Models
Dodge didn’t expect the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and the 2015 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat to be as popular as they are. In fact, the demand was so high, Dodge just couldn’t keep up. All 2015 models have been spoken for, and all remaining orders that cannot be fulfilled have been canceled so production of 2016 models can begin. Not all of the cancellations are the fault of Dodge or Chrysler as a company, though – a few sketchy dealers unethically took orders after they hit their order cap for the muscle cars.
The good news is that, as of Monday, August 17, 2015, you can now reserve a 2016 Charger or Challenger Hellcat – with a deposit, of course. Dodge also thought ahead and changed up its ordering system as well. This time around, dealerships will not be able to order above their order cap. Moreover, to help accommodate such a high demand for both vehicles, Dodge has expanded its Hellcat testing capabilities — it will now be able to produce more the twice the number of Hellcat models than it did last year
With the success of the Hellcat models, Dodge is planning on bringing the SRT and Hellcat badges to other models in its lineup. Dodge hasn’t speculated on what models yet, but I suspect we’ll see the Hellcat come to the Durango, 2017 Dodge Ram and maybe even the Barracuda — if Dodge and SRT change their minds about axing the fish car. Despite the demand from customers to create a Viper Hellcat, Dodge has implied that it does not intend to do so. The Viper is a “perfect” track car, according to Dodge, and throwing the Hellcat engine into it would disrupt the 50/50 weight ratio that makes the Viper what it is. Of course, if you’re looking to purchase a Viper anytime soon, the 2016 Dodge Viper ACR and its extreme performance should more than satisfy you.
Continue reading for the full story.
The Dodge Viper saga began in 1991, when Chrysler introduced the semi-supercar commonly known as the modern-day Cobra. The production model was based on a concept car showcased in 1989 and carried an 8.0-liter, V-10 engine under its long hood. Sold as a roadster at first, the Viper gained a coupe version in 1996, when the second-gen car was unveiled. Numerous upgrades were implemented until 2010, including a displacement increase to 8.3 liters and an output update to more than 500 horsepower, when the Viper was discontinued after four generations only to return as the SRT Viper in 2013. Heading into 2015, the SRT and Dodge brands have again become one, allowing the Dodge Viper SRT to return.
When the Viper returned under the SRT brand, it arrived with a redesigned body and a slightly larger engine. Enlarged to displace 8.4 liters, the V-10 powerplant delivered 640 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque, a figure that remained unchanged until 2014. Going into 2015, the iconic Viper remains pretty much the same, save for the name change, a five-pony power bump, and various, but minor interior and exterior upgrades.
Updated 07/28/2014: New details on the 2015 Dodge Viper report that the sports car will deliver an additional five horsepower over the 2014 SRT version. The only question is if the 645 horsepower will help boost the very poor sales of the sports car. (Road And Track)
Updated 09/08/2014: Dodge announced that the 2015 Viper will go on sale at a price of $84,995 - which represents a reduction of $15k over the previous year.
Click past the jump to read more about the 2015 Dodge Viper SRT.
There are chunks of big news coming from the Chrysler Group today, as the Detroit giants has outlined a five-year plan that includes major changes across all brands. However, the most important piece of information has SRT in the spotlight, with the performance marque scheduled to die as a standalone brand and become part of Dodge.
Naturally, the first question that surfaces is what will happen with the Viper. Well, Chrysler says we don’t need to worry about it, as its halo sports car will live on under Dodge, with a refresh planned for 2015. So basically the Viper is regaining the badge it was launched with back in 1992. A bit ironic, eh?
As far as the SRT-prepped Challenger muscle car and Charger muscle sedan are concerned, they will be reintegrated into the Dodge lineup as range-topping, performance iterations. And with the new product plan revealed, Dodge has finally confirmed that the two will be redesigned for the 2018 model year.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles also announced that former SRT CEO Ralph Gilles will continue to serve as Senior Vice President of Product Design and President and CEO of Motorsports within Dodge.
But that’s not all that’s bound to change at Auburn Hills. The Dart, for instance, will be revised in 2016, followed by the launch of the Dart SRT. Surprisingly enough, the latter will sport a turbocharged engine under the hood and all-wheel drive. The same year will also see the introduction of a brand-new Dodge Journey with a beefed-up SRT version to arrive the next year. What’s more, all-new B-segment sedan and hatchback models, of which we know nothing about, will be unveiled in 2018.
Lastly, Dodge is getting ready to unload two vehicles from its lineup. As expected, the Avenger will get the axed by the end of this year. However, we were surprised to find out that the company will stop producing the Grand Caravan as well. The vehicle that started the whole minivan craze 30 years ago will be phased out in 2016, when the next-generation Chrysler Town and Country rolls off the assembly line.
Click past the jump to read more about the SRT Viper.
Oh there are some really, really savvy spy photographers out and about these days and this time they caught the mother of all shots. The Barracuda has been an on-and-off venture for Chrysler for some time now, but we now have proof — via these exclusive spy shots — that it will debut this year at the New York International Auto Show in April. What’s more, it’s nothing like any of us imagined it would be...
We so happen to have a little "birdie" that works in the printing department at a large monthly automotive publication, and he noticed that the "boss man" was making sure only a select few saw the inside of this magazine. When he happened across a stray copy, he was as shocked as we are to see that the Barracuda will return not as a muscle car, but as a rebadged Dodge Dart.... sigh.... Our dreams are now crushed.
He managed to whip out his cell and snap off a few quick pictures, and this was the clearest one he could get, as he worried his boss could come around the corner at any second. We cleaned it up a bit by changing it to black and white, as the colors were a little messy from the poor lighting.
According to our source, the Barracuda features the same Fiat Compact platform as the Dart and Chrysler 200, but with some extra performance goodies. On top of the images, he scanned the page for as much information as he could absorb, and managed to catch that it will feature turbocharged four-cylinder with somewhere in the 250-horsepower and 260-pound-feet range, and that it will debut in New York this year. Unfortunately, that is all the information he could grab in the short amount of time he had alone with the stray mag.
Though the image is blurry, he described it as "a Dodge Dart with SRT aero mods and rims, and a dark grille." He couldn’t tell if it was an SRT model or a Plymouth, but the chances of Chrysler bringing back Plymouth for just this one model are slim to none.
So there you have it folks; Fiat has struck again by releasing another Chrysler icon from the muscle car years as a front-driven sedan, a la the Dodge Dart. We’ll go bury our heads in the sand until the NYIAS is over...
Update 4/1/2014: In case you haven’t figured it out just yet, this is a figment of our crazy imaginations here at the TopSpeed offices. Our rendering artist extraordinaire put a modified Dodge Dart on the pages of some random magazine, blurred the text a little and pasted in a Barracuda emblem and even a swimming barracuda in the background for the added "cheesy" effect. Thanks for playing along, we’ll be here all night; make sure to tip you waiters and waitresses...
There is no denying the pony car wars are raging hotter than ever. With the Chevy Camaro boasting the ZL1 and new Z/28, the all-new 2015 Ford Mustang coming to market soon, and Dodge presumably working on an outrageous halo engine for the Challenger, the segment is on fire. Well, things are getting a little less “presumable” for Dodge these days.
According to Allpar, one of their contributors shot a photo of a T-shirt worn by SRT staff members while at SRT’s annual Spring Festival of LXs. That shirt sported the menacing image you see above – and what is likely the logo for the new 6.2-liter supercharged HEMI engine.
Rumors suggest the Hellcat HEMI will crank out some 650 horsepower and 640 pound-feet of torque, besting even the mighty SRT Viper’s 640 horses and 600 pound-feet. The Hellcat’s numbers make sense, considering the standard output of the current, naturally aspirated, 6.4-liter HEMI in the Challenger and both the TorqueFlite and Tremec six-speed manual transmissions are capable of handling even more power.
Though Allpar says SRT’s CEO Ralph Gilles told their contributor the Challenger would debut in just under three months, most suspect the new Hellcat-powered Challenger will appear at the New York Auto Show happening April 16th and 17th. It’s appearance will also likely usher in the next generation of Challenger, as we’ve caught them testing around the streets of Detroit.
Click past the jump to read more about the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat.
Any self-titled crazed car nut such as myself will tell you, there’s more to cars than just rubber and metal. No, it’s far deeper than that. It involves a certain level of passion and fanaticism not appreciated by the casual onlooker. No, some folks just have gasoline running through their veins and 5W-30 oil in their heads. It’s a disease, really.
Chrysler’s SRT division seems to have hit the nail on the head with its latest commercial. It’s all about the brand being more than a brand; it’s about being a legend, making a statement, and having a certain attitude. It embodies the essence of being a car junkie and stirs the souls of gear heads everywhere.
Besides a well-made commercial featuring some of our favorite vehicles, the commercial indicates Chrysler’s intentions of heavily promoting SRT as its own brand or division. It all started with the Viper’s rebirth in 2013. Moving from under the Dodge branch, the Viper seemingly created its own niche label. Conveniently, the Viper immediately had similarly-badged SRT friends ready to join the party. Although they still sport their own badging, the group of SRT vehicles includes the Dodge Charger and Challenger, the Chrysler 300, and the famous Jeep Grand Cherokee – all with monstrous V-8s thundering underhood.
With SRT’s growth and increasing recognition, it wouldn’t be unlikely for the division to grow its lineup. Perhaps a slew of SRT4 models would be appropriate — ya know, sporting turbos with crazy boost numbers, manual transmissions and rear-wheel-drive. We already know SRT’s CEO Ralph Gilles has been hearing the SRT fan base screaming for an answer to the Subaru BRZ/Scion FR-S twins. Perhaps commercials like this are our first indication Gilles has something up his gasoline-soaked sleeve.
Note: Dodge Demon Concept Pictured Here.
Chrysler’s SRT is an undeniably hot division within the Pentastar, but it seems the loyal fans are wanting more. Ralph Gilles, the brand’s CEO, let loose of some interesting information during a recent interview with AutoGuide. Gilles says SRT is receiving tremendous feedback about the brand’s need to build a competitor to the Subaru BRZ/Scion FR-S twins.
“I’m happy to see that a lot of our fans want that,” Gilles says. “They ask us about that a lot.” Whether or not SRT will move forward with such plans is still unknown — and Ralph wasn’t saying much past acknowledging the hole in the vehicle lineup and the roaring customer demand.
Chrysler’s last major stab at building a small, affordable sport car was in 2007 with the Demon concept (pictured above). It was powered by a 2.4-liter in-line-four that made around 170 horsepower. The car never made production due partially to the “Great Recession” and Chrysler’s need for public assistance. However, times have changed and the possibilities for a new SRT-exclusive product are greater than ever.
Even if SRT wasn’t able to materialize a small, front-engine, rear-drive car of its own, it still has a few options with modifying existing cars in Chrysler’s portfolio; namely the Dodge Dart. Rumors have swirled about the Dart getting its own SRT4 makeover since its launch in 2012, with some suggesting it will sport as much as 300 horsepower.
“The community goes deep,” Gilles says about owners of past SRT4 models. “[They] still care about what we’re up to.” We suspect the SRT team may have something fun up their high-performance sleeves.
Click past the jump to read more about Subaru BRZ.
Everyone expects that once the all-new SRT Viper arrives on the market that more powerful versions will follow. SRT CEO, Ralph Gilles, already hinted that a Viper ACR version could arrive in the near future, but this announcement is not a huge surprise.
Unfortunately, we have no idea on what the ACR variant will bring to the already powerful SRT Viper, but we can take a few pointers from the previous ACR model. It’s assumed that SRT will offer a more aggressive exterior look, bigger brakes, adjustable dampers and a set of low-weight wheels with ultra-high-performance tires.
The most impressive update will be made under the hood. The engine will remain the same 8.4-liter all-aluminum V-10 engine found in the base SRT Viper, but tricked to deliver much more than the standard Viper. Considering that the previous Viper ACR offered an extra 100 horsepower over the standard version, you shouldn’t be too surprised to see the ACR model with output close to 750 horsepower.
The previous-generation Dodge Viper ACR impressed us with great results like a Nurburgring lap time of 7:12, so we expect the same from the upcoming SRT Viper ACR. We are pretty sure SRT engineers will not disappoint us.
Expect the new SRT Viper ACR to arrive sometime in 2014.
Image Note: The above image is a TopSpeed rendering, not am official image of the Viper ACR
Once the SRT Viper was launched onto the market, everyone knew that more powerful version are going to follow. SRT CEO, Ralph Gilles, already hinted that a Viper ACR version could arrive in the near future, and now new rumors suggest the model could debut sometime in 2014.
If you were wondering why the model is taking so long to arrive on the market, the answer is simpler than you have probably imagined. It’s not the cost, the engine or any other technical part, rather it’s SRT is having problems with the tires. It looks like SRT has signed an agreement to Pirelli to develop something other than the P-Zero Corsa the Viper already wears.
Along with the new tires, the new Viper ACR will also receive bigger brakes, adjustable dampers, a new aerodynamic package and lots of upgrades made to lower the car’s ride. The most impressive update, however, will be made under the hood, where the 8.4-liter all-aluminum V-10 engine will be tricked to deliver much more than in the standard version. We’ll find out in a few months exactly how much more power Fiat will allow SRT to squeeze out of the Viper ACR.
The newest member in the Chrysler family is SRT (Street and Racing Technology), which was unveiled at the same time as the new generation Viper that bnow bears its name. According to Chrysler, this new extension of their brand will be responsible for the development of the most powerful performance models available.
A lot goes behind setting up an arm such as SRT. Each department has a specific use in the grand scheme of the automotive world. Today, SRT has unveiled a video that explains the essence of this newly created brand and solidifies its purpose for the company: "The SRT family of five street and racing technology vehicles represents the pinnacle of Chrysler performance. Five different ways to get your revs up - all bred from the minds of those passionate about making cars better, faster and stronger."
SRT has already wowed us with their new generationViper, but we have to wonder what other scintillating models they have in store. The next piece of this SRT puzzle comes in the form of the Barracuda, but will it be able to stand up to its German competitors? Only time will tell, but they are sure off to a great start!
The details on the upcoming SRT Barracuda are still very scarce and we aren’t expecting to hear more until sometime in late 2013, at the earliest. There are, of course, the occasional leaks and the inadvertent video evidence of its existence, but nothing too concrete. We all have our assumptions, given the nature of the SRT line, that the SRT Barracuda will be a hulking V-8 powered machine set to rip the fender wells from future 4-cylinder Mustangs and Camaros.
Well, let’s not get ahead of ourselves here. The SRT lineup is a growing brand in itself, much like the Ram lineup. Plus, with Chrysler now being in bed with Fiat, we all know that Chrysler likely won’t build any other cars that don’t have a Fiat relative somewhere. Not to mention that Fiat is in need of a newer rear-wheel-drive platform. This brings us to our point that the SRT `Cuda very well may be a full-line vehicle. By that, we mean one that has a 4-cylinder, V-6 and multiple V-8 options.
According to reports, the SRT Barracuda should come in at a full eight inches shorter than the Challenger it will replace, giving it an optimal size for Fiat to use. With this shorter body, the `Cuda is also set to drop a few hundred pounds, which will make it more even with the Mustang and Camaro that the Challenger is simply monstrous compared to.
Now add in the fact that the EU standards and new CAFÉ regulations are going to force SRT to up its mpg and lower its emissions and you can see exactly why the Barracuda may have more than just a bulky V-8 engine powering it. We will likely see a boosted 4- or 6-cylinder engine gracing the bottom end of the SRT Barracuda range with your typical array of 5.7- and 6.4-liters playing at the top. Without that, all that SRT has to offer up to the CAFÉ standards is the gas-guzzling SRT Viper, and that simply won’t do. Nor will it work for the EU standards that Fiat has to live up to.
We’ll keep an ear out for any more information that we can dig up.
Chrysler’s Viper conversion from Dodge to the new SRT name wasn’t going to venture down the new path on its own. Rumors have been floating around that the company was also reviving the "Barracuda" name as a replacement for the current Dodge Challenger, but Automotive News is adding a side note to those rumors.
Turns out, the Challenger will be replaced with the Barracuda, but not entirely. The SRT Barracuda will take the place of the Challenger SRT8, but the standard Challenger will maintain its branding. This coincides with SRT’s goal of only producing high-performance sports cars; the 305 HP Challenger doesn’t quite fit the bill.
The future Dodge Challenger will be entering its new generation in 2015, so we’ll see the SRT Barracuda around the same time. The new Barracuda will be built on an entirely new platform and will be powered by a new 6.2-liter supercharged V-8 that will debut in 2014.
Chrysler kicked off its new sub-brand, SRT, with the unveiling of the new generation Viper and the cars will just keep coming from here on out. The sub-brand’s second model will be the new generation Barracuda that will join the line-up for the 2015 model year and, according to MotorTrend, SRT is already working on a third model for their line-up.
Details on the third model are a bit unclear at the moment, but it could be either a successor to the Dodge Ram SRT10 or a small, two-seat sports car. Obviously, our hopes lie in a new sports car. Chrysler has already teased us with a Dodge Demon Concept designed as a competitor for the Mazda MX-5 Miata, and now that Mazda and Fiat have teamed up to build a new RWD sports roadster, we are hoping that Chrysler will consider offering a production version of the Demon.
Any thoughts on what this new model could be? Hit us up in the comments section below!
Now that the world has officially been introduced to the new generation SRT Viper, the most logical next step would be to imagine the roadster version of the sports car. While an official debut is still at least one year away, here’s our first rendering of the drop top Viper.
The roadster version will keep the same exterior design language with aerodynamically functional details integrated into the high-tech carbon fiber and aluminum skin. The main, and more than likely only, difference will be the fabric roof (seen in recent spy shots) that replaces the fixed roof.
Under the hood, the Viper Roadster will maintain the 8.4-liter all-aluminum, V-10 overhead-valve engine found in the coupe model with an output of 640 HP and 600 lb-ft of torque. This engine will be mated to an improved Tremec TR6060 six-speed manual transmission.
Expect to see the future Viper Roadster launched sometime at the beginning of 2013, most likely at a major show. Do we smell a Detroit reveal?