2013 Dodge Viper Gts on 2040-cars

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2021-22 Dodge Challenger Hellcat drops manual option

The six-speed manual has been dropped from the 2022 Dodge Challenger Hellcat at least temporarily while it awaits a powertrain calibration update that will allow it to be sold again, Road & Track reports. The combination has been unavailable to order since November 2021, Stellantis said.  Dodge didn't give R&T much of an explanation regarding the combo's absence, saying only that a revised calibration that would allow the configuration to be sold is coming. When is anybody's guess. In the meantime, we're starting to wonder just how committed Stellantis is to offering its V8s to buyers who aren't opting for half-ton pickups or larger. The inline-six that is slated to replace the 5.7-liter Hemi variant in at least some applications is expected to debut soon. While the 5.7-liter Hemi has surely more than paid for itself at this point, it's likely that Stellantis is limiting availability only to its most profitable models, which help offset the CAFE costs associated with lower fleet mileage. And while Stellantis made quite a bit of noise in recent years about its customers wanting V8s, options for such have become thinner on the ground. The new Grand Cherokee is ostensibly offered with the V8 on its three top trims — Trailhawk, Overland and Summit — but only the last of those can be found anywhere in U.S. inventory with a Hemi under the hood. Trailhawk and Overland V8s simply do not exist. You don't have to take our word for it; you can look for yourself.  Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.

Brand new cars are being sold with defective Takata airbags

If you just bought a 2016 Audi TT, 2017 Audi R8, 2016–17 Mitsubishi i-MiEV, or 2016 Volkswagen CC, we have some unsettling news for you. A report provided to a US Senate committee that oversees the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and reported on by Automotive News claims these vehicles were sold with defective Takata airbags. And it gets worse. Toyota and FCA are called out in the report for continuing to build vehicles that will need to be recalled down the line for the same issue. That's not all. The report also states that of the airbags that have been replaced already in the Takata recall campaign, 2.1 million will need to eventually be replaced again. They don't have the drying agent that prevents the degradation of the ammonium nitrate, which can lead to explosions that can destroy the airbag housing and propel metal fragments at occupants. So these airbags are out there already. We're not done yet. There's also a stockpile of about 580,000 airbags waiting to be installed in cars coming in to have their defective airbags replaced. These 580k airbags also don't have the drying agent. They'll need to be replaced down the road, too. A new vehicle with a defective Takata airbag should be safe to drive, but that margin of safety decreases with time. If all this has you spinning around in a frustrated, agitated mess, there's a silver lining that is better than it sounds. So take a breath, run your fingers through your hair, and read on. Our best evidence right now demonstrates that defective Takata airbags – those without the drying agent that prevents humidity from degrading the ammonium nitrate propellant – aren't dangerous yet. It takes a long period of time combined with high humidity for them to reach the point where they can rupture their housing and cause serious injury. It's a matter of years, not days. So a new vehicle with a defective Takata airbag should be safe to drive, but that margin of safety decreases with time – and six years seems to be about as early as the degradation happens in the worst possible scenario. All this is small comfort for the millions of people who just realized their brand-new car has a time bomb installed in the wheel or dashboard, or the owners who waited patiently to have their airbags replaced only to discover that the new airbag is probably defective in the same way (although newer and safer!) as the old one.

Ranking Dodge's Charger Hellcat with the fastest sedans in the world

"This is a car that most brands would never bring to market." - Tim Kuniskis
Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis had reason to be confident, perhaps even a bit cocky at the reveal of his brand's newest halo car, the 2015 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat. As he said simply, it's the "quickest, fastest and most powerful sedan in the world."