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2018 Dodge Challenger GT Drivers' Notes Review | The right car for the season

Associate Editor Joel Stocksdale: Dodge uses the Challenger GT trim to denote its V6 all-wheel-drive model, but it seems apt for reasons besides that. The Challenger, even with a V6, is an excellent, affordable American grand tourer. It's still extremely stylish, despite barely changing looks since Dodge introduced it for the 2008 model year. The solid gray on this one was particularly attractive. It also seemed appropriate considering the Challenger's battleship size. This thing is truly massive. That's beneficial in the sense that it has an enormous trunk (perfect for touring), but not so much for maneuvering. But thankfully, it's easy to spot the corners, which helps a lot. The Challenger GT is a pretty able handler, too. It feels composed in corners, not too heavy, only mild body roll, and steering that weights up very naturally. The ride is relatively comfortable. It takes the edge off of most pavement imperfections, but you feel more than you might expect. So the Dodge Challenger GT has the style, space, and a decent balance of sportiness and comfort — which just leaves one thing left to address, the powertrain. And as it turns out, the V6 actually works quite nicely in the big Dodge. Under full throttle, you get an angry, throaty honk from the intake that, while not as smooth and classic as a V8, is still fairly satisfying. It also has more than adequate acceleration, if not exhilarating. It's a combo that makes not only a fun affordable GT car, but just a solid commuter with an extra dose of style. The only caveat is that if you need something more truly sporty, you may still want to look at a Camaro or Mustang. Associate Editor Reese Counts: I spent the latter half of last week in Idaho and Wyoming driving a pretty sweet Nissan 370Z in the snow. That car was equipped with tracks and skis and allowed me to do some pretty dumb things with few repercussions, though it was one of the loudest and most uncomfortable cars I've ever driven. Coming home to Detroit and a Destroyer Grey Challenger GT was a very nice change of pace. The thing is, this car is still plenty capable in the snow. I like the Challenger quite a bit, especially in the bonkers Hellcat and Demon guise. But not everyone needs a 700-plus horsepower brute that guzzles gas with a nearly unequalled thirst. The Challenger GT checks a lot of boxes. It looks good, it's comfortable, roomy and thanks to all-wheel drive, genuinely usable year round.

2025 SRT Hellcat concepts as previewed by high schoolers

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has some very talented designers in its ranks. Like any good company, though, the automaker is always on the lookout for early talent. Even if they're still in high school. One of those talent-seeking initiatives is the company's Drive for Design contest, an event open to tenth-, eleventh-, and twelfth-grade students that are hoping for a future in design. For this year's event, students from across the country were given a shot to design their vision for a 2025 model-year Dodge SRT Hellcat. The results are impressive, as you can see in the gallery above. First place went to Ben Treinen, from Archbishop Moeller High School in Cincinnati. Second place was the only award to go to a student outside the Rust Belt, with Macon, GA's Harrison Kunselman, a student at Mount de Sales Academy taking the silver. Third place was won by a metro Detroiter – Bloomfield Hills High School student Hwanseong Jang, while fourth went to Andrew Gombac of Loyola Academy in Wilmette, IL. According to FCA, all four winners will have their sketches on display at the 2016 Autorama at Cobo Center at the end of February. They'll also win some pretty nifty prizes. First place will get a new Apple MacBook Pro, while second, third, and fourth get the new Apple iPad Pro and Apple Pencil (arguably just as good of a prize for budding designers). All four finishers will also attend a three-week automotive design course at Detroit's prestigious College for Creative Studies, have dinner with FCA designers, and score three passes to Autorama. FCA will cover travel and lodging to Auburn Hills. Read on for the official blast from FCA. Related Video: FCA US Design Team Announces Winners of Drive for Design Contest January 19, 2016 , Auburn Hills, Mich. - The FCA US LLC Design team today announced four winners in this year's Drive for Design contest. The FCA US Drive for Design contest challenged U.S. high school students in grades 10-12 to design a Dodge SRT Hellcat for the year 2025. "The Drive for Design contest continues to be a great way for the FCA US Design team to connect with students that show an interest in art and design," said Mark Trostle – Head of Dodge and SRT Design, FCA US LLC.

Chrysler's next-gen minivans will get more expensive

Chrysler introduced the value-oriented Great American Package on the base model Chrysler 300 in 2005. That morphed into the American Value Package available as an option on the Dodge Grand Caravan in 2012, which made it the lowest-priced minivan in the country, now with an MSRP of $21,395. Automotive News reports that Chrysler is going to kill the value package when the new Town & Country arrives for 2017, because the new platform and technology of the coming minivan make it "a difficult price point to get to." AN says the next-generation haulers will come in around $26,000 and can go beyond $45,000 with options; clicking every "Add" button we could find on the Town & Country build page, we couldn't get past $43,000 for today's model. That entry pricing in 2017 would eliminate the first three trims on the Dodge option, the American Value Package, the SE that starts at $24,195, and the SE Plus that starts at $24,995. This makes us think the next-generation haulers will take a sizable step upscale in terms of feel, content, and trim, a la the Chrysler 200. In this writer's opinion, if they do as good a job as they've been doing recently, the extra money will be worth it. There have been spy shots and a lot of rumors about it, like the Caravan minivan going away and becoming a crossover, but we'll see it revealed at the 2016 Detroit Auto Show. News Source: Automotive News - sub. req. Chrysler Dodge Car Buying Minivan/Van chrysler town and country price dodge grand caravan