2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8 en route to dealers
Click the image above for more pics of the Challenger SRT8
If you're one of the lucky 6,400 customers to lay claim to the 425 hp Dodge Challenger SRT8, we have good news. The first 1,000 special edition Challengers have already been built, and they're en-route to a dealer near you. For those of you that won't be getting your Hemi-powered muscle car in the first wave, you won't have to wait long, either. Every SRT Challenger will be produced by the beginning of July, which means Woodward should be full of good-looking retro coupes come August. If you want a 6.1L Challenger, you're going to have to hit eBay or wait for 2009, because all 2008 models have been spoken for.
The Challenger has been one of the few pieces of good news surrounding the Pentastar of late, and a hot product couldn't be coming at a better time. We know gas if $4 per gallon and V8 muscle cars aren't exactly what the doctor ordered, but we're probably just as excited as the 6,400 Challenger SRT8 owners to get behind the wheel of this future classic.
Gallery: 2008 Dodge Challenger SRT8
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[Source: Dodge]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Red 8:13PM (5/28/2008)
Can anybody explain to me why this car weighs close to (if not) 4000lbs? I'm trying to figure out where Chrysler put all the weight, or why the hell they'd WANT to put all that weight in there, but for a modern day muscle car, there's really no need for this thing to weigh as much as it does. Not with the materials, manufacturing processes and technologies available in this day and age. The damn thing wouldn't need 425hp to get its lard-ass off the line if it weren't so heavy.
On another note, congrats to all the people that bought one. It's a nice looking car and I've read it handles pretty well too.
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MemphisNET 8:32PM (5/28/2008)
I believe its around 4150lbs (dry?) and the weight is mostly due to crash safety... but its also just a two-door sedan - thus it retains the chunky weight of its brothers.
Anyone who has ever driven an LX car knows that the weight is only problematic for gas mileage, not performance. It handles far better than it should!
Red 8:40PM (5/28/2008)
Thank you for replying. I honestly had no clue why it weighs what it weighs but if it keeps you safe, I'd rather drive a tank then a baby-stroller. lol
CaptainSpaulding 9:53PM (5/28/2008)
the only safety needed back in '70 was a 426 cu. in big block in front of you, and detroit steel all around you.
long live the old Mopars! Mopar or nocar!
proud owner of a '69 Charger R/T 440
Flashpoint 12:20AM (5/29/2008)
THE CHALLENGER WEIGHS THAT MUCH BECAUSE it is still a 4000 pound Dodge Charger with nothing more than the rear doors removed.
Its still the exact same heavy car.
I was wondering about this too, but I think Chrysler went in this direction because it was cheaper to build than if it was redesigned to be lighter all around.
If the Challenger weighed about 1000 pounds less, it would be a goddamned suicide machine.
Derek 7:31AM (5/29/2008)
No, if it weighed 1000# less, it would be worth buying. Bloated pig the way it is, disgusting. There are plenty of cars that are 1000# or more lighter than the Challenger and still pass all the crash tests.
Shipey 9:03AM (5/29/2008)
It's no heavier than the new Porsche Panamera, so I wouldn't be too hard on them.
Dan 1:39PM (5/29/2008)
The only cars that weigh a thousand pounds less than this anymore are buzzy, elbow in the ribs B compacts.
An Eclipse with the V6 weighs 3600 pounds now. A G37 weighs 3700. A BMW 5 V8 weighs 4000.
Blame the ever climbing federal crash standards. Not Dodge for jumping exactly the same hoops as every other automaker.
The Luigiian 8:14PM (5/28/2008)
Cool. This'll probably become even more of a classic once Chrysler is stripped and flipped by Cerberus. I know if it weren't for gas prices I'd buy one.
Beautiful car. Hope those owners are happy with their purchase.
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DesiAuto 8:20PM (5/28/2008)
Does anyone know what are the typical sales target for cars like Challenger, Camaro, 2010 Mustang etc.? Also are they high margin products?
I am afraid these types of cars will see one sales spike in current climate and than it will be flat for years to come.
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Frank 8:11AM (5/29/2008)
I don't know for the Mustang or Carmaro, but the business case for the Challenger is 35,000 units a year (on avg). They don't have to tie up a whole factory because it will be built on the same line as the 300 and Charger (flex manufacturing). They can produce more or less as the market demands.
whofan 8:23PM (5/28/2008)
"Can anybody explain to me why this car weighs close to (if not) 4000lbs?"
Yes, we need saftey cells, cars built like tanks so we can screw off behind the wheel talk on cell phones and feel safe at the same time.
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MemphisNET 8:35PM (5/28/2008)
That's one way of looking at it, but big cars that crumple like tin cans are bad for PR.
It's not always the drivers fault. Maybe the 16yo behind the wheel of his ''totally tricked'' fast & furious (insert compact here) isn't paying attention and runs into you.
Companies make and keep customers in many different ways, including keeping their buyers alive if that accident ever happens.
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pmiddle5 12:19AM (5/29/2008)
Just as often as I see the kid who owns a TransAm ws6, SVT lighting, Mustang GT, Camaro SS, and soon to be Challenger srt8.
Recommendation, pull your head outta your arse ya wanker
Tourian 8:45PM (5/28/2008)
I wonder if Chrysler will whore this car out to rental fleets and dillute the market with too many cheap poorly built examples and over produce this vehicle to the point that it loses its credibility in the market within a few years...like they did with the Neon, the PT Cruiser, and the 300 before it.
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Flashpoint 12:23AM (5/29/2008)
I have NEVER seen an SRT8 anything in a rental fleet.
Even used with 20,000 miles on it, an SRT8 anything goes for no less than $35,000
Torrent 12:52AM (5/29/2008)
1: SRT's don't get rented. They're too good. Maybe you're jealous because you can't afford an SRT8? No offense, because neither can I. But I don't hate.
2: The Freaking $13K Neon SE and the $40K Challenger SRT8 are two different things if you haven't noticed.
IndusCreed 10:08AM (5/29/2008)
The V6s might get to the rentals but I doubt the SRTs would.
Re a used SRT8 for less than 35K, well with a 100 mile radius in the Northern VA area, I seem to find 9 that are less than 29K, so they can be HAD for 27-28K (limited choice but still). I am not sure if I should be happy that I can afford it or sad that the resale's bad.
go mopar!
Tourian 11:03AM (5/29/2008)
I realize SRT8's don't get rented, but if you make too many cheap V6's that get rented it drags down the resale value of the whole line up.
TwinTurbo3000GT 9:28PM (5/28/2008)
thatks, autoblog, for making me even MORE jealous...
man that's one nice looking vehicle.
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