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2015 Dodge Challenger SRT 392

I've just started reading the third installment in a planned five-book biography of Lyndon Baines Johnson, Master of the Senate, written by the incomparable Robert Caro. Conveniently, a recent trip to drive the BMW X6 M and 228i Convertible was to be staged in Austin, TX, within easy driving distance of LBJ's birthplace, Johnson City. And yes, the city is named for his family. Having completed my duties with the Bimmers, I borrowed the spangled 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT 392 you see above, to squire me around the Texas capitol for a weekend, and as a lift out to the Hill Country homestead of our 36th President. Johnson City isn't exactly a road trip mecca, but there's a pretty good brewery, a museum, the reconstructed LBJ house to take snapshots of, and it's a nice drive to get out there if you've got a 485-horsepower muscle car at your disposal. Driving Notes With the heroic Hellcat, this 392 and the R/T Scat Pack (that Brandon Turkus reviewed recently), there are more SRT-treated Challengers to choose from than ever before. There are 707 obvious reasons that the Hellkitty is the top dog (as it were), but there are important difference between this 392 and the Scat Pack, too. Both cars make use of the 6.4-liter Hemi V8 putting out 485 horsepower and 475 pound-feet of torque, but the 392 also gets an adaptive suspension, six-piston Brembo brake calipers (instead of four-piston), wider tires, leather and Alcantara seats, a heated steering wheel, a louder stereo and HID headlights. When LBJ was campaigning for his seat in the House of Representatives, he would've loved to have something as potent as this monster of a V8 under the hood of his canvassing car. The 6.4L snorts with authority before it sends the big coupe forward to just about any speed I'd ask of it, and with a quickness. Johnson was known for haranguing drivers to step on it, when all that stood between himself and a few more votes was the ability to fit one more stump speech into the day. The 392 feels as though it could cover a quarter of the state of Texas in a morning if you throttle down deep enough (faster even than the Johnson City Windmill, I'd guess). Though there's a six-speed manual available, I'm actually quite fond of the eight-speed automatic in the 392. The two-pedal setup better suits the fast-cruiser attitude of the car, and it never served up any poorly conceived shift logic when I left it in D. Of course, the roads are better now than they were in the 1930s and 40s, too.

Sunday Drive: Rendering the future at Jeep and Ford

Last week brought us quite a wide variety of automotive news nuggets, and judging by the response of our own readership, the Jeep Wrangler pickup truck led the way. It's not expected to hit the sales floor until April of 2019, which means we've all got an entire year to wait, but that just means we have lots of time to anticipate its arrival. And we do so today with a series of renderings that show what the so-called Scrambler may look like in a few different colors. Another set of renderings depicting a hotly anticipated new vehicle follow just behind. The Baby Bronco – will Ford ante up to the retro-inspired table and call it the Bronco II? – will be one size smaller than the regular-grade Bronco, and we think it'll compete with the Jeep Renegade as a subcompact crossover with some real off-road chops. Moving onto some tuners, both old and new(er), we first present a sweet old Dodge Ram pickup truck tuned by none other than Carroll Shelby himself. The blue and silver striped truck looks so period perfect that it stands out as a star even alongside a quartet of vintage Shelby Mustangs with which it will share space at the Bonhams auction in Greenwich, Conn., this June. And finally we turn our attention to the Hennessey Veliciraptor, an absolute behemoth of a truck. Based on the most excellent Ford Raptor, the Velociraptor ups the crazy quotient with six wheels and 600 hundred horsepower. As always, stay tuned to Autoblog this week for all the latest automotive news. Jeep Wrangler pickup renderings: Latest imaginings of the Scrambler Ford Baby Bronco comes alive in these exclusive renderings Bonhams to auction Carroll Shelby's prototypes and personal cars Hennessey VelociRaptor 6X6 First Drive Review: The incredible hulk

2014 Dodge Durango teaser reveals new 'racetrack' taillights

Not wanting to let Jeep get all of the SUV attention for the 2014 model year, Dodge is unveiling a refreshed version of its Durango at the New York Auto Show. Teased in this image, all we can really tell about the 2014 Dodge Durango is that it will be getting Dodge's "racetrack" taillights similar to the Charger and Dart.
The chrome or painted strip currently between the Durango's Zorro taillamps have been removed to allow for a full-width LED array with "DODGE" lettering displayed more prominently above the license plate pocket. Parent company Chrysler also promises that the updated Durango will add "several new class-exclusive features," but stops short of saying what those are. Earlier reports suggest that among the changes, buyers will be able to look forward to an eight-speed automatic gearbox, which ought to improve the three-row SUV's fuel efficiency.