch screen uConnect is still nestled in the dashboard (If models get a 5-inch screen), and the style is still decidedly retro. on the side of the driver we get a new LCD color 7 inches between the speedometer and tachometer in all models. There are still some hard plastics to find and the dashboard is a little rubbery, but instead the charger to a foot equality with the Impala while Avalon Cadenza have slightly nicer interior.
FCA reps said that no changes were made to the design of seat cushion for 2015, but our tester lacked the pronounced hump found in the 2012 model, we finally tested, a question that make me feel Im sitting on a very larg e gumdrop.
in a car this big, you expect a big booty, but the smallish trunk lid prefigures the decidedly middle-sized trunk to 15.4 cu-ft, 7 percent smaller than the cargo spot a Ford Fusion and only 15 percent larger than that of the Ford Focus compact. In general, the full-size car tag does not guarantee greater luggage capacity. So on paper, the rather small trunk charger is quite competitive with the likes of the Toyota Avalon (14.4), but the ginormous booty Taurus will schlep 25 percent more bagels warehouse stores. The rear seats fold down to reveal a large pass-thru and wide and fairly flat rear seats are three seats for babies through a tight affair, but quite feasible.
Training
SE and SXT use the familiar 3.6L Pentastar V6 tuned to 292 horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque. Adding the $ 1.495 Rallye Group on SXT adds eight ponies and four lb.-ft.. This puts the Dodge in line with the competition front wheel drive in terms of power.
Unlike the competition, the charger provides some more powerful engines to choose from. Scroll through the spec sheet and you are not one, not two, but three different V8s on offer. R / T and R / T Road and Track trims get the popular 5.7L V8 good for 370 hp / 395 lb-ft R / T Scat Pack 392 and SRT models make do with a 485 hp / 475 lb-ft 6.4L V8, and if you want to throw caution to the wind there is a supercharged 6.2L V8 making a huge 707 horsepower.
last year, most models have the old Mercedes automatic 5-speed with just a few trims get the new ZF- sourced eight-speed. This year, each magazine gets the 8-speed and the difference is telling.
For those who do not know the world of transmission, ZF is a German company that makes and licenses transmission designs for a wide variety of performance and luxury cars. You can find ZF transmissions lurking under the hoods of bi-turbo V12 Rolls Royce, BMW inline-6 ​​AWD and Audis, so that the charger is rubbing elbows with some class company.
Performance
Not only the new 8-speed has a lower first gear for better acceleration, it also has a higher top gear for better economy of the highway. If you ever wondered what difference can a single transmission, the charger is a perfect test. Last year, the V6 with 5-speed needed 8.5 seconds to run to 60, this year it is 7.0 flat, which makes it competitive with V6 charger pack. The 5.7L V8 was almost as fast as the latest Maxima 6.1 seconds. This year, the same engine will 5.0 seconds with the road and the track ratio rear axle and 5.1 seconds without him. This means that the competit or Taurus SHO is the 6.4L V8, but the 5.7L model were testing.
We TALLY this up so we keep that in perspective. The V6 is now competitive with the competition and 5.7L V8 is now a bit faster than the SHO. What makes the charger is crazy that we still have two engines left. Scat Pack Add to the R / T, or choose the SRT 392 and the acceleration drops to 4.2-4.3 seconds as long as the tires can get traction. The Hellcat, as I am sure you have heard, is the fastest production sedan with a blistering 2.9 seconds to 60 if you are ready to wear racing slicks and put your life on the line.
An interesting note of trivia is that the Charger Pursuit police cars always get ye olde 5 speed with both the 3.6L and 5.7L engines. The reason probably has more to do with the shifter mounted column of the 5-speed automatic Pursuit harmless against any provision of sustainability.
player
In most Charger trims himself as "under-tired." Before you get your flamethrower on let me explain the Charger has a 4,000lb vehicle riding on low rolling resistance 215 / 65R17 tires.. manipulation are not his forte the SXT gets 235 performance tires / 55R18 all seasons an option 245 wide. the handling is easily equal to the Avalon despite weighing 500lbs more due to the perfect balance of weight near the charger. the R / T gets 245 / 45R20 rubber, which honestly feels a little thin for 370 hp, especially if you get the road and the track. on the other hand, it is easy to smoke your tires if youre into that. the Scat pack feels like under-tired than the SE, as it adds 115 horsepower a little empty weight and changes essentially nothing else. If you like a car that has a lively rear end, this is your car. SRT 392 updates significantly brakes, tires (275 / 40R20), and the suspension and I think it is well balanced in terms of power vs grip. Then the Hellcat comes with 222 extra horsepower and no additional outlet. You get the picture
Sub-fatigue does not translate boring -. Quite the opposite in my book. In fact, the magazine reminded me of the base Mustang and FR-S. Confused? Toyotas mission w ith the FR-S was supposed to be a car to explore the dynamics of RWD without breaking the bank. Know what? This is actually the charger. From $ 27.995, it is only $ 1,000 more than an automatic FR-S and $ 2,000 more than a V6 Mustang with the car. Unlike the FR-S, you get a power seat, climate control, dual-zone, 7-inch LCD screen in the gauge cluster, a well snazzier radio, three additional speeds in your transmission and rear seats usable. Will dance around an autocross track as a FR-S? No, but you have almost as much fun and always use the car on the schools track. Our R / T Road and Track tester was the same kind of thing taken to the next level.
All versions offer the charger civilized behavior through well designed suspension and a long wheelbase, as far as the size and weight of the vehicle. As with all modern cars, electric power steering sucks some of the fun out of the RWD platform, but the boost is adjustable. And because the front wheels are only responsible for the direction, you get a lot more feedback than in FWD or AWD competition. Despite the height, the brake fade was well controlled, even if the distances are a littl e longer than I would mainly due to the size of the affected tires.
Compared to the SHO, the charger has a polished driving. The SHO has a huge trunk and a more accommodating back seat. The SHO is all-wheel drive that gives you better traction, but the charger has a better weight balance and more accurate feel on the road. Compared to the competition FWD, charger feels more important on the road, more accurate and certainly handles the corners with less dramatic. There is no torque steer and surprisingly neutral handling, even in 6.4L heavier models.
$ 42.265 In our model as tested successfully be $ 1,000 less than a comparable Avalon Limited, $ less than a Cadenza Limited and, even if it was a bit more expensive than the Taurus SHO, it was about $ 1,800 more equipment. The discount price tag charger surprised me frankly. I planned our tester to be a little more of the SHO.
What should you buy?
Im glad you asked. Skip the V6. What is the point of RWD go if youre going to get the V6? I would not get the 5.7L V8 is. If you like the 5.7, buy Chrysler 300. It has a nice r interior, some extra features available and I think that the front end is more attractive. I would not buy the Hellcat is because I know I would be "that guy" who wrapped around a tree 5 minutes after driving it off the lot of the dealership. However, I am eternally grateful engineers designed the engine of 6.2L bat-shit-crazy because it makes the 6.4L 485 hp HEMI seem like a rational choice and motor practice. When driven very slowly on the road level to 65 mph in the 6.4L V8 can deliver 28 mpg thanks to cylinder deactivation. My fuel economy of 6.4L engine has hovered around 18, just 2 mpg shy of last Avalon I tested (the 5.7L scored 19.5 on nearly 700 miles). When driven like you stole it, skating massive wheels, effortless donuts and 4.1 second runs to 60 with one of the best money can buy strips are the order of the day. When your aunt girl asks why you need to nearly 500 horses, you can safely say that you do not receive the most powerful. With logic like that, how can you g o wrong?
FCA has provided the vehicle, insurance, and a fuel tank for this review.
Specifications as tested
0-30: 2.05 seconds
0-60: 5.0 seconds
1/4 mile: 13.3 @ 114
average fuel economy: 19.5 mph on 678 miles
