2015 Dodge Challenger First Look

The marching orders given the designers tasked with creating the 2015 Dodge Challenger must have sounded a bit like a paraphrased Hippocratic oath: First, do no harm to the 1970-Challenger-ness of it! So for inspiration, they looked to…the 1971 Challenger.

Actually, the changes made for its seventh year of this third-generation car are considerably greater than what changed for the second year of Dodge's original ponycar, but they center around the two main items: the change to two grille surrounds instead of one, and to two separate tail lamps instead of one cross-car lamp. Look closer, though, and you'll notice that the grille mesh consists of a bunch of little twin-grille motifs. The quad round headlamps (projectors) now get halo rings (powered by eight LEDs), and the opening in which the lamps and grille reside is squeezed an inch tighter from top to bottom, enhancing the lower/wider aesthetic the car already had going for it. The "eyes" now look slittier, more sinister (oh, and aerodynamics improve a scant 5 to 7 percent based on version).

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A new hood was tooled for all cars not equipped with the Shaker option. It brings the twin air inlets forward a bit. They're still functional, though they're not delivering any ram-air to the engine, just general cooling air. That is the only visible metal part that is retooled (there is some side-impact reinforcement as well); the rest of the styling changes are made to the soft-tooled pieces, including the front and rear fascias and the rocker panels, which now include little spats that contribute to aerodynamic efficiency and help prevent stone damage. There are nine wheel designs from which to choose, including several with matte finishes. The only other change to the side-view graphics is an optional matte black fuel filler.

In back, the now separated lamps are ringed with LEDs -- 144 total in a twin-racetrack motif -- and set in a piano-black panel. The "diffuser" graphic rises higher, compressing the design graphics again for that low, wide look. The exhaust tips are mounted to the fascia for V-6 cars, and to the tail pipes on V-8s, to facilitate aftermarket retrofit exhaust kits (some of which Mopar would be happy to sell you). Retro colors are back too, including Sublime, B5 Blue, and TorRed. Top Scat Pack models get a more aggressive spoiler and front splitter that reduce lift equally front and rear.

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The interior is more dramatically upgraded, taking advantage of Chrysler/Fiat's latest electrical architecture to provide a standard 7-inch thin-film transistor screen in the instrument panel, nestling between the tach and speedometer (both of which feature retro "radiant" graphics like the original (and vaguely reminiscent of the Mustang's). Chief interior designer Ryan Nagode claims there are "hundreds of screens" that can be displayed here, including a whole host of performance measuring and monitoring options from the now standard Performance Pages (they were previously available only on SRT models). In the center, the screen choices include 5-inch or 8-inch with full Uconnect capability. That architecture also brings a standard rear-view camera and optional adaptive cruise, forward collision alert, blind-spot detection.

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The main instrument binnacle now extends over toward the center, as with the original, and trapezoidal motifs from the original center floor console and door panels are echoed in the new design. Another fun "Easter egg:" Open the side-hinged console bin, and you'll find an octagonal DB logo aping an original wheel hub nut, with the inscription: "Dodge Brothers, Designed in Detroit" -- paying homage to the Dodge Centennial.

Base models get a choice of houndstooth or plain fabric, while uplevel cars get Nappa leather in all black (with sepia stitching), black with off-white inserts, or black with red inserts. Real aluminum trim on the dash and console comes in two finishes, brushed or "Hectic Mesh" with perforations that appear to define six-pointed stars like the original Dodge Brothers logo. The shifters are also new, with a ball capping the manual (instead of the pistol-grip), and an automatic shifter that (praise heaven above!) while still electronic, now moves through clearly delineated detents for P-R-N-D. Paddle shifting is standard on all automatic Challengers, and when in manual mode, the gearbox will not upshift at the redline, and it will match revs when downshifting.

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The aforementioned automatic is now the TorqueFlite 8, backing all engines. In the 305-hp V-6, the extra leverage from the wider gear-ratio spread is expected to shave a half-second off the five-speed auto's 0-60 time (figure 5.9 seconds). Similar gains can probably be expected from the 372-hp 5.7-liter and the 485-hp "392" (6.4L) Hemis (low 5s and low 4s respectively). Other mechanical upgrades include replacement of the rubber isolators with constant-velocity joints in the drive shaft and axle shafts (fewer parasitic losses, greater durability), a new four-point mount rear suspension cradle, an aluminum differential with four ratios (3.90:1 all manuals; 2.62:1, 3.07:1, and 3.09:1 for 3.6L, 5.7L, and 6.4L autos), and a switch to electric power steering, which offers three levels of assist (sport, normal, comfort). These can be selected in a system like Audi's Drive Select, along with engine/transmission calibration (sport, normal), traction control (sport, normal), and shift paddles (on, off). A Track Pack button on the console makes it one-touch easy to switch between modes.

Customers say they value the Challenger as the grand-tourer of the modern pony class, and the 2015 enhancements certainly don't seem to have done any harm on that front. Stay tuned for more on the don't-call-it-Hellcat Viper-powerful SRT variant that will set aside those GT aspirations and open up a can of Z/28-ZL1-whoopass.Head to page 2 of this 2015Dodge ChallengerFirst Look for 50+ additional photos.