Friday, July 25, 2014

Review: 2015 Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack 6MT

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This doesn't feel like something I should admit in public, let alone in the electronic pages of this august publication, but I always had a tiny little problem with the Challenger SRT8, way down in my super soul.

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If you haven't seen Vanishing Point, put your laptop down, get out of the bathroom, and go watch it. While it's far from flawless, the movie that made the Challenger immortal has much to recommend it. I can imagine that modern filmgoers might have a bit of trouble understanding how it all comes together; were it to be remade today there would probably be fifteen minutes of explanatory voiceover a la Pacific Rim. "My name is Kowalski. I was a cop once, and I became disenchanted with authority, and so on, and so forth…" Thankfully, that isn't the case with the original.

Of course, the Vanishing Point Chally is a white R/T. Which means that, by definition, the coolest possible Challenger is a white R/T. Unfortunately, until now that meant the coolest possible Challenger wasn't much use on a track, particularly in the stopping department. Until now.
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Chrysler directly compares this new R/T "Scat Pack" to the old SRT8 Core. As you can see in the graphic above, there's more equipment for less money. Another valid comparison might be to the old R/T 5.7 Track Pack, which was underpowered and underbraked compared to a 5.0 Mustang. Not so this new car, which has 485 horsepower and four-piston Brembos front and back.

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The track analysis I did earlier this week puts the Scat Pack 6MT neatly between the V6 and the Hellcat, as you'd expect. What's less clear is that the Scat Pack is a massive, massive improvement over the old R/T as a dynamic proposition. It's not just that it has more brake and better handling than its predecessor, it's that it's better-balanced despite having an additional hundred and fifteen horsepower. Yes, the nose feels heavier than that of the V6, but that's a lot like saying that dating Monica Bellucci would pose a bit of a language problem compared to dating Lena Dunham. Who cares.

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It's a decent car on the track, and I'd say it's at least in the vicinity of the 5.0 Mustang, particularly in the way it sheds speed, but it's hard to imagine most Scat Packs ever seeing a racetrack. Let's talk street. In order to get to the rather truncated track time we were offered with the Challengers, I first had to drive and ride for three hours through the rural areas surrounding Portland in a six-speed Scat Pack. Much of that drive took place at 30mph or slower thanks to heavy concentrations of cyclists on the road, but that was a bit of a blessing because it gave me a chance to evaluate the Challenger's low-speed manners.

The control efforts are absurdly low, and I mean that literally. This car has four hundred and eighty-five horsepower and it's no more difficult to drive than a Mazda3. The shift action is fingertip-light and the Tremec TR6060 has clearly defined gating. I was never troubled by any skip-shift silliness. Your grandmother could drive this car, as they used to say in the car rags. Plus it's quiet until you stand on the throttle and then it's merely stirring, not annoying.

With this round of interior revisions, Chrysler's finally bringing the Challenger up to the standards of its sedan siblings. I'd say that the brightwork and plastics quality place the Scat Pack about halfway between the dismal Charger and the enchanting 300C. There's real stamped aluminum scattered throughout the interior and a fashionably thick steering wheel. My driving partner for the event was befuddled that the "shift paddles" didn't work, but he eventually accepted my explanation that they were to control volume and track selection on the 8.4-inch uConnect.

"Yeah, I guess it makes sense that the shifter on the console would have to move while you're paddle shifting," he opined.

"Excuse me," I said, "there's something really important on my phone I have to pay attention to for an hour or so." This latest uConnect is as good as it is elsewhere and I was able to complete a fairly detailed Bluetooth phone call while repeatedly throttling up and down through the gears. The climate-control knobs are a little wobbly, the same way they are in a Fiat 500L, but remember: this is an engine that you'd have to pay a significant tariff to get in a German car. My old Audi S5 was twenty thousand dollars more expensive and brought just three-quarters of the power to the table. The current Audi S5 has that candy-ass supercharged V-6, which is just as fast as the old V8 but that's like saying that a Double Quarter Pounder weighs the same as a filet mignon from Ruth's Chris. Who cares.

The car's a middle finger to every CO2-restricted, low-testosterone, involuntarily-celibate German coupe out there. It will run twelve-second quarter-miles with no trouble and it gets attention everywhere it goes. The modest external changes for 2015 are improvements, particularly the "6.4L" logo. There's now a set of Bimmer-style angel eyes on the thing, too, which will matter to someone.

You can get it in white and then you'll have a proper Vanishing Point car. There goes the Challenger… the super-driver of the golden West. My test car was $44,875 including navigation and leather. Yeah, a Mustang five-liter will hang with it most anywhere but it's not the same thing and we both know it. Go ahead and buy one with my blessing. It's better than ever, and it's finally got the right badge.

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