H
HEMI-Powered
Justin, I went to two Dodge a couple of days ago to indulge my
fantasies for the replacement car I'm contemplating for my '06
Charger.
As best I can tell from talking to two sales managers I know
reasonably well, and trust somewhat, the 6.1L MDS originally
planned for 2007 was still born, or at least delayed.
There's an interesting web site I was told about a couple years
back that tracks and published known release dates for upcoming
makes, models, engines, etc. for all the American cars and
trucks:
http://www.arifleet.com/production.html
I can find nothing at all about 6.1L MDS, but www.dodge.com still
says that the CAFE is 14/20 as it always was, and the $2,100 Gas
Guzzler tax is still on the cars. One of my local dealers had a
TorRed standard SRT8 built in October, 2006, while the other
dealer had a Detonation Yellow Super Bee, build in September,
2006. AFAIK, only 1,000 Super Bees were built for the entire 2007
model run, and have a numbered plaque inside. There's nothing
special about a SB for performance, it is mainly a pricey - $3000
- exterior trim package with a few tweaks to the interior.
I cannot find anything at all about what happened to MDS or
whether it may show up for 2008, nuttin' honey. Could be that the
computer bug you heard about when you were looking was a reason,
I really don't know. Probably, I'll never know unless it gets
leaked somehow. The sole reason for MDS in the first place was to
placate pissed off customers who didn't want to pay Uncle Sam
$2,100 for nothing tangible, hence they needed to get the CAFE to
at least 15/21, maybe 16/22, to dodge the tax. Of course, anyone
who really bought one of these beasts certainly would appreciate
the real gain.
Now, as for me, just can't do an SRT8. I talked to several people
I trust that have either driven one in snow or know somebody who
has. Bottom line: you park the think when it snows, maybe when it
starts to rain until the oil and rubber dust on the roads washes
away. Well, I ain't in the market for a car that gets over $42K
MSRP, $46K for the loaded Super Bees, that dings my wallet for a
tax AND I can't drive in even a mild Michigan winter.
I also found out from my fav sales manager that apparently
there's optional higher performance tires optional for another
$300 that effectively make it impossible to drive other than in
the dry. While that may seem to be short-sighed on Dodge's part,
I can understand their thinking. People who really want a rocket
at that price point don't want to drive it in the wet or snow, so
probably no serious buyer will be deterred.
But, I am.
I am 99 44/100% sure that my new car with be a TorRed 2007
Charger R/T with the optional Road & Track Performance Group,
which has all the stuff on a Daytona except for the black
graphics that I don't like anyway. It also has chrome 20" wheels
very similar to those on an SRT8, sanse the Brembo disks, has a
body color grille, and a body color wing on the deck I like.
I drove one last Friday and liked it. I like the dark gray
performance buckets, the tighter steering, much improved brakes,
and tighter suspension that improved the handling without being
at all harse. And, the straight-thru exhausts that are the big
part of the extra 10 ponies really sound nice!
Will probably place an order very soon. I cannot get a firm
build-out date for Brampton Assembly Plant, but I want to get my
order in before they cut-off special orders. I'd be stuck then
hunting through dealer inventories to find one close to what I
want. I pretty much want all the usual toys except the GPS
navigator and sun roof. I don't have the time to do anything with
the navigator and have never liked sun roofs, even when closed in
moon roof fashion.
So, for everyone else, sorry for the OT, but I thought I'd
separate our musings from the on-topic thread that has ticked off
a few folks.
fantasies for the replacement car I'm contemplating for my '06
Charger.
As best I can tell from talking to two sales managers I know
reasonably well, and trust somewhat, the 6.1L MDS originally
planned for 2007 was still born, or at least delayed.
There's an interesting web site I was told about a couple years
back that tracks and published known release dates for upcoming
makes, models, engines, etc. for all the American cars and
trucks:
http://www.arifleet.com/production.html
I can find nothing at all about 6.1L MDS, but www.dodge.com still
says that the CAFE is 14/20 as it always was, and the $2,100 Gas
Guzzler tax is still on the cars. One of my local dealers had a
TorRed standard SRT8 built in October, 2006, while the other
dealer had a Detonation Yellow Super Bee, build in September,
2006. AFAIK, only 1,000 Super Bees were built for the entire 2007
model run, and have a numbered plaque inside. There's nothing
special about a SB for performance, it is mainly a pricey - $3000
- exterior trim package with a few tweaks to the interior.
I cannot find anything at all about what happened to MDS or
whether it may show up for 2008, nuttin' honey. Could be that the
computer bug you heard about when you were looking was a reason,
I really don't know. Probably, I'll never know unless it gets
leaked somehow. The sole reason for MDS in the first place was to
placate pissed off customers who didn't want to pay Uncle Sam
$2,100 for nothing tangible, hence they needed to get the CAFE to
at least 15/21, maybe 16/22, to dodge the tax. Of course, anyone
who really bought one of these beasts certainly would appreciate
the real gain.
Now, as for me, just can't do an SRT8. I talked to several people
I trust that have either driven one in snow or know somebody who
has. Bottom line: you park the think when it snows, maybe when it
starts to rain until the oil and rubber dust on the roads washes
away. Well, I ain't in the market for a car that gets over $42K
MSRP, $46K for the loaded Super Bees, that dings my wallet for a
tax AND I can't drive in even a mild Michigan winter.
I also found out from my fav sales manager that apparently
there's optional higher performance tires optional for another
$300 that effectively make it impossible to drive other than in
the dry. While that may seem to be short-sighed on Dodge's part,
I can understand their thinking. People who really want a rocket
at that price point don't want to drive it in the wet or snow, so
probably no serious buyer will be deterred.
But, I am.
I am 99 44/100% sure that my new car with be a TorRed 2007
Charger R/T with the optional Road & Track Performance Group,
which has all the stuff on a Daytona except for the black
graphics that I don't like anyway. It also has chrome 20" wheels
very similar to those on an SRT8, sanse the Brembo disks, has a
body color grille, and a body color wing on the deck I like.
I drove one last Friday and liked it. I like the dark gray
performance buckets, the tighter steering, much improved brakes,
and tighter suspension that improved the handling without being
at all harse. And, the straight-thru exhausts that are the big
part of the extra 10 ponies really sound nice!
Will probably place an order very soon. I cannot get a firm
build-out date for Brampton Assembly Plant, but I want to get my
order in before they cut-off special orders. I'd be stuck then
hunting through dealer inventories to find one close to what I
want. I pretty much want all the usual toys except the GPS
navigator and sun roof. I don't have the time to do anything with
the navigator and have never liked sun roofs, even when closed in
moon roof fashion.
So, for everyone else, sorry for the OT, but I thought I'd
separate our musings from the on-topic thread that has ticked off
a few folks.
No snow here, so no worries.