Next Dodge Charger Spied

[Z-06]

NEXT DODGE CHARGER SPIED

Photographs Here.

More Information Here.

As Chrysler continues to struggle in the absence of new product, it’s refreshing to finally get a glimpse of the next-generation Dodge Charger, which can’t get here soon enough. Although it’s covered in camouflage, we’re able to see some new cues that appear to have been influenced by its retro-sibling, the Challenger.

A More Aggressive Stance

For starters, up front we can see the trademark cross-hair grille grows larger and is restyled. Rather than being a canted overbite tucked under the nose, the new grille bubbles out from the center of the cross hairs, while the hood retains its domed shape.

A smoother greenhouse incorporating a more steeply raked windshield nicely accents a new shoulder line. Sweeping along the doors, the line flows into a slightly extended rear deck. With camo hiding the aft section of the rear-door glass, we can only speculate that changes are below, which we think could mean more glass at the C-pillar instead of the current car’s plastic triangle. Revised side mirrors are shorter in height and positioned lower at the base of a thinner A-pillar. We hope that will combine with the possible extra glass in the rear to resolve visibility woes.

At the rear, restyled taillights—which could be LED units—sit in what looks like a recessed rear valance, much like that on the Challenger. Overall, we are hoping for more of a vintage style to the updated Charger that will better complement its muscle.

Mo’ Power? Maybe

And speaking of that muscle, while it’s obvious we can’t see what is under the hood, Charger fans should expect to see the latest version of the 5.7-liter Hemi V-8, currently rated at 368 hp and 395 lb-ft of torque. We expect Dodge to eke out a little more power in this application; perhaps the 390 hp as in the Ram’s version of the engine. Additionally, the new Pentastar V-6 debuting in the 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee will serve as the base powerplant with some 280 hp and 260 lb-ft of torque. While the future of the performance SRT line has often been in question, we’d say it’s safe to expect a Charger SRT8 to remain in the cards with as much horsepower as—or maybe more than—the 425 offered by the current 6.1-liter Hemi V-8 (a more powerful 6.4-liter version has been rumored for some time).

The new Charger should appear in the buff sometime this auto-show season with production beginning late in 2010, but with so much uncertainty wrapped around Chrysler’s future, that estimate is most likely subject to change.

[CSpec]

Looks more like a refresh? That Dodge grill is pretty revolting.

[Robert Hall]

Looks more like a refresh? That Dodge grill is pretty revolting.

Well, a rebody and interior upgrade..doesn't sound like any of the panels will be carried over.

The description in the above article jibes w/ what Allpar has...they have some artist's illustrations that fit the descriptions pretty well..Dodge truck grille, unfortunately.

2011 Dodge Charger?

Edited December 11, 2009 by Cubical-aka-Moltar

[ocnblu]

So far, so good. These are the kind of cars I aspire to, even if I cannot afford them.

[§carlet §wordfish]

Nooooooooooooooooo!

[Camino LS6]

Looks like it might be a bit less chunky - good.

[Blake Noble]

Remove the fat, leave the gristle. Good recipe.

[PONTIAC06]

I'm usually on here telling people to wait until they see the finished product in the flesh, but I'm really disappointed right now...I was hoping for something completely fresh and exciting...right now this just looks slightly warmed over...I hope when I do see it in it's entirety, it is more appealing

[Intrepidation]

Remember kids, the Camo hides a lot, like important details:

Nice to see some Chrysler spyshots, can't wait to see the whole thing.

[cire]

Can't really see enough to form any initial opinions yet.

[regfootball]

like a remelted rwd version of early decade bonneville.......the greenhouse is improved but i am not a fan of the blunt grille, long hood, or long deck. i suspect the flabby haunches will remain too. saw a nice 300m the other day. why can't chrysler make a good looking car like that again?

[regfootball]

Remember kids, the Camo hides a lot, like important details:

Nice to see some Chrysler spyshots, can't wait to see the whole thing.

nice galant greenhouse.

galant, the car dodge should have rebadged as a stratus.

[ocnblu]

Mods, how come there's only a little green "plus" sign on the above post?

[regfootball]

chrysler never should have bet the farm entirely on the rwd cars to carry the family segments. they bet that the sebring and avenger could compete in mainstream segments to back that up and that bet failed.

the galant had an eerily similar look to a little of the dodge design elements and chysler had a partnership with one time with mits. it would have benefit both mits and chrysler to do a joint galant / intrepid to cover mainstream and leave the charger etc. to be a top end entry. then the intrepid / charger would have been a nice 1/2 punch. as it was, the charger failed as a successor to the intrepid, going it alone. the avenger was a market stillbirth and covered neither the loss of the stratus or the intrepid.

[FAPTurbo]

Call me crazy, but the first thing I thought of when I saw that portion of the greenhouse at that angle was 'Galant' , too. =/

[regfootball]

Call me crazy, but the first thing I thought of when I saw that portion of the greenhouse at that angle was 'Galant' , too. =/

a crosshairs grille on a galant would have looked entirely the part. the galant shape and design would have been 100% believable with a dodge badge as well.

the charger and avenger designs were less mainstream. a galant as either an intrepid or stratus replacement to fill the fwd void in dodge's lineup would have helped to keep chrysler from imploding.

we all think rwd was what kept chrysler afloat for awhile. really what it was was the 300c's style, and the hemi's popularity in a time of cheap gas.

the charger's styling was never universally approved like the 300's was. had chrysler introduced the charger and not the 300 at all, you probably would have seen the whole line be a lot less successful....especially when you consider that many of the folks who bought the 300's either had no idea which wheels were the drive wheels, or simply were buying the 300 for its penis extender / hood styling.

[Intrepidation]

a crosshairs grille on a galant would have looked entirely the part. the galant shape and design would have been 100% believable with a dodge badge as well.

the charger and avenger designs were less mainstream. a galant as either an intrepid or stratus replacement to fill the fwd void in dodge's lineup would have helped to keep chrysler from imploding.

we all think rwd was what kept chrysler afloat for awhile. really what it was was the 300c's style, and the hemi's popularity in a time of cheap gas.

the charger's styling was never universally approved like the 300's was. had chrysler introduced the charger and not the 300 at all, you probably would have seen the whole line be a lot less successful....especially when you consider that many of the folks who bought the 300's either had no idea which wheels were the drive wheels, or simply were buying the 300 for its penis extender / hood styling.

Can we at least attempt to do a little research before shooting our mouths off? Before the market went to hell the Charger sold as well and better than the Intrepid did, and the Charger handily outsold the 300.

Besides the fleet whore Impala, the LX cars were the only large cars that have been selling in large numbers.

[daves87rs]

Still not sure-I want to see the finished product before I comment....

[Justin Bimmer]

Reg, let me tell you this to counter your mainstream argument. My mom, who by no means is a car fan at all, said tonight about a dodge charger ad: "wow, that car looks really nice"

I rest my case.

[regfootball]

did she say that at Avis or Enterprise or Dollar?

How many Charger sales were fleet?

[ocnblu]

Dodge Charger > Dodge Intrepid all day long, no contest. And I was really into the cab forward Mopars when they first appeared on the mkt.

[ocnblu]

New spy shots were just posted over at Autoblog, with a peek at the new interior... much nice!