Back in 2005, Chrysler made a bold move. Into a world of downsized, front-wheel drive sedans, it unleashed a trio of full-size, rear-wheel drive models that you could even get with a V8. The trio of Chrysler 300, Dodge Charger and Dodge Magnum – a model later swapped out for the Challenger – were big, beautiful, brash and brilliant, and they helped change the company’s fortunes.
Both the 300 and my tester, the Charger, are redesigned for 2011. Purists screamed at the idea of a four-door Charger when the model first came out – the original, introduced for 1966, had only two – but it went on to become a best-seller for Dodge. This newest one builds on that, but is better.
The two previous 2.7-litre and 3.5-litre V6 engines are swapped for the new 3.6 V6 Pentastar engine (named for the company’s historic five-pointed logo) with the least-expensive SE model starting at $29,995. My R/T contained the carried-over 5.7-litre V8 with all-wheel drive; its starting price of $39,995 is the top in the line-up. My tester was further loaded with $3,375 in options, including an upgraded stereo, rain-sensing wipers, back-up camera, heated steering wheel and navigation system.
The 5.7-litre Hemi – the name refers to the shape of its combustion chambers – remains a solid, bulletproof engine that’s a joy to drive. It makes 370 horsepower and 395 lb.-ft. of torque, and can shut half its cylinders off under light load for improved fuel economy. The transmission is still a five-speed automatic for 2011; the company skips straight ahead to eight cogs for 2012. The all-wheel drive system uses an active transfer case that can send up to 38 per cent of torque to the front wheels. In an industry exclusive, it can disconnect the front wheels when all-wheel isn’t required, such as on straight highway cruising, using sensors that electronically shut off part of the transfer case. The company claims up to a five per cent fuel increase when this happens. It reconnects immediately if it senses slippage, and also if the windshield wipers come on or the outside temperature is cold enough that the road could be icy. It’s impossible to feel the switchover, but you can dial it up to show on the driver information screen if you like. In a very nice touch, the engineers have dropped the ride height on the all-wheel version, so it no longer looks like it’s competing with sister brand Jeep for ground clearance. The AWD version is officially rated at 14.4 L/100 km (20 mpg) in the city and 8.5 (33) on the highway; in combined driving, I averaged 9.9 (29).
The all-wheel model has gained 73 kilos over its 2010 predecessor, but thanks to a revamped front and rear suspension, it actually feels lighter and lithe when you’re tossing it around. It may sound strange to say you’re “tossing” something that weighs 2,018 kilograms, but that’s pretty much how it feels. You wouldn’t be embarrassed to take this out alongside many of the competitive sports sedans. The steering is smooth, it corners predictably, and there’s good, confident bite to the brake pedal. It’s also a big, comfortable highway cruiser in the tradition of American road-trip sedans.
It’s marginally shorter than the outgoing model, and its thinner pillars and extra glass space alleviate some of the visibility issues that were a common complaint for the first-generation Charger. The aggressive grille and sloped headlights give it a strikingly badass face that I just love, but I’m less enamoured with the deep coves in the front doors. The taillamps twinkle with a ring of LED lights; you can’t mistake this for anything else when you come up behind it at night. The aggressive trunk-mounted spoiler balances the back end visually, but negates some of that additional new greenhouse by filling up much of the rearview mirror.
The most noticeable improvement is inside, where the company has leapfrogged not just over the boring interiors it used to present, but some of its competitors as well. The instrument cluster is now housed in a recessed aluminum bezel that incorporates the vents and my tester’s optional navigation system, with the automatic dual-zone climate controls tucked in below. My R/T’s comfortable “performance” seats were clad in tan leather that contrasted nicely with the black interior, and included attractively stitched matching door panels.
The optional navigation system is a Garmin unit, and it’s possibly the simplest factory-installed system I’ve used. In addition to its map-reading abilities, its touch-screen is also the portal into the satellite radio, auxiliary music player files and telephone pairing, and can be used as a secondary climate system to the buttons below. I didn’t like that it was the only way to access the heated seats and optional heated steering wheel controls, though. I prefer the hot-chair controls to be buttons that can quickly be turned on or off while driving, without the need to page through to the correct computerized screen. Speaking of hot and cold, that was also the case with the cupholder, which could be set to warm or chill an inserted beverage if desired.
The bottom line is that while $43,470 isn’t cheap for a vehicle, my test Charger felt like it was worth the money. Each time I bring home a test vehicle, I ask my husband – a dyed-in-the-wool gearhead – to guess how much it costs. He’s eerily accurate, and nine and a half times out of ten, his answer is within about $1,000. When asked on the Charger, he guessed $52,000. It really feels and is equipped much more expensively than it is.
In his surprisingly moving commercial, aired during the Super Bowl, rap star Eminem had to drive the Motor City’s streets in a front-wheel drive, V6-powered Chrysler 200. That’s because the ad’s tag line was “Imported from Detroit.” The more logical rear-wheel, V8-powered choice is imported from Brampton, Ontario, where the three siblings of Charger, 300 and Challenger are built. When the company hit its darkest hours a few years ago, I really didn’t expect it to bounce back. Driving this new and improved Charger, it looks like the future is certainly a lot brighter.
