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Dodge Hellcat orders on hold due to 'unprecedented demand'

Want to get your hands on a 707-horsepower Dodge Challenger or Charger Hellcat to call your very own? We don't blame you, and you're not alone. According to Motor Authority and confirmed by a spokesperson from Chrysler, Dodge has gotten so many orders for its stable of Hellcats that it simply cannot keep up with demand: "Due to unprecedented demand for the 2015 Dodge Charger and Challenger SRT Hellcats, we are temporarily restricting orders while we validate current orders that are in the system." Put another way, if you're waiting for a Hellcat, your wait is likely to be a lot longer than you'd like. We've reached out to Chrysler to find out how long it might take for a new customer to get a new Hellcat, and we'll update if and when we hear back. Related Video: Featured Gallery 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat View 88 Photos News Source: Motor Authority Chrysler Dodge Car Buying Ownership Coupe Performance Sedan dodge hellcat dodge challenger hellcat dodge charger hellcat autoblog black

One Lap of America, with three times the madness

Instead of celebrating last weekend face down in a sombrero full of tequila-spiked OJ and a few lime wedges, 71 racing teams with one set of tires each and no support crews began Cinco De Mayo — and this year's 35th running of the One Lap of America — by hitting the wet skid pad at Tire Rack's headquarters in South Bend, Ind. There were Porsches, Vettes, Camaros and BMWs galore. There was a Miata, a vintage NSX, a Honda S2000 and even an old VW Rabbit. There were GTIs, the odd Evo and, oh yeah, six Toyotas, a couple of Vipers and a couple of GTRs. When the skidding stopped, a 2011 BMW 1M emerged triumphant and led the pack out into the heartland, where it will spend 5,000 miles this week hitting road courses, dragstrips and time trials at tracks as far west as Denver, as south as Fort Worth and then New Orleans. From there, it will barrel north through Mississippi, Alabama, Nashville, Kentucky and back home again to Tire Rack in Indiana. Twenty events, eight venues, with a three-hour window for each event. It's a nonstop, no-sleep, one-week road trip comprising 150-ish friends and brothers, partiers and pro racing drivers, spouses and other family-member combo packs. Some will never speak to each other again, some might end up divorced, some might get married. All of them are nuts. I know this because I made three laps. Three laps I will never forget.LAP ONE: 1984 Vehicle: 1984 Dodge Van Team #0: Jean Lindamood (Jennings), Walker Evans, Parnelli Jones I was present for the inaugural 1984 One Lap of America because I worked at Car and Driver back then and so did Brock Yates. He was the guy who came up with the clandestine, illegal, unsanctioned Cannonball Baker Sea-to-Shining-Sea Memorial Trophy Dash from Connecticut to Redondo Beach, Calif. It ran five times in the 1970s, with Yates joining Dan Gurney in a Ferrari Daytona for the second run. They won, Gurney insisting that "at no time did we exceed 175 miles per hour." One Lap was born of Cannonball nostalgia (read: Brock was bored), and I was beyond game for it. After securing a van from Dodge and two giant decals for the van sides, along with $5,000 in sponsorship from local Detroit Stroh's Brewery, I coaxed my friend, nine-time Baja 1000 winner Walker Evans, into running One Lap by suggesting he didn't have a hair on his ass if he refused. Then I suggested that if he didn't get his best friend and longtime road trip buddy, Parnelli Jones, to go with us, I would actually have to drive the van, too.

This incredibly '90s Dodge Ram video shows roots of the luxury pickup truck

To paraphrase the Talking Heads, you may find yourself behind the wheel of a Ram 1500 Limited with a 12-inch touchscreen and sumptuous leather, and you may ask yourself, "How did we get here?" Well, some of that credit goes to that loaded Ram's predecessor, the second-generation Dodge Ram. As you'll see in this fascinating promotional video for the truck uploaded by YouTube Channel TheClassicSports, it seems to highlight all the things that make up the modern pickup truck, albeit in a slightly more modest form. Right off the bat, the video starts talking about how the new Ram isn't your traditional pickup. It has features like anti-lock brakes, a spacious, comfortable cabin and standard driver-side airbag. Later, it notes the extensive sound insulation, as well as the cupholders and a giant center console to set up your mobile office, with space for a cell phone and laptop.  But it's not just a comfortable truck. It's a powerful, practical and intimidating one. This Ram is frequently credited as the truck that changed pickup design, moving from simple rectangular boxes to ones with style, particularly semi-truck style. In the video, the host notes that regardless of what people think, "They all call it 'big'." And of course, there's the all-important utility aspect. Highlights include various interior storage bins, slots in the bed to create divided sections, and the critical towing and payload capacities; best-in-class of course. Don't forget the wide array of engines, too, from the base V6 to the unique at the time gas V10 engine. This isn't to say that competitors from Chevy and Ford weren't changing to this more stylish, more well-appointed truck philosophy, either. The mid-'90s Silverado was quite modern, too, with its sleek, if still boxy shape. And the late-'90s F-150 ushered in a sleek, curvy design that has yet to return to the full-size market. But the second-generation Ram really encompasses everything about how the truck market was about to change for the next few decades. Related Video: