Dodge Challenger?

[Legacywr]

Thinking of changing my Mustang Mach 1 for a Dark Horse.

But I’ve always had a soft spot for the Challenger.

I’ve not owned or driven a LHD before…

What are they like to live with?

Is insurance a problem?

Thoughts…. http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2025122087...

[TrevorHill]

More of a lifestyle choice

[Legacywr]

TrevorHill said:

More of a lifestyle choice

It would be the only thrill I’d be getting regularly, unfortunately…

[TrevorHill]

LHD wouldn’t be an issue for me. Unless you use a lot of car parks or toll booths then I don’t see a problem.
It’s a lot of car, it will turn heads and get a lot of attention. Arrange a test drive and see what you think.

[Windy Miller]

You may have seen on here some commentary on insurance for LHD requiring experience of it. Good idea to check first, though it doesn't seem to be a common issue. My insurance was obtained no problem for a Hellcat Redeye Jailbreak.

Things that can be a minor annoyance to live with, in no particular order...

• Radios don't do DAB. So it's FM or rig something via your phone.
• Radios seem to be a bit buggy, with lock ups and freezing. Seems to be associated with having a USB stick when starting up.
• Active exhausts sometimes throw the odd fault code. I also had issues with the installation on mine draining the battery till I rewired it.
• For such a lump of a car, it's really a 2 seater, unless front and rear seat occupants are dwarfs. Being 6'4" maybe I am the problem....
• C pillar blind spots are massive. Enough to hide a car in. You are basically blind fron the passenger side window right round to the back window. This makes turning left at a T junction something that requires an acquired technique, especially if the junction has swept curves. Stopping on the lines at 45 degrees means you can see nothing coming from your right. So you need to stop square on. Or carry a spotting passenger...
• The 305 section tyres do seem to find all the imperfections on the road surface and create a bit of tramlining.

But all pretty minor in the big picture! The Redeye Jailbreak is definitely a bit of a handful due to the 807 horses, but the 6.4 should be a bit more manageable.

[DodgyGeezer]

Legacywr said:

Thinking of changing my Mustang Mach 1 for a Dark Horse.

But I ve always had a soft spot for the Challenger.

I ve not owned or driven a LHD before

What are they like to live with?

Is insurance a problem?

Thoughts . http://www.autotrader.co.uk/car-details/2025122087...

If you're in Essex you can have a poke around mine if you want

[Matt Harper]

I owned a 2019 Wide Scat for 3 years. I'm US based so my fuel consumption experience must factor US gallons. I drove my 392 fairly hard and also bracket raced it from time to time. In the 3 years and 22k miles I owned it, it delivered 14mpg.

I did some fairly light mods to mine, mainly to beef-up the drive-line, because sticky tires and OEM half-shafts are not a good combo. These are big, heavy cars (392 is 4200lbs) so they also eat tires. I went through two sets of street tires (OEM 305 Pirelli PZero and a set of 315 Bridgestone Potenzas). In the US, these cost around $600 per corner (my Nitto drag radials were way cheaper than that).

I also installed an AfI Momentum sealed air-box, connected to the driver-side outboard light (air-catcher), because these iron motors run hot - and an oil separator/catch can between the crankcase vent and the intake. Emission controls route crankcase emissions back into the combustion cycle, via the intake, which causes oil pooling, grubby intake valves and smokey cold starts - catch can eliminates this issue.

Because of the way I drove it, I dropped the engine oil every 5k miles and after every drag strip visit. Oil starvation to hydraulic roller lifters is a known issue on both 345ci Eagle and 392ci Apache engines, causing the notorious "hemi-tick', which is a sign of serious trouble, so a very structured oil routine is essential - and steer clear of any Mopar that ticks at idle.

As others have mentioned, rear legroom is for small kids only, but they are very comfy and roomy up front and they have an enormous boot space.

I never had any issues with the active exhaust on mine - in fact I had no issues at all with the car, other than a cracked windshield, in all the time I owned it.

I think that the Widebody Scat Pack is the "Goldilocks" Challenger. The regular bodied Scat - I had one of those too, is ridiculously under-tired. The 345 R/T is underpowered and the Hellcat motor is a little bit too much for the rest of the car (just my opinion, of course).

[Stu R]

LHD is largely fine in the UK. I keep a couple of LHD cars there and just did a few thousand miles of road tripping recently, no issues nor with RHD in LHD countries.

Challengers I've had a few of, all in the US; RT (don't), SRT, Hellcat, Scat Pack Widebody and finally a Hellcat Redeye which I sold in 2022.

I like them, great cruisers, easily the most comfortable muscle car, and remarkably good steering for being big old boats. First hellcat was probably my favorite of the bunch, redeye was a prima donna because I took it way too far with tuning and drag radials. The Scat 392 is excellent too, naff all to be gained tuning them if that's a consideration. Biggest complaint across all of them was always squeaks and rattles in the interior, which is par for the course with Dodge / FCA / Stelantis in my experience.

MPG I don't bother tracking, I prefer not knowing.

[hemidom]

Bit late in seeing this thread but I've got a non-widebody Scat Pack and am in Horsham if you wanted to have a look around one. LHD not been an issue for me but visibility isn't great as noted, I picked one up that had the blind spot system which does help. Not a huge issue though!

[Legacywr]

Update, I’ve bought a Mustang Darkhorse.

I really like the Challenger, it wasn’t the prospective issues that put me, more the fact that it would be extremely hard to move on if I didn’t want to stick with it for whatever reason.

Plus it’s extremely difficult to put a market value on them, if a car’s up for £60k and it’s not selling, logic tells me that’s not where the market is.

That Swinger I linked to earlier in the thread has been reduced by £2k this week, like that’ll make a difference

[DodgyGeezer]

Legacywr said:

Update, I ve bought a Mustang Darkhorse.

I really like the Challenger, it wasn t the prospective issues that put me, more the fact that it would be extremely hard to move on if I didn t want to stick with it for whatever reason.

Plus it s extremely difficult to put a market value on them, if a car s up for £60k and it s not selling, logic tells me that s not where the market is.

That Swinger I linked to earlier in the thread has been reduced by £2k this week, like that ll make a difference

Excellent stuff, great that V8 rumble in your life

[Legacywr]

Stu R said:

LHD is largely fine in the UK. I keep a couple of LHD cars there and just did a few thousand miles of road tripping recently, no issues nor with RHD in LHD countries.

Challengers I've had a few of, all in the US; RT (don't), SRT, Hellcat, Scat Pack Widebody and finally a Hellcat Redeye which I sold in 2022.

I like them, great cruisers, easily the most comfortable muscle car, and remarkably good steering for being big old boats. First hellcat was probably my favorite of the bunch, redeye was a prima donna because I took it way too far with tuning and drag radials. The Scat 392 is excellent too, naff all to be gained tuning them if that's a consideration. Biggest complaint across all of them was always squeaks and rattles in the interior, which is par for the course with Dodge / FCA / Stelantis in my experience.

MPG I don't bother tracking, I prefer not knowing.

I still look at these in the classifieds…

I want to ask what’s wrong with the RT?

[DodgyGeezer]

Legacywr said:

Stu R said:

LHD is largely fine in the UK. I keep a couple of LHD cars there and just did a few thousand miles of road tripping recently, no issues nor with RHD in LHD countries.

Challengers I've had a few of, all in the US; RT (don't), SRT, Hellcat, Scat Pack Widebody and finally a Hellcat Redeye which I sold in 2022.

I like them, great cruisers, easily the most comfortable muscle car, and remarkably good steering for being big old boats. First hellcat was probably my favorite of the bunch, redeye was a prima donna because I took it way too far with tuning and drag radials. The Scat 392 is excellent too, naff all to be gained tuning them if that's a consideration. Biggest complaint across all of them was always squeaks and rattles in the interior, which is par for the course with Dodge / FCA / Stelantis in my experience.

MPG I don't bother tracking, I prefer not knowing.

I still look at these in the classifieds

I want to ask what s wrong with the RT?

for most normal driving there is nothing wrong with the RT, the 5.7 gets up and goes reasonably well and (with the A8) can be very good on petrol. It must be noted that it is really a big old boat (which is one of the reasons I love 'em). There is a noticeable difference in performance once you step up to the 6.4 both in performance and in mpgs (well worth it though )

[UK_Scat_Pack]

Legacywr said:

I still look at these in the classifieds

I want to ask what s wrong with the RT?

It s worth noting that R/T s come in 2 different versions: the regular R/T 5.7 and the 6.4 Scat Pack , also badged at the front as an R/T but with the 392 badges on the wings.

I hired some 5.7 R/T s in the US and didn t find them particular fast - all noise and no go!
When I bought one I opted for the Scat Pack which is a whole different kettle of finish. The sweet spot in the Challenger line up. Much more useable power than the 6.2 Hellcat (and better sounding!).
Couple that with the Widebody model with the better brakes and adjustable suspension, gearing etc, wider track and the improved handling, and you ve got what is widely regarded as the best all round Challenger model (according to most of the US motoring publications). Certainly set up the best for UK roads.

Moderator edit: no advertising

Edited by UK_Scat_Pack on Monday 29th June 00:23

[UK_Scat_Pack]

I also have a thread about it in readers cars on here.

[Legacywr]

What I did buy



I do still keep looking, though.

[Stu R]

Legacywr said:

I still look at these in the classifieds

I want to ask what s wrong with the RT?

Sorry chap, I missed this.

There's nothing 'wrong' with them per se, but you get all the fuel consumption and noise and noticeably lower performance. It was fine, still plenty grunt, but driving the others was about all it took to convince me to move mine on.

I bought this the same day I landed in the US (in 2013, excuse the potato quality). Easily the best colour of the ones I've had. The rest were fairly boring.

[SRT Hellcat]

Legacywr said:

What I did buy



I do still keep looking, though.

Looks very nice, I hope you have been keeping well. Have you still got the 3.6 turbo ?

[Legacywr]

SRT Hellcat said:

Legacywr said:

What I did buy



I do still keep looking, though.

Looks very nice, I hope you have been keeping well. Have you still got the 3.6 turbo ?

You still on the same number?

And, no, sold it, and I believe it is now stolen and missing...

[SRT Hellcat]

Legacywr said:

SRT Hellcat said:

Legacywr said:

What I did buy



I do still keep looking, though.

Looks very nice, I hope you have been keeping well. Have you still got the 3.6 turbo ?

You still on the same number?

And, no, sold it, and I believe it is now stolen and missing...

I am mate, give me a call when you have a moment.
That is a shame it has gone missing