2009 Dodge Challenger Srt8 Coupe 2-door 6.1l Custom Performance Package on 2040-cars

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NC dealer creates the convertible Challenger that Dodge won't build

Dodge still hasn't turned the Challenger into a convertible, and the odds of seeing a factory-built drop-top muscle car appear in showrooms are decreasing annually. Tired of waiting, a dealership in North Carolina teamed up with a Florida-based body shop to create a topless alternative to the Ford Mustang and the Chevrolet Camaro. It's the real thing, and it's for sale. Keffer Dodge, Chrysler, Ram and Jeep shipped three 2019 Challengers to a shop named Convertible Builders, according to Motor Authority. After losing their lid, they gained a cloth soft top that opens and closes at the push of a button. There's no word on what effect the conversion has on handling, or what Convertible Builders did to offset the loss of structural rigidity. The build didn't include mechanical modifications. Two of the convertibles are R/T Scat Pack models equipped with a 6.4-liter Hemi V8 engine that serves 485 horsepower and 475 pound-feet of torque. It's not a supercharged Hellcat V8, but it's potent enough to spin the rear wheels in third gear. The third, R/T-based model features a 375-horsepower, 5.7-liter V8. While our dream build would use a six-speed manual transmission, all three come with an eight-speed automatic that sends the engine's power to the rear wheels. Keffer's website lists the gray, white, and red cars at $64,000, $60,000, and $56,300, respectively. The regular R/T Scat Pack Widebody model starts at $46,245, and the eight-speed automatic adds another $1,595, so the convertible conversion adds about $16,000. It's your only option, unless you're brave enough to chop the top yourself, or patient enough to wait until the early 2020s. Dodge has already started developing the next-generation Challenger, so the current car is unlikely to spawn a convertible before it retires. Its replacement due out in 2021 or 2022 will allegedly ride on a wider, longer evolution of the Giorgio platform found under the Alfa Romeo Giulia, among other models, and unverified rumors claim it's being designed with a topless variant in mind from the get-go. It might resurrect the Barracuda nameplate originally assigned to Plymouth when it makes its debut. Auto News Dodge Convertible Performance

Dodge Hellcat Widebody delivers Christmas tree at 174 mph

The holidays are here, and so last-minute shoppers are going to be in a serious rush to get all the items they need, especially Christmas shoppers that haven't even put up a tree yet. Those seriously late folks may want to invest in a Challenger Hellcat because apparently they can go an incredible 174 mph with a Christmas tree strapped to the roof. This was discovered by the folks at Hennessey. They got a Hellcat Widebody from Dodge for the little experiment, along with a suction cup mount roof rack from SeaSucker and a real Christmas tree from Lowe's. Then it was off to the Continental Tire test track in Texas to see how fast it could go, which, as mentioned was 174 mph. As you'll see in the video, it takes quite a bit of road to move up from 170 to 174 mph. It's impressive that the tree and roof rack don't seem to budge. And it's all capped off with a huge smokey burnout to the sound of V8 rumble and supercharger whine. It's a fun way to get into the holiday spirit. And we'll look forward to next year when maybe Dodge will give Hennessey a Demon to try out. Related Video:

How Dodge dealers are earning the right to sell Hellcats

We all hate the idea of the dreaded dealer markup when it comes to buying a highly anticipated new car. Take the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat, for example. You might spend hours reading about its supercharged V8 and speccing the model just right in the configurator, but when it finally comes down to laying down the cash, the dealer adds thousands of dollars as a "market adjustment" on the muscle machine of your dreams. As it turns out, when the Hellcat starts hitting showrooms in the third quarter, Dodge is trying to make sure that's not the case.
Dealer orders for the much-hyped Hellcat recently started, but Dodge boss Tim Kuniskis has put some special caveats in place to ensure that the Hellcat makes it to the road quickly. The initial allocation is based on the number of Dodge products that a showroom has sold in the last 180 days, and a second allotment in December is based on the last 90 days of sales and 30-day turnover. "You sell a lot of Darts for me, Journeys for me, Durangos for me, I'm going to give you the rights to this one, too, because this is a halo of the brand," said Kuniskis to Automotive News.
Furthermore, how quickly the Hellcat sells is also going to decide whether showrooms get more of them. "If you want to market-adjust the car, that's your right. But if your days-on-lot goes above what the other guys that are selling them at MSRP is, they will end up earning the allocation because their days-on-lot will be lower," he said to Automotive News. Obviously, this doesn't prevent dealers from marking up the Challenger SRT, but the strategy certainly discourages it.