today's cars: Dodge Concepts

Showing posts with label Dodge Concepts. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

1964 Dodge Hemi Charger Concept Car Hits the Auction Block, Again

You are looking at the first Dodge ever to use the Charger nameplate, the 1964 Dodge Hemi Charger Concept Car. Developed in late 1963 on Polara underpinnings, it was used by Chrysler to showcase its newest engine at the time, the now iconic 426-cubic inch (7.0-liter) Hemi V8.

Owned by several collectors over its 47-year existence, this rare piece of automotive heritage is going to be auctioned off at this year’s Automobiles of Arizona event held at Arizona Biltmore Resort & Spa, on January 20. RM Auctions hasn’t released an official estimate yet, but last time it changed hands in 2007, it fetched US $1.1 million.

Currently found on the late John M. O’Quinn’s estate, the 1964 concept car has been completely restored by multiple award-winner Fran Roxas and it has one of the original 15 race Hemi engines, rated at 600+ horsepower.

According to the spec sheet, the first Charger also comes with a 3-speed automatic transmission, independent torsion bar front and rear semi-elliptic leaf spring suspension, 4.56:1 “Sure Grip” rear axle and four-wheel hydraulic drum brakes.

Looking at the photos it’s clear that the car is in pristine condition – it has been kept in climate-controlled storage – and I, for one, would definitely prefer to buy this gem over a modern vehicle costing the same amount of money.

By Csaba Daradics

Source / Photos: RM Auctions

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Monday, October 25, 2010

SEMA Preshow: 2011 RedLine Dodge Charger Loves Carbon Fiber

Not to be outdone by Ford and General Motors, the Chrysler Group is readying a parade of specially tuned vehicles for this year's edition of the SEMA Show, which takes place in Las Vegas from November 2 to 5. One of the firm's star attractions will be the RedLine Dodge Charger based on the redesigned 2011 model year version of the saloon.

"We let the designers of the production car and their friends at Mopar rip," said Ralph Gilles, CEO of Dodge Car Brand and Senior Vice President of Product Design. "I wanted them to show us what they would do with this vehicle if it were their own dream car."

Hiding under the RedLine Charger's unique aluminum hood is a 5.7-liter HEMI V8 enhanced with a variety of Mopar parts including new headers, an exhaust system and a cold-air intake. Dodge said these upgrades provide horsepower and torque gains, but did not release any numbers.

The Charger concept also gets a retuned suspension that brings the car one inch [25 mm] closer to the ground, a Mopar strut tower brace, and 22-inch alloy wheels wrapped around in chunky tires size 265/35/22 at the front, and 295/30/22 at the rear.

On the outside, the designers dipped the Charger into carbon fiber as the material is found on most parts of the new bodykit, the rooftop, hood, exterior mirrors and the new side scoops that are said to recall the 1970 Dodge Charger R/T.

We don't have any images of the cabin, but Dodge said the sported-up sedan gets a red-and-black interior with Mopar Katzkin performance seats trimmed in Radar Red Nappa leather with bright red stitching, all-aluminum driver and console bezels and a unique SRT steering wheel featuring prototype paddle shift controls.

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Wednesday, February 25, 2009

Deja Vu: Chrysler Brings Detroit Show EV Concepts to Geneva

To the surprise of no one, cash-strapped Chrysler LLC won't be performing any global premieres at next week's Geneva Motor Show. Instead, the American automaker will showcase its electric vehicle future (that is, if it makes it through the economic crisis) with the European premieres of the Chrysler 200C EV concept vehicle and Dodge Circuit EV prototype, both of which made their debut at January's Detroit Auto Show.

The stylishly-penned Chrysler 200C EV mid-size sedan concept comes equipped the firm's ENVI electric-drive system that combines a small gasoline engine and integrated electric generator. According to Chrysler, the rear-wheel drive 200C has 64 kilometers (40 miles) of all-electric range, and a total-driving range of 644-kilometer (400-mile).

The Lotus Elise-based Dodge Circuit EV is a sport proposition that boasts a range of 241 to 322 kilometers (150 to 200 miles) with zero gasoline consumption and zero tailpipe emissions.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Detroit Show: Dodge Circuit EV -aka- All Electric Lotus Europa

Cash-strapped Chrysler LLC didn't have a lot of money to spend on concept cars at this year's Detroit Show so Dodge was left with the re-introduction of the Lotus Elise based, all-electric Circuit EV sports coupe. As many of may remember, Chrysler had presented the Dodge EV along with two other all-electric prototypes last September. Aside from a few subtle cosmetic changes that concern the front-grille and bumper, the new alloy wheels and the quirky orange paint job, there aren't any substantial differences between the Circuit EV and the EV.

The Circuit EV is propelled by a completely electric ENVI drivetrain, that utilizes just three powertrain components that include a 200 kW (268HP) electric motor to drive the wheels, an advanced lithium-ion battery system to power the electric-drive motor, and a controller that manages energy flow.

Dodge claims that the zero-emissions Circuit EV sprints from zero to 60mph (96 km/h) in less than 5 seconds while it hits the quarter-mile in 13 seconds and achieves a top-speed of more than 120mph (196 km/h).

The Dodge Circuit EV has a driving range of around 150 to 200 miles between charges. The batteries can be charged simply by plugging into a standard 110-volt household outlet. The recharge time can be cut in half by using a typical 220-volt household appliance power outlet.

Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Video: Dodge Challenger SRT10 Concept with 8.4-liter V10 Viper Engine

If there's one thing that we're fully convinced after seeing this five-and-half minute-long video is that the Dodge Challenger SRT10 SEMA Show Concept can smoke those rear-end Pirelli P-Zero 275/40R20 tires like there's no tomorrow... Hit the jump and turn up the volume to get an addictive dose of the Challenger SRT10's Viper-derived, 8.4-liter V10 engine that produces a more than adequate 600 horsepower and 560 lb. ft. of torque.

Dodge Unveils Four Customized Ram Trucks at SEMA

While the Challenger is sure to get most of the attention at SEMA, nevertheless Dodge also brought along four tricked-out Ram pickup trucks. Starting off with the Ram R/T pictured above, the concept is based on the 2009 Ram Sport with a 380HP 5.7-liter HEMI V8 and it's supposedly inspired from the re-born Challenger. Mopar Underground painted the R/T truck in a classic B5 Blue and added a bodykit which consists of sill and box pieces, finished up with a chin spoiler, dual-snorkel aluminum hood and carbon-fiber accent stripes.

The concept rides on Mopar 22-inch Alcoas alloys wrapped in 285/45R22s in front and 305/40R22s in the rear. Finally, the interior features Katzkin leather seats with body-color stitching to match the instrument panel and steering wheel.

The Ram TRXtreme pictured on the right plays up the off-road capabilities of the 2009 Ram TRX package. The Mopar Underground design team added 4.5-inches of extra ground clearance using a Mopar lift kit which allowed the use of Mopar polished and forged 20-inch wheels wrapped in chunky BFG 37X12.50's tires. The paint is a bright yellow and mineral grey two-tone incorporating a mud splash theme. Interior features include a Mopar navigation system, DVD headrests and Mopar leather seats by Katzkin.

The third iteration of Dodge's pickup truck is the Ram Sportsman which features a washed-out military-green paint job that company describes as a "blowing-leaves paint scheme". The vehicle gets added capability with a Mopar 2-inch lift kit supported by Mopar polished and 20-inch forged alloy wheels with 33-inch tires. Inside, the Sportsman boasts a headrest DVD system, perforated leather Mopar seats by Katzkin and an ambient lighting system.

Last but not least is the Ram Mopar Street Package which is based on the Ram Sport. The exterior features a Blackberry paint and a Mopar body kit consisting of sill extensions and a chin spoiler while a slight body-drop/leveling kit, 22-inch polished Alcoa forged wheels and an all aluminum dual-snorkel hood add to the appearance. The classy theme is continued in the interior with ambient lighting and suede / leather seats trimmed with premium piping and stitching.

Tuesday, November 4, 2008

SEMA: Dodge Challenger R/T Blacktop Concept

Mopar Underground's design team deserves plenty of kudos for creating one of the nicest modded Challengers we've seen. The concept began life as a factory 2009 Dodge Challenger R/T equipped with a 5.7-liter HEMI V8 and 6-speed manual transmission. The crew at Mopar Underground gave the Challenger R/T a black-on-black racing stripe paint scheme and added custom-made spoilers along with altering the front clip to create added "brow" over the grill. To finish off the look, the Challenger R/T rides on massive 22-inch Dodge Viper wheels from Factory Reproductions wrapped in Dunlop tires measuring 265/35 R22 front and 305/30 R22 rear.

Inside, the interior of the blacked-out Challenger R/T is enhanced with Katzkin leather seating finished in bright red as well as with an upgraded Mopar Kicker audio system for premium sound.

To better the Challenger's driving characteristics the team added a Mopar coil-over suspension and strut tower brace while underhood upgrades include a cat back dual-exhaust and a cold air intake that allows the 5.7-liter HEMI V8 to breathe easier.