Holiday Contest: Challenger Owners Tell Us “How Did the Challenger Impact Your Life”
Nov 27, 2008 at 1:37AM
(Professional driver, closed course)
We’re getting in a nice rhythm of contests and giveaways around here, so here’s the biggest and best so far. We want to hear your story about how your Challenger has impacted your life. Tell the story in 500 words or less here in the comment section of this post, we’ll pick some top contenders in the coming weeks and then RLD readers will vote on the winner. Got pics? Put ‘em up somewhere and provide a link. Or heck, make a video and link to it. Do whatever you feel will tell the story best.
Winner gets a 1:24 replica Challenger and a bunch of other sweet stuff. So get those keys tapping and write yours today.
Here’s the full details in convenient 5W format…
Who: Dodge Challenger Owners
When: December 1 – 15th
Where: RedLetterDodge.com
What: 500 Word or Less Story Submission Topic: “How has owning a Dodge Challenger impacted your life?”
Why: Because we know how satisfying it can be to own a Dodge Challenger – so now that you’re behind the wheel, we want to know how it feels!
PRIZE: The Ultimate Challenger Enthusiast pack! You’ll win a Plastic Die Cast 1:24 Replica, this production model is a must-have collector’s piece – and a plethora of other enthusiast memorabilia!
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37 Comments
I vote for Greg Anderson’s CRUSH
This letter is special. Dreams do come true.
Ok, so I chose to re-post c/w the embedded slideshow link so it is all contained in one post - here we go again with slideshow accompaniment:
There are only two times I recall going on bended knee for my wife; the first was to ask for her hand in marriage, and the second was to ask for her permission to order a 2009 Dodge Challenger. The first request was over 20 years ago, the second was back in May of this year. She granted me both, and on November 1st, I enthusiastically took the family along with me to pick up our new Challenger R/T.
For me it started, as it did for so many others, back in the mid 60’s. My first love was the 1965 Mustang, but by 1970 I had switched allegiance and embraced the Cuda, complete with Shaker Hood, as my automotive love of choice. Then I went to see ‘Vanishing Point’ at my High School Friday night movie special; our school council president came over the PA on Friday morning challenging us (yes, the pun was intended) to come out and watch Kowalski race his shining white Challenger R/T from Denver to the coast. I was maybe 15 at the time, and didn’t know the difference between a Kowalski and the ‘Welcome Back Kotter’ character. But I dutifully showed up, and was from that point forward sold on the classic lines of a Dodge Challenger.
Fast forward 35 years, and the vision, redux style, became available this spring. With permission from my spousal unit granted, I poured over the order book options and picked out my version of the dream ride.
Four months later, after endless tracking and ‘Challenger Alerts’, and here we all were on a Saturday morning ready to pick up the ride of a lifetime. While I went off to do up the paper work, I arranged for the family to have access to the Challenger so they could check it out. But first stop for the kids was the bright red white-striped Viper resting in the showroom. The sign said ‘Do Not Touch’, but an accommodative salesman commented to the kids that they looked like very responsible children, and so he offered,
‘Come on over and get on in’.
Then, after I had done up the paper work and headed out to the front lot to inspect the Challenger, my daughter announced, with the brightest of smiles,
‘Daddy, I know what I want when I’m old enough to drive – a Viper!’
Can you spell disappointment? But moments later she got her comeuppance.
As we all buckled up in anticipation of the inaugural ride in our cherished Challenger, I fired it up with the push of the button, and as we first absorbed, and then revelled in the distinctive response of the throbbing, throaty Hemi, my son turned to me, smiled broadly, and offered up one single drawn out observation,
‘Sweeeet.’
And so you ask,
‘How has owning a Challenger impacted my life?’
Let me answer that for you. Every morning when I head out to the driveway and fire up the Challenger, I hear but one sweet sound, and that about sums up the whole experience…
http://picasaweb.google.ca/HurrHoff/BendedKneeChallenger?feat=email#slideshow
At the age of 16 in 1978, on the foggiest day I have ever seen, I drove to Greenbelt, Maryland to look at a 1973 Dodge Challenger.
A couple of months before I had been rear-ended in my 69 Sport Satellite. The car hadn’t been right afterward, so I went looking for a replacement. Even though I’d only been driving a few months I was already a Mopar man, so I looked at everything that had Chrysler, Plymouth or Dodge in the name. I had no idea what a Challenger looked like, but it sounded cool.
So I drove at 25 miles an hour, slowing almost to a crawl where I knew there were stoplights so I wouldn’t run a light and get t-boned. It was a nerve-wracking trip, and I was exhausted when I stepped up to ring the doorbell of the owner’s townhouse.
The owner answered the door wearing a pair of boxer shorts and a sweat-stained t-short barely covered by an open robe. After I identified myself he directed me back into the parking. “Just keep going. You’re gonna think you missed it, but just keep going. It’s the last car on the right.”
He was right about me thinking I had missed the car. I could only see a dozen feet ahead of me. Townhouses disappeared, first from the left, then from the right. A while farther on and the cars thinned out, and I still hadn’t seen anything that said “Challenger” on it. Then, when I was ready to turn back, a grey form faded in from the mist. It was a sleek form, and the grey paint with the black vinyl top made it seem like a ghost in the grey fog. The quarter panel confirmed what I was hoping; this was the Challenger.
I fell in love with that car before I even drove it. A couple of weeks later I was back with $1350 in cash.
Of course, I treated the car like a teenage boy would, through many adventures. I raced it and drove it hard. After a few years the motor was shot; the transmission had already been replaced. In one stupid accident that was completely my fault I curled the driver’s quarter panel into itself.
So I took it off the road. At the time I thought this would be for a year, long enough to rebuild a 340 I had picked up and straighten the quarter panel.
Life intruded. There was a marriage, a divorce, two college degrees and economic upheavals. During two periods some good friends kept the car in their garage for years at a time. Through it all, I was still in love.
A few years ago I started work on what I had begun decades back. Once a week or so I take her out for a spin. It’s an amazing feeling to drive the car you drove in high school. Owning this Challenger has definitely changed my life, and it isn’t through yet.
Photos that accompany my story as told on an earlier post on November 29th:
http://picasaweb.google.ca/HurrHoff/BendedKneeChallenger?feat=email#slideshow
It was hot summer day that cooled into night, back in 76. My buddies and I were just cruisin the downriver in the Detroit area, in my pure white 70 Dodge Challenger (440 CI, large cam, headers, 11.5 CR, Holly 850, 355 gear and of course a 4 spd). When I spied a red 55 Chevy I have seen before at a car show; (350 CI, nitrous, dual quads, fiberglass tilt front end, tubbed wheel wells). I had heard that before guy at the car show bragging to that he had never lost a race, as usual, a typically Chevy Guy shooting his mouth off. Anyways, we both looked at each other and nodded; we knew there was going to be race, a good race. We both turned on to Enterprise Drive. One end of Enterprise Drive empties into o
Outer Drive, on the other end was a 90 degree turn, if you didn’t make the turn you were toast. You would flip your car on the curb and wind up in the Rouge River. I needed to warm up my tires, so I got in front of the 55 and from about a 20 mph roll I pushed the clutch in and reved it to about 5 grand and dumped the clutch. Smoke rolled off the tires and came into the interior of the car, always a nice smell on a summer night. Then I squared off with the 55 from about a 15 mph roll. I punched it then kicked the clutch in to get the revs up and then side stepped the clutch quick, if you did it just right it was better then just dumping the clutch. Of course the 55 replied in kind, his front end lifted up nicely as he hammered it. Second gear was always a trip when I hit it, the pinion snubber hitting the floor pan sounded like a shotgun. Some how, I picked up a fender length on the 55. I shifted into third gear; I didn’t miss with the Hurst pistol grip shifter and still kept the lead. Before I knew it we were in 4th gear and I had to shut down hard before I capped the curb and wound up in the Rouge River. But I won by a fender length, I had beat the unbeatable 55 Chevy. Just to be fair I shouted over to the 55 if he wanted to go again and asked him if I could lighten up by dropping off my 2 buddies. He said sure so long as he could drop off his buddy. It was a repeat of the first race only I beat him by a full car length, his front bumper behind my rear bumper. That race gave me the confidence to believe in myself and know big talk was cheap. So long as you believed in yourself you could achieve anything. Of course a little help from Ma Mopar and Father Torque never hurt.
It was meant to be, a bond between man and machine.
After being married for 9 years, I had resolved that my love for muscle cars and anything to do with cars had vanished. Life was “too busy” for frivolous things like cars, or so I had thought. I had always loved muscle cars but life got the best of me, and the thought of any muscle car in my life was very distant.
I had just dropped off my kids at preschool when I had an odd notion, from out of nowhere, to pick up the Want Ad publication to check out the cars for sale. It had been years since reading one. My eye quickly noticed one ad, “1972 Dodge Challenger. Good shape. Runs good. NH” I thought this was interesting as it just so happened that I was going to NH to visit my brother this weekend.
The phone call to the wife followed, I tried my luck. I told my wife about the ad, expecting to get a resounding “NO!” but instead she said, “If you really love it, get it.” I stood speechless for several seconds, tears coming to my eyes. She was never into cars so to hear her say to get it…I didn’t know if I should ask her “Could you repeat that again???” or if I should just say “Thank you!” and not question a gift horse….I chose the later.
It was in the proverbial “barn in NH” as most muscle cars in MA had succumbed to road salt and NH was the place to get muscle cars. It was in a barn with 3 Mustangs. My first memory of the car is seeing the baby blue paint that I would later find out was called Super Blue aka Petty Blue. The seller bought the ‘72 Challenger Rallye 340 from the original owner, thought he blew the engine. The seller told me the ad was supposed to run last week but it didn’t fit in so it ran this week and I was the first to call. I thought it was destiny.
I wanted to impress my wife when she saw the car so I brought soap, water, and towels to clean the car before she saw it. It was Nov. and cold. I pulled off the highway to lather up the car and the soap suds froze to the car, making it look worse than it ever did. In addition it wouldn’t start when I tried to unload it from the trailer. Poor car I thought, but I was on that car’s side every bit of the way.
At this point, I really felt a bond with my car. We were like 2 kids getting into trouble, but being there side by side through whatever happened. My Challenger has brought me much happiness, that I know if I had not picked up that Want Ad that day, my life would not hold the same joy as it does now.
http://www.cardomain.com/ride/456046
How did the Dodge Challenger impact my life? Well it started in 1977 really, my exboyfriend had a 1973 Cuda 340, red,black stripes, black vinyl roof, black interior and Keystone Classics around. It was a beautiful and sporty car. We both went our separate ways and started dating again in 1983. We married in 1984 and had a son.
My husband often spoke about his dream to own another Cuda or Challenger. We built a separate garage after the kids were grown so that we could purchase an old Challenger or Cuda and restore. In 2006, my husband heard about the Challenger concept. That’s when my life changed. My husband said if they build it we will own one. Then the Dodge announced the greatest news for us Mopar muscle car lovers, they were going to build the Challenger.
On 12/3/07, my husband was waiting for the Dodge dealerships to open so that he could place an order. The first dealership said they could not sell him a Challenger, he was in a panic and asked me to call every dealership around and find out who was going to sell him a Challenger. My husband placed a deposit and received his VON. After that he found the Dodge Challenger Forum, he was there every night trying to obtain information regarding the new Challenger.
On 7/22/08, the beast arrived, it was beautiful, Hemi Orange First Edition SRT Challenger. My husband wants to drive it everywhere we go. We enjoy riding it and getting all of the looks or the thumbs up sign. It is really neat to see how many people dig this car.
The Challenger has brought back a passion in automobiles in my husband. In our twentyfive years of marriage nothing besides the children and grandchildren has excited him more than the Challenger.
A long long time ago in a galaxy far far away, there was a group of long hair hippie motor heads with muscle cars. I was one of them and my car was a 442, one of my friends had a Challenger and another friend a Cuda and so on. Do I miss those Saturday nights dragging on I-20 while it was under construction. Over time we all grew up, cut our hair and found real jobs. Then the 80’s rolled around and the Firebird’s and Corvette’s were the cars to own. I sold my 442 for a 79 Firebird. I am still kicking myself in the rear for that deal. My friends did the same thing except for different cars.
Then one by one we fell victim to women who wanted a lifelong relationship. Muscle cars were out and family cars were in. For the next 2 and half decades it was mini vans and 4 door sedans. When my oldest son turned 16 he wanted a muscle car and since I owned one and new the power they had the answer was NO. He settled for a 71 Cutlass S and we started restoring it has a cloned 442. However he did not have the commitment or the love for the car, but my youngest son did. He took over ownership and worked very hard to restore it. We still have a lot of work to do on it, but it has been fun.
Then about 1 week after my youngest son’s 18th birthday I saw a commercial for the new Challenger. I saw the concept car but never really paid much attention to it since I really did not think they would bring back a muscle car. That’s when I told my wife I was getting one. I had done my job, raised my family and never strayed from the ranch. My wife’s reply was NO. Then I told her it was the car or I get a young mistress. She said go ahead and get the mistress, she did not care. Then I told her that the mistress would cost twice as much as the car. All of a sudden she cared. I ordered the car the next day.
I had to settle on the RT because I could not justify the 10K difference between the RT and SRT to get 50 horsepower more. Santa said he would hook me up with a downloader at Christmas to take care of that problem. The only option I opted for were the stripes. After all, it’s about the car and motor not the creature comforts. I might only have the RT, but I also have Colorado license plates that read OA-5599. No one else can lay claim to that.
So how did the Challenger change my life? All I can say is that when I drive it, I get that tickling feeling on my shoulders like my hair is long again. THAT IS PRICELESS!!!
Please visit: http://home.comcast.net/~rjneise/site/?/photos/
“How has owning a Dodge Challenger impacted my life?” It would be easier and shorter to say how it has not impacted my life.
My life with the Challenger began in 1979 with my father. He was a Mopar nut and decided a Challenger would be a good first car for me. We looked for a 71 Cuda convertible and settled on a 71 Challenger convertible. We paid an unheard of high price for the car, $2400.00. it was purchased from the second owner. On Saturdays my father would work with me on repairing and redoing things on the car as they were needed. He taught me how to do the points, rebuild the carb, change the oil, and anything else that the car needed. Looking back I realize it was a real special time in life. The Challenger gave my father and I a reason to do something together.
The poor car got Crager SS wheels, Headers, Thrush turbo mufflers, and Hijackers. I thought it was great driving downhill all the time.
I met other people who had done the same things to their Challengers. We hung out at the beach in Lake Worth FL. Due to Challenger ownership I met people who and still close friends 30 years later. People look at me in disbelief when I tell them I have 15 friends that I can call at anytime that have been close friends for over 30 yrs. I have this fortune in my life due to owning a Dodge Challenger.
In High School and College I started buying and selling the Challengers. Gas was cheap, insurance was cheap, and so were the cars. I would find an Ebody and a New Yorker and put the New Yorker 440 in The Ebody and resell it. I was able to earn a decent living doing this. One day I met a fellow college student that had a 70 Cuda. I found that his father was the Prince of France. He was exporting Ebodys to Paris and wanted all I could give him. The Ebodys were everywhere at the time so we started shipping them. This introduced me to international business.
While in college I met a girl and got married. My Challengers became her Challengers and her brothers were in heaven. We brought my newborn daughter home in a Challenger. This same Challenger parked outside of a single guys house and seen by a friend is also how I found out that my wife was cheating on me. It is hard to hide a purple Challenger with white stripes. This naturally sparked a divorce that I was able to survive by selling off a few of my Challengers. The Challengers saved my house. A buyer of two of these Challengers became one of my closest friends. When life got rough through the divorce and I had to close down the shop it was Challenger buddies that showed up and helped me move.
Every turn of my life has been impacted by the Dodge Challenger. It has given me income; more lifelong friends than anyone deserves, and transportation. (I actually put over 100,000 miles on one and it always made it home.) It gave me precious time with my father. With the advent of the Internet the Challenger has added many new friends to my life. The Dodge Challenger has given more wild fun to me that I ever could have imagined possible.
It has also taught me a lot. I have learned that when you reach 130 miles and hour with the top down the vacuum caused by speed will push you to the steering wheel. I learned I could easily outrun police in K-cars with a 318 Challenger. I learned a properly tuned 73 340 Challenger with the right gears and bias ply tires will go 130 miles an hour. Thank fully that feat didn’t put this fool in his grave. I learned that when you launch a 440 powered convertible Challenger the glove box will empty itself on your dates lap. The sunvisors can become guillotines also. I learned the Challenger back seat was worthless on a date. My Dad was a whole lot smarter than he seemed. I now know one reason he said no to the 70 Road Runner. I learned that raised Hijackers made the car handle badly and that a chain link fence can actually do quite a bit of damage. I learned that when you flip a Challenger upside down the oil drains out through the carburetor. I learned responsibility. I learned how to be a lifelong friend. I learned why it is so important to be honest in all of your dealings. I have learned that my life without the Dodge Challenger would never be what it is today. It would be empty.
Second attempt to post -
I see already that my story can’t compare to some of these great ones but out of excitement for the car, let me share.
I was born during the original Chally run and can’t say that I remember them new. However, during my early years in the 70’s I could look up and down the block and see those iconic Mopars parked in driveways. I may have been young, but I knew what I liked.
I got into the “New Dodge” in ‘96 because I felt that they were getting some things right in style that others weren’t. I bought a ‘96 Stratus and later an ‘01 Stratus.
Flash forward a decade and I found myself older and a lot less single. Now supporting a family including a wife fighting through nursing school, there was little money for my personal indulgences and I was making a lot of sacrifices. One of my inexpensive past times was to look at cars online and dream.
One day in 2006, my wife saw me online looking at the new Mustangs and asked if I liked those. I complimented Ford for a nice looking car but told her that I loved Dodge, especially the Charger. My Stratus was starting to get old and we were thinking about a new car. I told her that we could not afford a new one while she was in school.
Then I pulled up the concept for the Challenger. I proceeded to tell her that this was my “perfect” car. The style was exactly what I wanted, a true retro look that took me back to being a kid and drooling over those original Mopars. I shrugged it off saying that we wouldn’t be able to get one, at least not for the first few years.
But my wife looked me in the eye and told me that we would do this no matter what. She told me that after putting her through school, it would be her turn to do something for me. I nodded but secretly dismissed it as a dream.
Nonetheless, every month she would buy me the Challenger toys, which soon filled up my desk at work. She graduated still talking about buying me a Challenger. We fell into some tough challenges in ’08 and still she would not let up about getting this car. When the first limited edition SRT came off the truck in San Antonio, I was there with a video camera. I had seen it a thousand times online but nothing compared to this. They actually made this thing. I was in love but still disbelieving I would own one. But my wife never stopped believing. She is an amazing woman. And she looks so incredibly good in my fully loaded black R/T now.
This car draws crowds and compliments and it makes us feel really good. It is nice to be able to dream about something for so long and see it become a reality.
In the year 1959, a child was born. A child who would crave the need for speed. A child whose weekends were spent at a local speedway with his parents, admiring the men who drove the cars and those behind the scenes. Being rasied a Ford fan; he soon realized his love for Mopar. At the age of 17, his father took him to the Ford dealership to purchase a used car. There sat a 1973 Cuda. It was there his passion began. The car would be sold, bought back and eventually totaled but his love for that car never ended. That child was me, and I never gave up my dream to own another E body Mopar.
In the year 1984, I married the girl of my dreams. She shared my love of cars and together we searched for Cudas or Challengers to restore, to no avail. Finally information on the concept Challenger surfaced and our desire was renewed. Finally we learned of the date. At 7:30 a.m. on December 3, 2007, I waited patiently at the front door steps of the Dodge Dealership in Jacksonville, Fl for the doors to open. Inexperienced salespeople led me to believe that they were unable to order the car, but thankfully, my wife persevered and called two different dealerships and to my surprise, it was ordered. We actually had an order number. Finally I was going to be a proud owner of a Dodge Challenger SRT. A First Edition Numbered Challenger, one that would change my life.
From that day, I discovered the Dodge Challenger Forum and shared my excitement with other anticipating owners. Through ups and downs and promised dates that came and went, it was finally delivered on July 22, 2008. To this day I find myself just wanting to sit and look at it, to admire the beauty, workmanship and engineering of such a beautiful car.
On November 8, 2008 in Las Vegas, Nevada, I had the privilege of putting faces to names of the people that I had met on the forum. There we experienced the SRT Track Experience. I was fortunate to have my son with me and I must say that was one of the most memorable experiences of my life. I walked away from there with a great appreciation of the Hemi SRT autos and for new friendships.
You ask how has this experience of owning the Dodge Challenger impacted my life? Excluding the day I married and the birth of my son, nothing compares. It has brought back my youth again. It has brought out the little boy or teenager in me. It is a thrill to share these experiences with my son and let him get a little taste of the past and to know that when it is passed through generations, that he too will treasure this “HELLUVA RIDE”. It has also confirmed my belief that the Dodge Challenger was, and still is, the greatest car there is.
I do not take for granted that my years of hard work has afforded me this privilege and that I am blessed to be one of the fortunate car owners who are, just like me, living the American dream.
Wow where to start.. well here it goes,, It was about three years ago when i was just searching through the net and i stumble upon a prototype of a car that “oh my god”
It was the most beutiful thing i have ever seen, it was love at first sight… After all this i figured it was just a prototype and they wont build it. Boy was i wrong,, I went to the toronto international auto show a year and a bit ago with my uncle.. And there we are walking through the dodge both looking at a green viper and at the corner of my eyes i caught something orange, And there it was in real life 2008 dodge challenger srt8.. I was at a lost for words. I have never seen a car with such sexy lines, I knew this was the car of my dreams. I looked at the car for about twenty minutes when my uncle said to me can we look at other cars, I turned to him and said i am in love and if he wanted to look at other cars it would be on his own.. So thats what happened i stayed there and he meet me back there three hours later and i was still there admiring this goddess. well from that day forth iknew i had to find a way toget ny hands on this car.. At the time i was working for someone doing hardwood floors and i knew if i continued this there was no chance of buying this car. So i ended up opening my own hardwood company and managed to get some good contracts and before you know it i was well on my way.. I then decided to take the next best step and go to the dealer and see how i could get my hands on this beuty. The salesman at the dealer told me they had 2 08 challys on order and if i wanted one it was mine.. But by this time i already knew dodge had in the works a six speed transmission for 2009 model year. I mentioned this to the dealer and he said yes they are building a six speed for 09.. Well the next step was i put a five thousand dollar deposit down for an 09 even before the 08″s have arrived… I wanted to make sure that i got one of the first six speeds in ontario,ca..I put that deposit march 28th 2008 and wow what a wait i went through.. I didnt receive the car till halloween. I must have drove my friends and family to drink because i was so impatient and couldnt stop talking about the car that they couldnt wait till i got it so i would shut up. I even ordered a personalized licence plat three months before i got the car… The plate reads “PNTY DRPR” Stands for Panty Dropper. Icant believe they let me have that plate it is so appropriate for this car.. The day i picked up my SRT8 six speed it was unreal, i had to pinch myself becauase i couldnt believe i was seeing this with my eyes. Well i got into this car at the dealer for the first time and i started shaking cause my heart was beatting way to fast …. Well i had about a sixty km drive home and it was bar none the most exihlarating moment of my life.. I was by myself in the car and i was talking out load screaming cause i was so extatic that i was driving the car of my dreams… My parents love the car and so do my friends.. My best friend actually works in a machine shop and i told him i bought a locking gas cap for the car. So he tells me to give it to him, i thought it was odd but i figured ok..Well he ended up building the gas cap out of non magnetic stainless steel and he even used the keyed lock in it and it works.. He gave it back to me and he also engraved srt8 on both sides of the key hole and above it he wrote panty, and below dropper… it is absolutley amazing I have pics…Well sorry to keep rambling but it goes to show you if you work hard enough nothing is out of reach. Not Even the challenger.
Great write-ups! Hey guys if you are storing your challenger over the winter months I want to suggest a great product
which I purchased called a Carcapsule. You drive it onto and pull it over the vehicle and zipper it up. The built in fan with air filter inflates and circulates constant air around the vehicle which prevents moisture build up. I am storing my Challenger in a 100 year old wagon house which is mice infested and this product keeps them out! Its works great! The manufactor put a picture of my car in the capsule on their website. Check it out @ www.carcapsule.com
My love of cars, especially MOPARS, began when I was 12 years old and in 7th grade. It was 1977 and my next door neighbor brought home a slightly used 1973 Dodge Challenger in Eggshell White (W1). It was love at first sight. I still remember that day as if it were yesterday. My neighbor must have seen the gleam in my eyes when she drove up in that car, because she immediately offered to give me and my brother a ride. A couple of years later, when I was 14, a good friend of mine’s older sister promised to sell me her used plum crazy Challenger when she was ready to buy a new one. All I could dream about was the day when the Challenger would be mine. Two years later, and I see this day in my mind every time I think about it, early October 1981, my brother and I were both standing in our front yard talking when my fiends’ older sister pulls up in her brand new car… my mind raced with the anticipation…. Knowing I would soon be getting my Challenger…. Then time seemed to stop as my friends’ sister apologized and told me she traded in the Challenger as a down payment on the new car… disappointment cannot begin to express the feelings I had and that were seared into my mind at that moment. It is almost as if my mind took a digital picture of that moment in time, capturing everything around me (sight & sounds) and stored it in double encrypted, triple coated non-erasable memory. The disappointment of losing my “would be” first Challenger is still with me today.
Approximately six months later I got my fist car, although not a Challenger, it was still Mopar. It was a 1973 Plymouth Satellite with a 318 auto in Honey Gold (man I hated that color) but I loved the car. And as soon as I could scrape up enough money I painted it Black. I also had the body shop remove all the Chrome trim, tinted the windows black and this was one mean looking machine. After a while I bought high performance 340 taken out of a friend’s Cuda and dropped in the satellite. This car took me through 2 years of high-school and dates and friends and hanging out. Starting my senior year the car was totaled in an accident. I bought a wrecked 73 Road-Runner with a 400 CU to use for parts to rebuild the Satellite. After weeks of thinking it over I decided to sell the Satellite and fix the Road-Runner. I remember days, weeks and months working on that car. As a 17 year old learning on the fly how to work on cars I did not do too bad. I was able to pull the 400 out and completely tare it down and rebuilt it with a lot more power. That car took me through my last year in high-school and many jobs. Then came the 1971 Cuda with a 383 and a 4 speed with the Hurst pistol grip shifter. I sold that car in 1986 and still regret it to this day.
Eleven years later I had graduated law school and saved almost 10K to put towards buying another 71 Cuda… as fate would have it, instead, I met the love of my life and the money went towards an engagement ring.
Roll forward another 8 years… in the summer of 2005, bored out of my mind and my wife 4 months pregnant I began to draw sketches of the Cuda but trying to give it a modern look. If anything looked really good I planned to send it in to Chrysler as a suggestion for bringing back the Cuda. Seven months later, I was at the local gym when one of the hot-rod magazines caught my eye. It had what appeared to be an old Challenger completely rebuilt, as I got closer my eyes must have popped out of my head when I read the headline that this was a rendering for the 2006 concept Dodge Challenger…I did not finish my workout and instead took the magazine home (I still have it saved). When I got home I could not wait to show it to my wife, and I told her IF THEY BUILD IT, I WILL BUY IT! In the summer of 08, my wife agreed to buy me the Challenger as her 10 year wedding anniversary gift to me. I ordered the car through Bob Frederick and he came through just as promised.
My 09 SRT8 Hemi-Orange 6 speed Challenger was delivered on Nov. 22, 2008 at 2:35pm EST. As I got home that day from picking up the car, a funny thing happened, a moment of déjà vu, as they say. As I pulled into my drive way I notice my neighbor’s 14-year-old son staring at the car. As I parked, he came right over and asks “is this your car?” to which I replied yes! You like it? And he says “this car is SICK!” (modern term for awesome). As I looked at him there I remember my self in 1977 when my neighbor pulled up in her Challenger. So I passed it forward and took him for a ride. It took 30 years for life to come full circle and it was all made possible by Dodge building the BEST DAMN Challenger I could ever have dreamed of. It has affected my life in so many positive ways, not just reminiscing about the good old days, but more importantly it have given me the opportunity to create new memories with my wife and my 3 year-old daughter…ones we will treasure for the rest of our lives and especially when I passed this Challenger on to my daughter.
Ernie mitchell jr challenger thanks here is the right link
http://s719.photobucket.com/albums/ww195/scatpack5/Ernies%20challenger/
[IMG]http://i719.photobucket.com/albums/ww195/scatpack5/Ernies%20challenger/21.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i719.photobucket.com/albums/ww195/scatpack5/Ernies%20challenger/22.jpg[/IMG]
i forgot to leave some pictures thanks much Ernie Mitchell jr,[IMG]http://i719.photobucket.com/albums/ww195/scatpack5/Ernies%20challenger/21.jpg[/IMG]
[IMG]http://i719.photobucket.com/albums/ww195/scatpack5/Ernies%20challenger/22.jpg[/IMG]
MY FIRST CAR WAS A 1970 HEMI ORANGE PLYMOUTH DUSTER AT 16 YRS OLD, THATS WHAT STARTED IT ALL, MY LOVE FOR MOPAR MUSCLE! GTX, ROAD RUNNER, CHARGER, SUPERBEE,AND MUCH MUCH MORE 440S, 383S, 340S, I LOVE THEM ALL !! AND THEN AUTOMOTIVE TECH SCHOOL FOR TWO YEARS. IVE HAD GASOLINE IN MY BLOOD SINCE I WAS 10YRS OLD. THEN FAST FORWARD TO NOVEMBER 2009, AT 41YRS OLD I CAN GO THE DODGE DEALER AND BUY A NEW OFF THE SHOWROOM FLOOR DODGE CHALLENGER R/T IN HEMI ORANGE WITH A HEMI ENGINE AND TRACK PACK OPTION (6 SPEED MANUAL) AND HOOD TO FENDER STRIPES!!!!!!! AND THATS JUST WHAT I DID LAST FRIDAY!! BOUGHT THIS EXACT CAR,AND YOU KNOW IVE NEVER HAD A NEW CAR IN 41YRS, JUST USED ONES (FOR DAILY DRIVING)AND CLASSIC MOPAR MUSCLE CARS TO FUEL MY PASSION FOR THESE ICONIC CARS. YOU HAVE NO IDEA HOW EXCITING THIS IS!! THANKS TO DODGE IM LIVING MY DREAM TO BUY A NEW HEMI CHALLENGER WITH TRACK PACK IN 2009. THANKS MUCH, ERNIE MITCHELL JR.
My 08 Challenger has been a major attention getter and as a result has effected me to meet more new enthusiasts than I ever could have imagined!
I have also used the opportunity to speak to the unchurched about visiting our church which has resulted in immeasurable benefits! Thank you Dodge & SRT Team for making this possible !
Sitting raised above the other cars like the radiant goddess it is…. the Dodge Challenger.
ASalinas, great line…. I can here the angels singing.
DanDan
Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. The new Challenger is a faithful recreation of the iconic musclecars I grew up with.
Some of my fondest memories of childhood are ones of helping my Father take care of his cars. He showed me how to service the car, clean it, and we spent much of what little time we had together talking about, working on or appreciating the cars of the late 60’s and early 70’s. He loved fast, sharp looking muscle cars.
He quit school in the eighth grade to help his family make ends meet. Growing up with eight sisters and two brothers, needs were great and resources scarce when he was a boy. When he started his own family, he again sacrificed his personal wants and needs to provide for his wife and children. The only thing he asked for through all of his hard work was a new car every few years in his later life. His cars were one indulgence for all of the other things he sacrificed to make life better for his family - throughout his life.
Dad’s been gone for over twenty years now. But the time and appreciation we shared for fine automobiles still lives in me. My passion for American Muscle is a living testament to a time gone by that I remember fondly.
While my sacrifices haven’t been nearly as great as those of my Father, I have given a lifetime of hard work to benefit my family. I am lucky enough to have a wonderful wife who appreciates that and isn’t threatened by my deep respect for tradition - and automotive excellence.
Three years ago, I shared with her the rhumor that Chrysler “might” resurrect the Challenger. We had just bought her a new Charger R/T - her first new car, and she was very happy with the way that car looked and filled our family’s needs. She saw the sparkle in my eyes as I was looking at pictures of the Challenger concept car. I told her that If I was to ever break my twenty-year string of used cars for myself and get a new one, THIS was the car it would be. She knew I was a “Mopar guy” like my Father (my first car was a 1965 Newport with a 383 cu in V8 that he gave me) and this was obviously more than just a car to me. This was a chance to get a little bit of what my Father and I shared back and hopefully continue that legacy with our sons.
After following the development of the Challenger from concept to “It’s ON”, to mule sitings, to the production version with me, my wife said “Why don’t you order one? You’ve given so everyone else can have for so long - now it’s about time for YOU to have something YOU want.” What car-guy WOULDN’T want his wife to say that to him?
After a long search for a fair deal from a great dealer, placing a deposit on an order, six months of waiting for that order to be filled, and a snow-lengthened ten hour drive to Boardman, Ohio, I picked up my Brilliant Black Crystal Peralcoat Metallic 2009 Challenger SRT8 6 speed from Frederick Chrysler Jeep Dodge on November 24th, 2008. Bob Frederick must have inherited the same passion for cars with his Father as I did with mine. He came back to the dealership after hours to deliver my car to me. As I listened to Bob talk about his Dad, and the cars he’s had, I could almost hear myself talking about my own Father and his cars. Bob showed me the door sills he installed on my 2009 SRT8 at my wife’s request - an order she placed with him the day before she was scheduled to go in for major surgery and that I, until then, knew nothing about. After Bob went over the features of the car, I headed back home for the last nine hour leg of the “odyssey” to get my Challenger home.
When I pulled into our driveway, my wife and our two youngest sons came out to the car to welcome me and “Josie” home. My wife told me the door sills were an early Christmas gift from the boys. (She suggested “2ND LOVE” for my custom plates, but that’s already taken.) They were “all smiles”, as was I. The boys were due to get on the school bus momentarily, but had time to ask if we could “go for a ride” when they got home from school that day. That was the first thing they’d ever showed an interest in that we could share - a continuance of what my Father and I shared through the next generation.
Like the Challenger has been resurrected in modern form, so has the legacy of love for muscle cars that this Father can share with his sons.
Thanks to all of the folks at Dodge responsible for bringing us an opportunity to revisit opportunities of the past (that I thought were lost forever) with a faithful recreation of the most iconic muscle car ever designed!
The legend lives - in more ways than one.
We are your typical two car family. My husband with his work car and me with the stable SUV. The plan was to trade off getting new cars. My husband would get his choice one year and a few years later it would be my turn.
When my turn was up I picked a 2002 Ford Escape. His choice was a Jeep. A few months later I see him looking at new cars again. A Mustang seems to catch his eye so back we go to the dealership.
Okay, so he took my turn. We start talking about trading in my SUV and I start looking. Fast forward six years and three husband trade-ins later. I’m still driving the Escape while he is driving a new Dodge Ram 1500.
How’d that happen? He used my turn four times! That’s when I saw on the Dodge website that they were reinventing the Challenger. This was my dream car. The car in my best friend’s garage that we used to sneak in and pretend to drive.
I start throwing hints about how gorgeous the new Challenger was going to be. How I would love to own one. Leaving the website up on the computer screen.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity we are driving by the Dodge dealership and we see it. Sitting raised above the other cars like the radiant goddess it is…. the Dodge Challenger.
I look at my husband and he pulls into the lot. We get out and I gently touch the orange painted hood and sit in the smooth, soft leather seat. This is my car, my dream. And you know what, we leave the dealership driving my 2002 Ford Escape.
I know, it’s truely sad what that man put me through. After many months of looking at the newest additions to the Challenger stock, I was ready to leave my husband there and go home alone when it happened.
First,the door locks started sticking on the Escape. It was hit or miss if you were going to get your groceries back after closing the door. Then the windshield wipers stopped working. Slowly, the little SUV that had seen many partners parked next to it was starting to fade.
A few days later we spotted yet another new Challenger beckoning to us. This one Inferno Red and calling my name. We stop, we look, we test drive and he utters the words I had been waiting to hear. “We’ll take it.”
Was he serious? Was this some sort of joke? Was I finally getting my turn and my dream car all in the same day? I am happy to say YES!!! My beautiful new 2009 Dodge Challenger now sits proudly in front of my house.
My heart still speeds up a little every time I get behind the wheel. And, I am proud to say that my husband can have all of my turns from now on. This car isn’t going anywhere.
The first time I saw her, she was sitting for sale at the local country store ~ a ’73 Petty Blue with at White Top and interior. It was love at first sight. It was 1977, I was 17, a junior in high school. I HAD to have it, the lines and curves and mean looks had me hooked. Couple of weeks later it was mine. I worked hard for that sweet car, and soon had Keystone Klassics, L60’s on the rear and chrome sidepipes. I had the coolest car at school. I had the first date with my future wife in that car. After a few years ~ wife, kids, house ~ we had to sell it. I can still feel the pain.
Fast Forward.
Our youngest is going off to college, business has been pretty good, have a few extra bucks. I found a ’73 Challenger in the paper, went and looked at it, took it for a drive. All the old feelings came flooding back. Brought it home. Just looking at it ~ the lines, the curves, the mean looks ~ just sitting in it could bring back all the good times of my youth, it was just like I was there again.
Now I’m hooked again, found a ’70 RT-TX9 with a white bumble bee stripe for sale, bought it, started doing some car shows, won some trophies. Then the new concept came out. It was love at first sight ~ the lines, the curves, the mean looks, I had to have one. Now there’s a black 2008 SRT sitting next to my ’70 Black RT. Wow.
As a member of a Drum and Dance Troupe, it is so rewarding to see the impact that we have on people, and to hear them tell us that the drums touched their soul and moved them greatly. It’s the same way with the cars ~ everywhere I go in the car, somebody comes up to me, wide-eyed, loving the car. They tell me about the car they had or their best buddy had, and they tell me stories of their youth, reliving the best times over again, smiling from ear to ear.
So for me, the biggest reward of owning a Dodge Challenger has been the ability to spread the love, to give other people joy and happiness in their lives for a few moments.
Last year, my wife had Colon Cancer Surgery and she was devastated with physical challenges. The next year we were faced with serious depression and her loss of interest to live under the cloud of poor health.
The one love of her life has always been “Hot Cars”. I made a risky decision to purchase the Awesome Black SRT-8 Challenger and stored it in the garage of our home and closed the door. My wife “Luanne” was very surprised to see the Hottest Sportscar in America in her garage. She knew I didn’t bring it home for a test drive because my name was on the temporary tags. Once she realized I bought the Challenger for her she was stunned, ecstatic and fired up to drive it immediately.
Today, I can honestly say that the SRT-8 has saved my wife’s mental health and she is now back on track rebuilding our home from Hurricane Ike. I can’t even imagine the depth of her depression after a huge tree slammed our home without the strength of the SRT-8 Program. This summer we attended the SRT-8 driving program in Ft Worth, Texas and we drove all day and my wife was so happy, excited and now experienced to really enjoy her own Challenger.
Last month Luanne smoked a Mustang and left him as she went above 130 MPH on the way home. She couldn’t wait to tell me about dusting the one car she drove while going to school.
Our Challenges in life have been met by the power and style of the Challenger in our garage. We simply smoke our issues with an awesome attitude that says, “we will drive thru the smoke and believe everything will be ok on the otherside”. Our cup is half full and we love to drink SRT-8 because it juices us up everyday of our lives.
Today, our garage wall has RedLetters painted on the wall “SRT” and our neighbors are very aware of our pride for owning a
Challenger.
Thanks,
Steve Reynolds
Well, it all began for me when my sister had a 1970 Plymouth Barracuda. I loved the car but was only 13 years old. When I was 22 I traded my 1969 Javlin for a 1970 Cuda 383. I loved the car (I know this is a Challenger comment section but the Cuda was the sister to the Challenger). I drove this for a few years but did not have a lot of $$ to put into it. After I sold it I missed the car and I bought a 1974 Barracuda I fixed this up and painted it the original green and drove it for a few years untill I traded it for a 1971 Barracuda. I sold the 71 in 1988. Ever since then I have missed the cars. I have models and pictures and I would tell everyone about them. I have driven my wife crazy telling her about them and how bad I wanted another but they were then too expensive (original ones). Then to my surprise I see the Dodge Challenger concept car (which looks more like a Cuda’ in some ways to me). I was excited then sometime went by and I did not see or hear any thing more until the TV commercials right when they were released. I had just bought a new Jeep Wrangler but I knew I had to have one. I went to a few dealers and sold my motorcyle and bought and new 2009 SE (I could not afford the RT or ST8) but I did add the fog lights and R/T grill emblem and Hemi hood emblems and then I could the rear trim that has the dual exhaust cutouts. All I have left is to get the exhaust re-routed out of these cutouts. I know my SE is a wannabe RT but I love the car and every one stares and give me complements on it. When I drive it I feel like I am in my old Cuda’s except the handling and ride is much better as is the noise reduction, brakes and interior quality. I think I will have this car many years or until I can afford an RT or ST8!
My story is posted here:
http://happyboxproductions.typepad.com/my_weblog/2008/11/reborn.html
I am in love!
-Poyla
Ok, 500 words or less about the best car I ever bought?
My story would start with the wait. It seemed like eons before concept went to production, and then decades waiting for my car to hit D1. I spent much of my time here and other forums and got to know many other owners waiting on the same car. I watched guys go nearly crazy waiting. Anyone remember the status calls to Pakistan?
Each time someone got their Challenger they said the same thing. “It was worth the wait”.
We had jokes like “The coolest car we never saw”. Argued about what color was faster.
I have never seen a car stir that kind of passion from the entire group!
Lets leap to the present…
I have had my Challenger for over 4 months. Almost 4000 miles later, and I still feel the same every time I get in.
This is not a car to pick you nose in, as you are always watched :-Þ
I have never seen so much attention from a new car, and still it continues as much as it did the day I drove it home. Other drivers give you the thumbs up, as if just driving this car must make you good people!
Now the best part.
I have met some GREAT people on cruises, and meetings. Many of us did the SRT8 experience in Las Vegas, and I guarantee we bonded for life, all different people with a common theme. People I now call friends, in a world were I have way too few.
We learned from each other, and leaned on each other. We ranted, and raved…
How has owning a Dodge Challenger impacted my life?
Friends I will know for the rest of my life. Photos, and stories that only bring smiles.
A selfish gift for many hours worked.
Zero regrets, and a grin you cant take off my face with a chainsaw!
One chapter in my life that was WAY better then even expected, and the start to what I know will be great times with fast cars, and fun people!
I don’t think I could describe with words, what I can show in a couple videos. What you see are smiles, and great times with other owners.
This is a cruise with some Chargers to big bear. We have 7 Challengers that day, and I even forgive the nice police officer for the ticket at the end!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qgZqwqulmLQ
Here’s another great video of time well spent with other Challenger owners, and how it impacted my life! Many forum members from all over the US converged on Las Vegas to share the SRT Experience. We sure had some laughs.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_4QvguuGJ50&feature=channel
See the smiles! Feel the impact!
so i ordered a 09 dodge challenger on august 31 of this year and was told that the new line of 09 dodge challengers don’t hit the lots until 10 to 12 weeks.. which was in november.
the end of november approached and i went back to the dealership and i was told that the challenger releases got pushed back to the end of december due to strikes.. but the only strikes i know thats going on in the automobile industry is the GM strikes.
i see some challengers on the lot in newport/huntington area and i see some on the streets already.
can anyone let me know what is going on?
Challenger Affair
My name is Steve Legel, I live in metropolitan Detroit, and I am a car guy.
When you grow up in Detroit, in the 1960’s and go to high school in the early 70’s, you can’t help but be a car guy. I cruised Telegraph and Woodward before cruising became nostalgic. Half my uncles and both grandfathers worked among the Big 3. As an independent business owner, I have felt the fortunes and demise of the domestic auto industry and its intimate relationship with Michigan’s economy.
I was in the eighth grade in the fall of 1969, and still remember using my paper route money to buy car magazines at the drug store that was on my route. I still remember seeing the Dodge Challenger in a November issue. At the time I couldn’t identify the keen emotions that the pictures stirred in my adolescent mind, but I sure thought it was cool, and started calculating how much paper route money I’d need to save to buy one when I got my driver’s license a few years away. For the next year I kept the Chrysler ads from the Sunday news magazine and pinned them to my bedroom walls. I could see myself as the guy in the ads, with his turtleneck shirt, and pretty lady friend with long blonde hair and white boots. I looked forward to seeing the Sheriff on the Challenger TV commercials. Someday I was going to be that young guy behind the wheel of that Dodge Challenger, “Yo’ in a heap o’ trouble, boy!” Looking back, it was easy to see how Challenger could attract so much attention. In the days of look alike Firebirds and Camaros and multi year same profile Mustangs, Challenger stood out with a refined elegance, and a confident but not cocky stance. Long, low and lean in the front, with its full length body line and distinctive upkick in the rear fender just ahead of the wheels, like a cat on its haunches ready to attack. Orange, only orange was the right color for my car to be. While the remainder of the Mopar color palate was perfectly in keeping with the vibrant colors of the Peter Max looking magazine ads for the Mopar Transit authority, my Scat Pack Challenger would be in orange.
However, my first car was an 9 year old 1965 Plymouth Belvedere I bought from my dad’s uncle for $25.00. Its workhorse 318 had over 97,000 miles in it, and the speedometer had not worked for the past few years.
It was on this car I developed my affection (or affliction) for auto restoration. I applied woodgrain contact paper to the aluminum dash. Another talented friend helped install an FM Converter and wired a single speaker in the rear seat package tray. I painted the meshwork of the grill satin black, leaving only the prominent cross pieces in stainless. How was I to know the 2006 grill on the Magnum and Charger would mimic my creativity 30 years later?
I drove that car through high school (class of ‘74), college and part of Dental School at the University of Detroit. I replaced it in 1978 with a blue over blue 1972 318 Dodge Challenger. Before the Belvedere was hooked on the back of a scrap yard tow, I pulled the starter, wheels and tires, and received $35.00 for the scrap metal I drove on parts from my 65 Belvedere that I used on my 72 Challenger for years to come.
The 1972 Challenger was a simple car with auto trans on the column and carpet over the trans tunnel, between the bucket seats. Stock hubcaps, and plain gas cap. I did some rust repair on it and had it painted. When the power steering and water pump went bad around the same time, I sold it off, and drove a series of reliable, sensible used cars through Dental School and practice start up. In the back of my mind was the desire for a 1970 Challenger with a big block 440 in Vitamin C Orange.
15 years later, in 1995 a small ad in the Detroit News caught my eye. “1970 Dodge Challenger, 440, orange, and a phone number.” On one hand, the brief ad described a car I had wanted for 24 years, on the other, my life was crowded with projects and my list of unfinished tasks was long. I clipped the ad and set it aside. The small clipping haunted me for months.
Eventually I succumbed to my desires and phoned the seller of the Challenger, and at the agreed upon time, we met and he pulled aside the large sliding pole barn doors. Indeed, there sat an orange Challenger. It’s grill was askew, the vinyl top tattered. It sat deep in the dirt floor, the right front tire was flat. Still the Challenger was clearly muscular with its belt line kick as sassy as ever. His description of the car had not been untruthful, it was however optimistic. It sat nearly axle deep in the dirt floor of the pole barn. Rust was everywhere, the upholstery in shreds, the windshield was cracked. There was no way to tell what worked and what did not, every component needed attention. There was however the RB 440 stuffed into the K member and 2 data plates riveted to the inner fender.
I had enjoyed restoring other cars along the way, and had established a full blown working shop with hoist, welders, engine lift and an array of mechanic and bodyman’s tools. Once at my shop and on the hoist, disassembly of the Challenger began. This was long before the popularity of Barrett Jackson and the meteoric rise in value for Mopar “E” bodies, and there were few reproduction parts, and certainly no sheet metal sources. I replaced no full panels. Instead I painstakingly fabricated patch panels and welded and ground them in. The engine was overhauled and bored .030 over. The entire brake system has been replaced. I checked each electric circuit, including the overhead console and Ralleye dash on this RT/SE 440 Magnum. The broken front window removed, the fiberboard headliner board pulled and recovered and reinstalled. In short everything was taken off, fixed, detailed or replaced.
What about this Challenger’s pedigree? The car is an RT/SE 440 magnum, September 69 build with high options including AM 8 Track radio, trunk mount luggage rack, air conditioning, leather interior, ralley dash and overhead console. It has California emissions set up. It had the reflective white side stripe and black vinyl top.
I continue to live near Detroit and continue to be a car guy. In January of 2006, the automotive press took a liking to the Concept Challenger, and so did I. I attended the 2006 North American International Auto show, that year, and had my photo taken in front of the Challenger concept. I began collecting newspaper and magazine articles about the car, and it’s very real heritage. On the internet I began collecting Challenger memorabilia, and have amassed a huge collection of Chrysler promotional items and a vast array of literature and die cast and toy Challengers. I participate on the Internet forum, the Challenger Enthusiast site, and I have traveled to attend launches in Chicago, Philadelphia and New York. I’ve been to the Woodward Dream Cruise Chrysler exhibits, and the Walter P Chrysler Museum Challenger nights. I’ve been to the Mopar Nationals in Hebron Ohio, all to see the Concept, and later the production Challengers.
My local salesman, Ryan Cannon, At Tamaroff Dodge in Southfield, Michigan, kept a lookout for me among his dealer stock. He called me in September of 2008 and arranged for me to buy a 2008 SRT 8 Dodge Challenger, hemi orange.
Owning a new Dodge Challenger has made a wonderful impact on my life. Among the best, have been the friendships on the forum, and the exciting SRT Experience we shared as a group in Las Vegas in November 2008. The other wonders of owning a Challenger are more subtle. You can feel it at a stop light. Without looking, you can feel people in the car next to you looking over at your car. Or the other day, when I stopped to top off the gas tank and the boy with his dad at the pump across from me said, “Hey Mister, I sure like your car.” I squatted down to look him in the eye and told him, “Thanks…I really like it too.” My 2008 Challenger delivers all the confidence I imagined a Challenger would, back when I was a young teen in 1969. The 6.1 HEMI badging and exhaust tone say volumes of the power at hand. One night at a stop light a carful of younger guys in a convertible Mustang challenged me to race. My eye caught the light bar of a police cruiser two cars back. With great flair, I told the malcontents that “it’s not worth my gas to burn your _ _ _”. Just as the light changed, they roared off with squealing tires. A second time I checked my rear view mirror as the police car flashers came to life!
My near 40 year affair with Challenger is far from over. Imagine my dilemma going out to the garage and having to decide which cool car to drive to work! The 1970 Challenger is a fair weather car. My 2008 is pampered, but it is no garage or trailer queen. It is my intent to care for, and maintain this new Challenger and keep it nice for years to come, preventing it from the ravages that had befallen my 1970 model. I will enjoy my Dodge Challenger and enjoy sharing the experiences with others. Maybe, just like for that boy at the gas station, another Challenger affair will begin.
Please see my photos at photobucket
http://s394.photobucket.com/albums/pp23/stevelegel/
I was looking for a new muscle car back in 2005, and was getting pretty excited about the Dodge Charger Daytona. I saw the press releases about the Top Banana and Go Mango Daytona’s and was ready to hit the local dealership. The only thing that kept me hesitant was the 4 door body style. Being a true muscle car gear head, I had an impossible itch for a 2 door coupe. I did not want any of the imports, or the domesticated pony that was currently available. Then I heard the rumor about a 2 door Hemi car coming from Dodge, a concept version of the Challenger! This peaked my interest more than I really can say and therefore my search began.
After years of following all the spy photos, sneak peeks, and the rumor mill gossip, my dream was about to come true! Dodge announced the official ordering date to be one of the first to own one of the new Challengers! Then the reality came into the picture, a limited production run that most dealers would tack on huge mark-ups to the price tag. Will I be able to afford it, or will I suffer the anguish of wishing that I could? Well my persistence paid off, I found a dealer who would sell me the car with no added mark-ups. So the day that the ordering was to commence, I was at the dealership with cash in hand, December 3rd, 2007. With the 2 years of talking about this car to my wife, we were both excited when we went to the dealership and placed our order. Once the order was placed, the wait began.
Since I had some inside friends within the Chrysler corporation, I was leaked information as the production was about to commence. Then Dodge released the web site allowing customers to track their order. My wife and I would log in as much as possible, wanting, needing to know when we were going to see our baby. The excitement was boiling inside, we cleaned out the garage, bought Challenger trinkets, hats, shirts, and more. My wife who has never been a car person was showing more and more excitement as we began to see movement through the tracking system web site. That sealed the deal for me, as we all know that all is good when our better half is happy!
Here is where the story gets interesting, the day we go to the dealer to pick up our new Challenger. We get to the dealership early, and then we are told we need to wait for the owner to arrive. So a couple hours later, the owner strolls into the showroom and shakes our hands while he introduces himself. We then go into his office where we thought we would fill out the paperwork and pick up our keys. Nope, instead, the owner jumps into our faces with profanity, yelling, fist pounding and insulting words only to tell us he refuses to sell us the car. Remember we ordered the car on December 3rd, 2007, well it is now August 8th, 2008. We waited over 8 months for this car to come in, tracking it’s history, setting up its spot in the garage, it was as if it was our new born baby! Now were being told that we cannot have it, and that he might change his mind.
After a week of constant calling, speaking with whoever we could, looking for a replacement, the owner finally decided that we could have the car. We agreed to purchase the car, but now on our terms. Our excitement was lost, I could almost care less about getting it. My wife was sick over the deal and was reluctant to pick up the car, but we did anyway. I had my wife drive the car home following me, and after a little while, I called her on the phone. “How is it?” I asked, “This thing SCOOOOT’S!!!” was her remark, followed by “This is too cool”. I sensed the excitement in her voice, I could picture her eyes wide open, the smile on her face, and then I knew it was the right car! Her passion for the Challenger has grown more and more as has mine. The car literally breads excitement into you every time you open the door. It demands to be driven, and it will take you for a ride. This car has brought back all that the mean old dealer owner had taken away by ten fold.
Dodge, Thank you for bringing back the excitement!
Wow, Its gonna be hard to tell a story like these other guys but here we go. I’m 53 years young and according to my wife of 30 years I’ll never grow up when it comes to muscle cars. I had been watching and reading all the news on the highly anticipated Dodge Challenger.I hunt in South Dakota every year with my brother in law Jim who sells Dodge, Ford for Beadle Chrysler Ford in Bowdle South Dakota. I told him if the car ever makes it to production, I want one. I waited , waited and waited. In 2007 my could feel my urge to go fast again so she offered to take a ride and go shopping for a new car. We wound up buying a fully loaded 2007 Corvette. Then on December 3rd I got the call, “Paul it’s coming , we only get one, Do you want it? ” Yes with everything in Hemi orange. OMG i waited till June of 2008 to get delivery. The car was drop shipped to Vallejo Ca. and in picked it up.
Oh by the way i never told my wife about my new Challenger until we were watching the Barrett Jackson auction and she spotted a Challenger. She said ” Oh I like that, buy one for me” which i replied ” I already did and I’m waiting for it to arrive.
The Challenger has my name all over it. I feel so comfortable, it is so quiet. The sound system is awesome. The power, the ride, the looks. I have never had my picture taken so many times. Its not me , it’s the car. Anyway the car is beautiful, my wife is still with me and the Corvette is for sale, it doesn’t even compare to my Challenger. Thank you and have fun, PG
I am 34 now but back when I turned 16 my first car was a hemi orange 1970 Dodge Challenger with a 340 4 barrel. That car got me through high school and collage. I tried to keep up on maintenance as best as I could given my salary at the time. That car basically taught me how to use every tool that I now know how to use. I learned how to replace tires, run new brake lines, swap in a new distributor, do basic body work, install headers, swap out starters, install and tune carburetors, fix the brakes, and install a new intake manifold. This may sound like a lot but I had the car for over 12 years.
The first date I went on with the woman who is now my wife, we took the Challenger. Too this day she won’t let me forget that I left the lights on while we were in a movie theater and had to get a jump from a stranger to get home. That car has influenced all my vehicle purchases. Today I own four cars, one Chrysler, one Dodge, one Jeep, and one Plymouth. My enthusiasm has also spilled over to other family members. My sister now owns the original Challenger that I used to own. My brother is very proud of his suped-up Neon. My niece now also drives a Neon that we handed down to her.
My wife made me promise to give up the Challenger when I made the decision to purchase a Plymouth Prowler. At the time we didn’t have room for another car. Which is how my sister got a hold of it. Since that time, we have moved and now have a larger garage. When I heard about the new Challenger coming out, I knew I just had to get it. But I also knew that I would have to wait until 2009 when the Prowler was paid off to get my wife to agree. I followed all the news coverage and read every article on the Challenger. I must have driven my wife nuts talking about it all the time.
Then, bamm, my wife threw me a surprise birthday party and out in the driveway was a new hemi orange 2008 Challenger SRT. I couldn’t believe it. I hadn’t even seen one on the streets yet and here it was in my driveway. She even noted that it has automatic headlights so I wouldn’t forget to turn them off again. I felt like a lost family member had come back home. Hopefully I will be able to pass down this Challenger to my kids like my father did for me.
Pics of my story with CRUSH can be found at the link from my name above. Please see all five pages but page 2 and 4 for vehicle delivery pics at the dealership and at my home in sunny AZ.
There are only two times I recall going on bended knee for my wife; the first was to ask for her hand in marriage, and the second was to ask for her permission to order a 2009 Dodge Challenger. The first request was over 20 years ago, the second was back in May of this year. She granted me both, and on November 1st, I enthusiastically took the family along with me to pick up our new Challenger R/T.
For me it started, as it did for so many others, back in the mid 60’s. My first love was the 1965 Mustang, but by 1970 I had switched allegiance and embraced the Cuda, complete with Shaker Hood, as my automotive love of choice. Then I went to see ‘Vanishing Point’ at my High School Friday night movie special; our school council president came over the PA on Friday morning challenging us (yes, the pun was intended) to come out and watch Kowalski race his shining white Challenger R/T from Denver to the coast. I was maybe 15 at the time, and didn’t know the difference between a Kowalski and the ‘Welcome Back Kotter’ character. But I dutifully showed up, and was from that point forward sold on the classic lines of a Dodge Challenger.
Fast forward 35 years, and the vision, redux style, became available this spring. With permission from my spousal unit granted, I poured over the order book options and picked out my version of the dream ride.
Four months later, after endless tracking and ‘Challenger Alerts’, and here we all were on a Saturday morning ready to pick up the ride of a lifetime. While I went off to do up the paper work, I arranged for the family to have access to the Challenger so they could check it out. But first stop for the kids was the bright red white-striped Viper resting in the showroom. The sign said ‘Do Not Touch’, but an accommodative salesman commented to the kids that they looked like very responsible children, and so he offered,
‘Come on over and get on in’.
Then, when I had done up the paper work and come out to the front lot to inspect the Challenger, my daughter announced, with the brightest of smiles,
‘Daddy, I know what I want when I’m old enough to drive – a Viper!’
Can you spell disappointment? But moments later she got her comeuppance.
As we all buckled up in anticipation of the inaugural ride in our cherished Challenger, I fired it up with the push of the button, and as we first absorbed, and then revelled in the distinctive response of the throbbing, throaty Hemi, my son turned to me, smiled broadly, and offered but one single drawn out observation,
‘Sweeeet.’
And so you ask,
‘How has owning a Challenger impacted my life?’
Let me answer that for you. Every morning when I head out to the driveway and fire up the my cherished Challenger, I hear but one sweet sound, and that about sums the whole experience up…
I have always love Mopar products,the Cudas,Roadrunners,Chargers and Challengers and many others….. My love for the Challengers started with the Movie VANISHING POINT. When I was about 6 or 7, I seen the movie on TV (as the Saturday night movie on one of the networks). The Challenger was Kowliski ride and nothing the police had could catch it………
Fast forward to January 2006, I seen in the news paper about the Challenger concept.. Oh boy are they going to build this car?????????
December 2007 got news that orders were being taken.. Went to the Local Dodge boys dealer (John T Sutton)… I ordered my in Silver….. March 2008 got the vin, May D1 status,June 9 it was born… Check with Dealer Bob, June 25 the Chally was here… After a little haggling, got to take it home…… It was a dream come true…. It took me 2 or 3 days of just looking at and I was still could not believe it……
July 2008 road trip to it new home of Fl…. Driving 95 south and 4 East, I was a 1 man moving car show. People would almost run off the road just looking at……. I had car conversations at 65 mph on the interstate about the car….. Police in SC pulled me just to look at it ( They were impressed)…..
Then the fun began, taking it on dates…… This car is chick magnet….. Many women old and young, some know about the car history some don’t but, they love the car’s look and the way car feels (i.e.: Seats and ride)…… Thank God I picked the silver one,after seeing the Hemi orange in real life the silver really show the cars lines and gives the Chally a very very clean look and you really appreciate the car lines. After some thought I call my car the “Gray Ghost”.
The car changed my life because, it does prove that if you wish a pone a star,that a little boys dreams and fantasies do come true. Also it shows the world that an USA manufacturer with its world wide parterns can build a world beating performer with classic looks at a price that is a affordable compared to the competition. When I take it to a drive and people ask me a question about it, I always try to give credit where credit is due….. Thank you Dodge!!!!!!
My Challenger experience began in 1974 when I was a private in the US Army. I had wanted one in 1970 when I first saw them but I was only 14 years old. When I joined the Army in 1974, I was only making $514.00 per month not enough to own a new Challenger. I thought I’d wait a couple years and with some savings I could own one. Well as we all know, 1974 production stopped and I was very disappointed.
My love affair with the Dodge Challenger continued for the next 30 years. Taking pictures when I would see one at a car show, then I started collecting 1:18 scale Diecast collectible cars. Mostly Mopar muscle cars and 200 of them are the 1970/71 Challenger. They all are displayed on the walls of my home office in clear plexi-glass cases so all who visit my home can enjoy them.
My mission to own a new Challenger rekindled when I first saw the concept around Mar 2006. It was love at first sight. I told the wife I had to have one, no matter what.
Owning “CRUSH”, that’s what I named my Challenger, has been a dream come true from the day I ordered it, 25 May 2008 to the day it arrived at the dealership, 25 Jun 2008 to the day it arrived at my home in a closed truck on 7 July 2008. It was mid afternoon so everyone was home from work. All the kids were out playing and when the truck arrived everyone came to what was going on. They thought I was moving. It took the driver about 10 minutes to ready the truck and get CRUSH off. I was standing there like a proud Father waiting for his child to be born. When he backed the car out of the truck into the beautiful Arizona sun, the Hemi Orange Pearl sparkled like gold in the light of the afternoon sun. I heard comments like, that is best looking car I have ever seen, Wow what a machine and one neighbor a retired sailor screamed “now that’s a got damn car”.
From that day to this the car draws people young and old, rich and poor, of all ethnic backgrounds all with same reaction. It is the best looking car they have ever seen.
A simple drive to local Fry’s or Wal-Mart is now an adventure where I have to spend 10 to 20 minutes every time I go just talking to people who gather around the car like it were the big orange magnet.
I’ve read where several owners at numerous forums indicated they have experienced electrical/mechanical problems with their new Challenger. I’ll say only this, CRUSH is #0904 of 6400 and it couldn’t be more perfect and I could not be a happier or prouder Mopar owner. The Dodge Boys did it right and I thank them for making this old Soldiers 30 plus year old dream come true.