Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Dodge may add 'Barracuda' model to Challenger lineup

Gallery: Dodge Challenger SRT8 392
http://www.autoblog.com/photos/2011-...photo-3570812/

The upcoming re-launch of the SRT Viper (formerly a Dodge Viper, of course) may be dominating the fast-Mopar coverage to date, but that super-coupe may turn out to represent just the tip of the iceberg. Automotive News is reporting that multiple Dodge performance products are likely to hit American streets over the next three years.

Perhaps most exciting are the prospective plans for the Challenger in 2014 and 2015. The muscular coupe is likely to get a significant bit smaller for the 2015 model year, with two or three inches set to be removed from its now-generous 116-inch wheelbase, as well as having launch control added to the specification sheet.

The upcoming SRT-tuned version of the Challenger, today the SRT8 model, may very well be dubbed the "Dodge Barracuda" for 2015. The resurrected 'Cuda will feature a supercharged 6.2-liter V8, which we are strongly in favor of. And though Dodge isn't offering up any output numbers for such a mill, current competitors from Ford (Shelby GT500) and Chevrolet (Camaro ZL1) would seem to indicate that 500 horsepower is the bare minimum for entry into this market slice.

In the nearer term, look for a new Daytona performance version of the Dodge Charger to appear in the first part of 2013, along with an SRT4 tune for the new Dodge Dart around the same time.

http://www.autoblog.com/2012/09/07/d...lenger-lineup/

SteVTEC

SWEET! Have always adored this car. Just love the design. One of the very best retros out there IMHO in terms of looks.

JessePS

Now that be epic or how about a Road Runner.

Bean

iTrader: (1)

I hate the current look. The car is so far off the ground, you might as well call it an SUV. Ever sat behind one? It looks top-heavy like it will fall over any second.

Dodge needs to pull about 500lbs off the weight of this vehicle. (at a minimum)

mmarshall

Amen to that. I've been waiting for a new retro Road Runner for 40 years (especially in the original lime green (Tor-Lime) or purple (Plum Crazy/In-Violet). If Chrysler would do one, even my new Verano (yes, as much as I like it) probably wouldn't last long.

My first year out of high-school, I had one of the original Barracudas (Valiant-based), white, with the huge glass rear-window...which was arguably the largest single piece of glass ever put on a production car. It was used, with a fair number of miles on it.....my dad gave it to me as a graduation present. I liked it, but not as much as Road Runnners...which I couldn't afford at the time.



If they actually do a retro Barracuda (the old twin-headlight 1970 Barracuda, IMO, looked better than its quad-headlight Challenger cousin) then I think it should be under the Chrysler brand rather than Dodge, out of the fact that Plymouth, who actually did the Barracuda, was part of the old Chrysler-Plymouth Division.

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

Smaller and lighter is great, hope they can keep the muscle car spirit though

Bean

iTrader: (1)

Oh it's definitely more muscle car than any of the others: Overweight, drives like crap, handles like garbage.

mmarshall

Pony cars, though, aren't designed (or intended) to handle like Miatas. That said, however, the latest Mustangs, Camaros, and Challengers, with their slop-free rack-and-pinion steering, unibody-frames, and state-of-the-art suspensions, certainly handle far better than the 60s-vintage originals.

Brian@Vossen

Sounds pretty awesome to me!!!

Bean

iTrader: (1)

Aside from the fact that I never implied they 'handle like Miatas' (I say they handle like garbage so that definitely means I think they should handle like Miatas ), what you say is true in a literal sense. I'm not holding them to the standards of vehicles made 40 years ago, I'm holding them to the standards of cars made in THIS century. Relatively speaking, the Challenger still handles very numbly and is overweight. The Mustang is almost perfect (no IRS and mildly numb steering) and the Camaro is too heavy.

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

http://www.caranddriver.com/features...da-future-cars

Almost as soon as Chrysler showed us the new Dodge Challenger, Mopar fans began wondering when the Pentastar brand would put together a Barracuda. Some financially sound fans even created their own retro 'Cudas, some to much praise. But if Car and Driver is to be believed, those visions of a modern, rejuvenated 'Cuda are not nearly modern enough.

The magazine commissioned artist Jon Sibul to combine all the rumors it has collected into a speculative vision of what the look of a 2015 SRT Barracuda might be.

Instead of making a retro-modern version of the beloved, iconic Barracuda shape, it looks like the artist chose to imagine a far different approach for the speculated Pony Car. The original's long hood and short deck are replaced by a short hood and short deck. The split grille tries to evoke earlier 'Cudas, but we think it might actually be more appropriate as a Pontiac than a Plymouth (err..SRT, you know what we mean).

C/D says its sources point to a 2015 SRT Barracuda replacing the current Challenger, but with a smaller vehicle that's more of a sports car than muscle car. Engine choices could be as varied as a turbocharged Targershark inline-four, a 3.6-liter V6 and one of two Hemis: either the 5.7 or 6.4-liter.

Overall size is expected to be closer to the Ford Mustang than the Charger, with a weight loss of as much as 300 pounds.