Live from the Chrysler proving grounds: The Concepts
Click the image above for high-resolution photos of Chryser's concepts
Every time there is a special "concept first drive" from one of the major automotive rags, the same rules seem to apply: you can't drive it past 25 or 30mph, none of the components are functional, etc. Well, that pretty much sums up what we encountered at Chrysler's proving grounds, where we hit the pavement with some of the Pentistar's best concept hardware. The concept vehicles were the Dodge Demon, the Jeep Trailhawk, Chrysler Nassau, the Jeep Wrangler Ultimate, a rally-prepped Caliber, and the souped-up SEMA Sebring.
The road course was flat and short with absolutely no hairpin turns, but the opportunity to drive a car that most will never get to experience is a rush in and of itself. Not surprisingly, we chose the Demon as our first test car, and it was quite a challenge to get from gear to gear with its strange and unpredictable slanted shifter. The sporty two-seater definitely looked the part of a cool roadster, though. The Nassau was probably the most fun vehicle to drive because it felt very production-ready. The interior was not very functional other than the funky push-button gear selector, but in the spirit of the concept it looked very cool.
We'll go over each of the concept vehicles in depth as soon as we can, so stay tuned to Autoblog for further updates on Chrysler's ride-and-drive event. Also, be sure to check out some of the high-resolution concept car photos we snapped from the event in the gallery below.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Mike 11:12AM (6/22/2007)
Just build the damn Demon will ya?! It's perfect as-is. With a rear end like that it NEEDS a two door coupe too.
As long as management doesn't f**k it up by neutering it with a 4 cyl. power plant or something dumb.
I think car could whoop the Miata/Solstice/Sky big time if the price point was right and it had good performance.
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mswanson 11:50AM (6/22/2007)
If they do build it, it will have a 4-cylinder. The concept has the 2.4 World Engine, naturally aspirated.
gerard Vandenberg 11:45AM (6/22/2007)
Hello there Chrysler! I believe,I'm getting a message from above. It say's: Give the People of the United States a Dodge or Chrysler ROADRUNNER concept! People of the entire country will judge the CONCEPT: BE AWARE!
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aSHIRTandTIEguy 1:02PM (6/22/2007)
I am no expert, but I think the Mazda/Opel brands took the risk to make an affordable 2 seater sports car and they pretty much gobbled up the entire market for this type of car niche.
The Miata was around for 18 years and then Pontiac finally made the Solstice. Built for drivers? Bonneville? Aztek? Vibe? Montana? These are not performance vehicles or built for Drivers! G5, G6, G8, and Solstice are progress towards the proper product for the brand slogan.
Then Saturn wanted to revive its brand and introduced the Sky. I see tuner promo ads of beautiful sexy half-naked women on top of the Sky! Talk about brand revival, or brand introduction. No woman even knew what Saturn was before the Sky. Again the Sky is taking more of that small niche market.
The Daemon might be too little to late for Dodge. There won't be large profits to be made. Chrysler has been after the high profit trucks for a long time and only the Neon SRT-4 was a sign of interest in low-end cars. Even though the Viper, Charger, Challenger Concept, Magnum, Avenger and Calibre are apart of Dodge car line up 70% of Dodge sales come from "Trucks".
Thus we know what the Daemon concept is really designed for! Attract customers to show rooms and then sell them a larger more practical car, truck or SUV. Smart move!!! Not many customers walk into a Dodge store and are "baited and switched" from a Viper to a Magnum.
Trailhawk, eh? The Trailhawk as the Compass is again softening the Jeep brand will Jeep be able to have 7 Vehicles in it's line-up? Talk about brand expansion from 3 models in 1995 to a possible (Speculation!) 7 models in 2009/2010. Chrysler is after the profitable Jeep cash cow that Ford made the Explorer SUV.
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c_mac 2:26PM (6/22/2007)
Not really important, but all three links to the Demon, Trailhawk and the Nassau point to the Demon article and pics. You must have really liked the roadster :-)
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ruggels 3:19PM (6/22/2007)
i'd buy this over a sky, hell if chrysler built it, i'd buy a chrysler, crazy :)... Now build it, keep it light, and give it more then 200hp in blown 4 form.
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Albert Aleandri 6:43PM (6/22/2007)
Its pretty sad that a supposed source on the internet for all things automotive cant even get right Pentastar instead of Pentistar. If they cant get this detail correct then what else is not correct.
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Andy 12:31AM (6/23/2007)
How I long for the Firepower.
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