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Dodge revives Challenger T/A and Charger Daytona trims for 2017

Dodge is reviving the Challenger's T/A trim and the Charger's Daytona line for 2017. Introduced on iconic Woodward Avenue just days before the annual Woodward Dream Cruise kicks off, the new variants promise more performance hardware and sportier aesthetics. We'll start with the two-door. The Challenger T/A, available with either the R/T trim's 5.7-liter V8 or the fire-breathing 6.4-liter Hemi V8, is inspired by the Challenger T/As of old. That means a less restrictive, 2.75-inch active exhaust system and a conical Mopar air filter. But there's no clear bump in output – Dodge still lists the base 5.7-liter at 375 horsepower and the 6.4-liter model at 485 hp. But hey, they're going to look cooler. Unlike the Challenger Hellcat, which should have it as standard, Dodge is including a Satin Black hood on every Challenger T/A. In fact, Satin Black is a recurring theme on this Challenger's front fascia, roof, rear decklid, and T/A bodyside stripes. And yes, the 20-inch Mopar wheels are black, too – they're also an inch wider than normal. Dodge is offering the T/A in three different trims. The base T/A has everything we described above, while the T/A Plus adds some comfort features like heated and vented Nappa leather seats, an 8.4-inch UConnect system with Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, a six-speaker stereo, and a shortcut button for the Dodge Performance Pages. The T/A 392, meanwhile, adds the 6.4-liter V8, even wider wheels, and Brembo six-pot calipers. If you prefer smoking tires with four doors, there's the new Charger Daytona. No, there's not an enormous wing on the back. But Dodge added the same kind of engine/exhaust upgrades found on the T/A while upping the top speed from 135 to 150 miles per hour. Satin Black features prominently again, with hood and rear fender graphics. The roof is also black. Unlike the Challenger, Dodge is only offering two different versions of the Daytona – the 5.7-liter base model and the 6.4-liter version, called the Daytona 392. Prices for the Challenger T/A start at $38,485, including a $1,095-destination charge, while the T/A Plus adds $2,750. Adding the 392 means shelling out $45,090. For the Daytona, you'll need a check for $40,985 for the 5.7-liter or $46,090 for the 6.4-liter. Orders for the Charger Daytona open in September, while the T/A is a month later. Related Video:

CEO Sergio Marchionne curses FCA spokesman for emissions cheating denial

WASHINGTON — Fiat Chrysler Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne reprimanded the company's top U.S. spokesman for issuing press releases about Fiat's vehicle emissions practices days after Volkswagen's disclosure in September 2015 that the German automaker had used illegal software to evade emissions tests, documents released Monday show. Lawyers suing Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in a securities case filed excerpts of an email from Marchionne to Gualberto Ranieri, then the company's U.S. spokesman, in a filing in federal court in New York criticizing him for saying that the company does not use defeat devices. "Are you out of your goddam mind?" Marchionne wrote in an email on Sept. 22, 2015, adding that Ranieri should be fired and calling his actions "utterly stupid and unconscionable." The company said in a statement on Monday it was "understandable that our CEO would have a forceful response to any employee who would opine on such a significant and complex matter, without the matter having been fully reviewed through its appropriate channels." The statement added that Ranieri's comments came just days after VW's emissions issue became public "and before a comprehensive internal review and discussions with component suppliers was possible." Fiat Chrysler was sued in 2015 along with Marchionne and other executives over claims it defrauded shareholders by overstating its ability to comply with vehicle safety laws. An amended version of the complaint filed in 2017 added claims about its compliance with emissions laws. The shareholders accused the defendants of inflating Fiat Chrysler's share price by hundreds of millions of dollars from October 2014 to October 2015 by downplaying safety concerns. They said the shortcomings materialized in 2015 when the automaker was fined $175 million by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, and took a roughly $670 million charge for recalls. Plaintiffs filed the excerpts seeking approval to take up to 40 additional depositions, including Marchionne's. The U.S. Justice Department sued Fiat Chrysler in May 2017, accusing it of illegally using software to bypass emission controls in 104,000 diesel vehicles sold since 2014. Fiat Chrysler has held numerous rounds of settlement talks with the Justice Department and California Air Resources Board to settle the civil suit, including talks as recently as earlier this month. It faces a separate criminal probe into the matter.

Dodge Challenger ACR rumored finally on its way using Viper ACR as benchmark

In 1995, Dodge released the ACR Neon, an unlikely combination of cheap, compact American sedan and high-performance parts and engineering marked by initials standing for American Club Racer. Dodge sold a heap of them, so the automaker flexed the ACR brand's potential with the first ACR Viper in 1999. The racy coupes made huge noise for Dodge and the Viper. After the fourth-gen Viper ended production in 2010, Dodge took a Challenger ACR concept to SEMA in 2011. But instead of carrying the coupe to production, Dodge resurrected the Viper for 2013 and got one more Viper ACR model out during the last Viper's final years. With the Viper gone again, it appears Dodge is sorting out that Challenger ACR concept for real. Last October, Mopar Insiders reported the automaker was trying to get a Challenger ACR prepared for the model's 50th anniversary this year. The timing looks highly unlikely, but an Allpar source says the track-happy coupe is still coming, and with bonkers expectations and gear. We're talking about a big-boi widebody Challenger tuned to do hard laps, fast, around twisty circuits, all day long. An Allpar insider known as "Muther," a code name to tug at John le Carre's heart, said Dodge is considering two engines. Because the point of the car is to be raced and some series don't accept forced induction, one trim would fit the naturally aspirated 392 Hemi from the R/T Scat Pack. There's no telling if that motor would get a power bump, but the Challenger ACR concept upped its output slightly with measures like a cat-back exhaust. The other trim, naturally, would fit the 6.2-liter Hellcat Redeye V8.     Muther told Allpar that if engineers can get the car under 4,000 pounds, the math points to being within two seconds of the time set by the Viper ACR-E at Road America. That "E" represents the Extreme Aero Package, with addenda like a deeper front splitter, dive planes, and an adjustable, dual-element rear wing that helped the Viper ring up 14 lap records on U.S. tracks. The fastest time we know of for a Viper at Road America is from 2011, factory race driver Kuno Wittmer doing 2:20 even in a Gen IV Viper ACR. Wittmer's ride weighed 3,408-pounds. Dodge boffins want to get the Challenger ACR under 4,000 pounds. Achieving the weight goal would mean cutting at least 387 pounds from a standard R/T Scat Pack Widebody, and 512 pounds from the Hellcat Redeye Widebody if that trim has the same target.