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Dodge puts kibosh on Challenger ACR rumors

In 2011, after the end of the Gen IV Dodge Viper and its ACR trim, Dodge took a Challenger ACR concept to the SEMA show. In October of last year, trusted FCA-focused outlet Mopar Insiders heard from its sources that something of the kind could finally be in the works, word being the automaker "is quietly working on a surprise to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Challenger nameplate." Last week, trusted FCA-focused outlet Allpar got more details from its own source, "Muther," on the specs and aspirations for a Challenger supposedly meant as a last big hurrah before the next generation appears in 2023. Now, we find out the Challenger ACR is a ghost, Autoweek reporting, "According to a spokesperson from Dodge, it's not happening." That brief denial is all the automaker had to say about it. Assuming Dodge isn't hiding anything, we're more surprised at detailed erroneous intel being shared with both MI and Allpar than we are about the track-day seducement Challenger ACR being bogus. A tale about Dodge engineering a Viper-like makeover for its number one muscle car so as to shame the 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 and Camaro ZL1 around a track would have been compelling enough. But word that Dodge wanted the Challenger ACR to breathe down the dearly departed neck of the Viper ACR around Road America, well, that was a crate of Hemi-powered wild. The implied impertinence of such a target is worrisome enough, and the weight loss goal would have added an extreme dimension to the ACR brand. The Neon ACR and Viper ACR didn't give up more than 100 pounds compared to their standard counterparts. The insiders spoke of the Challenger getting under 4,000 pounds, in part thanks to an optional passenger's seat. The diet would have required losing 400 pounds in a best-case scenario, which would still leave the big coupe 500-plus pounds heavier than a Viper ACR. Back to that impertinence... We'll likely never know what really happened with the Challenger ACR, so we'll stick it in the X-Files drawer between Big Blue and Chinga. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.    

Daily driving a Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat

I took delivery of my 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat at Ron Carter Dodge in League City. Bobby Pate and the entire Ron Carter team made the buying experience painless. Thanks, guys! It was worth the nine-month wait to get a new Challenger Hellcat at sticker price. My Hellcat is Phantom Black Tri-coat Pearl with a black interior. The car has the six-speed manual transmission and UConnect. Yes, I know the eight-speed automatic is faster, but the manual transmission provides a level of enjoyment that must be experienced to be appreciated. My original intention was to write daily about my experiences with the Hellcat, but I have been having too much fun with the car. The first 100 miles required incredible self-control to keep the car under 55 mph and engine speed under 3500 rpm. The difference in the driving experience after 500 miles was – and I am only exaggerating a little – life altering!The Red Key To paraphrase Morpheus in The Matrix, "You take the black key, the story ends. You wake up in your bed and believe whatever you want to believe. You take the red key, you stay in wonderland, and I show you how deep the rabbit hole goes." The black key is in a place where it will stay until the red key is snatched from my cold, dead hand. The red key is the only key. The red key is "The Key." All 707 horsepower are available with the red key. You can lower the horsepower to only 500 using the SRT pages, I have heard, but why? I have driven the Hellcat in bumper-to-bumper Houston traffic in red-key mode. I have driven the Hellcat in the pouring rain in red-key mode. I have driven the Hellcat to the mall, to the grocery store, to the movies, and to Killen's Steakhouse in Pearland for a 100% Japanese Wagyu steak from the Kagoshima Prefecture. (It was a birthday present from my son. My money goes into the gas tank of my Hellcat.) Just for fun, I used the SRT Pages to put the car in valet mode. For those of you who do not know, valet mode limits the horsepower to: oh, hell! Who cares? The car felt like the parking brake had not been disengaged. I have heard rumors that the Tremec six-speed transmission has a 1-4 skip-shift feature. My Hellcat has never been subjected to this travesty.Questions, questions, and more questions Q: How much over sticker did you have to pay? A: Zero Q: What kind of gas mileage do you get? A: ROTFL Q: How did you ever talk your significant other into letting you buy the Hellcat? A: I didn't ask.

Feds accuse Fiat Chrysler, UAW of conspiring to break labor laws

DETROIT — Top officials of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the United Auto Workers union conspired to violate U.S. labor laws, federal prosecutors alleged in a court document, saying a former executive at the automaker knew bribes paid to union leaders were designed to "grease the skids" in labor negotiations. U.S. Justice Department officials for the first time called the company and the union "co-conspirators" in a document related to a guilty plea agreed by former Fiat Chrysler director of employee relations Michael Brown. The document was filed with the U.S. District Court in Detroit on May 25. Its contents were reported by the Detroit News on Wednesday. Brown pleaded guilty to one count of concealing a felony. The plea agreement stated that he knew Fiat Chrysler executives authorized $1.5 million in improper payments and travel, liquor, cigars and other goods for UAW officials who served on the union's negotiating committee. Prosecutors say FCA executives paid UAW representatives to influence union business. including collective bargaining on contracts ratified in 2011 and 2015. The government contends money was run through the UAW-Chrysler National Training Center, via false charitable donations and training center credit cards. Fiat Chrysler Chief Executive Officer Sergio Marchionne has said in the past that the misconduct "had nothing whatsoever to do with the collective bargaining process" and the "egregious acts were neither known to nor sanctioned" by the company. Fiat Chrysler had no further comment Monday. Outgoing UAW President Dennis Williams told union leaders at a conference in Detroit on Monday "our leadership team had no knowledge of the misconduct — which involved former union members and former auto executives — until it was brought to our attention by the government." Brown pleaded guilty on May 25, according to court documents, and will be sentenced on Sept. 20. Five other people have pleaded guilty in the government's ongoing investigation into the UAW and Fiat Chrysler, including the wife of a late UAW official, two other former UAW employees, former Fiat Chrysler vice president Alphons Iacobelli and another former Fiat Chrysler employee. Reporting By David Shepardson and Nick CareyRelated Video: Government/Legal UAW/Unions Chrysler Dodge Fiat Jeep RAM FCA