Driving purists may kick and scream when they hear what changes the Dodge Challenger may have in store, but these changes will keep this muscle car in competition with the rest of the market. While this car is a lot of fun to drive the challenge is being able to control the car, especially when the Hellcat engine is under the hood. This is a car that gives you the drive that feels a lot like it came straight from the early 1970s with all that power being pushed to the rear wheels which have a tendency to slip and slide.
Dodge has come up with a solution to this problem by offering an AWD version of the Challenger that will arrive later this year. This Challenger will be called the GT AWD, but it won’t have the Hellcat engine under the hood. The problem is finding the right AWD system to handle the massive 707 horsepower of the Hellcat engine. In fact, even though Dodge offers the Charger with AWD on most engines, it doesn’t for the Hellcat, which could pose a serious problem had FCA not made some serious strides in this arena.
In fact, we know FCA has an AWD system capable of handling the Hellcat power because they will be offering the Grand Cherokee with the Hellcat engine and 4WD capabilities in the near future. Since they do have this in their arsenal, a wider bodied Challenger Hellcat with AWD, dubbed the Challenger ADR will be offered at some point in 2017. This will give us a car that’s ready to give us the driving control we want and make it easier for this car to compete on the sports car stage with the likes of the Camaro and Mustang.
Another change that’s coming down the line soon is a complete redesign of the Challenger and Charger that’s expected for 2018. One of the largest criticisms of this pair is the fact that they’re heavy cars and hard to handle. Because of this the next version of the pair will use the Alfa Romeo Giulia platform which will shave up to 500 pounds off these cars. That could be the difference maker in 2018 and put this pair ahead of other, currently lighter models that don’t have as much power, but can sprint past the Dodge twins because of the lower weight.
Finally, the Challenger hasn’t been offered with the convertible top as of yet, but we expect to see the Barracuda show itself in 2021 or sooner. This makes for a car that will finally be able to offer you as much on the market as any other sports car in this class. Let the purists pound their fists and scream in frustration, the Challenger is about to become a modern day muscle car that can truly offer you more than just an engine with impressive power and great looks, soon you’ll be able to enjoy AWD, a lighter weight and a convertible top on one of our favorite sports cars.
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