Dodge Challenger - Long Road Trip Reliability

[ChallengerIRL]

Hi,

I am very much considering driving back from Abu Dhabi to Ireland in May. I have my eye on a Dodge Challenger, more than the likely the V6 but not ruling out the V8 and again I am easy between the manual and auto boxes. Basically the most reliable will be the preference as I don't want a break down along the almost 8000km drive over 2 weeks (ish) especially on the Iran or Turkey sections.

As far it goes for year model, I will be maxing out at 2015 but willing to go older if they are easier to maintain on such a journey or just less hassle / more reliable.

I am also not set on a Challenger however I would prefer something not directly available at home and a bit ridiculous.

Many thanks in advance.

[ChallengerIRL]

zubair said:

Hi i have done this long haul couple of times make sure you have new tires and a good spare and bottle jack and a spare belt and bulbs engine oil and transmission and brake fluid etc most american cars are very reliable you dont need to worry about Auto or Manual transmission .Good luck with the trip it will be Epic

All of the above are already on the list to take with me, It was more any potential major issues that people experienced with the cars and would be able to advise on....but in this case, no news is good news! Thank you for taking the time to reply and the luck will surely be put to good use.

[ChallengerIRL]

SRT Hellcat said:

be prepared as zubair says. Back in 2015 quite a lot of guys stateside made countrywide trips collecting their Hellcats from long distance dealers. I do not ever remember one breaking down. Enjoy and be safe

This makes sense that a cross country US trip would be comparable to this journey and these cars should be able to do that easily. It relieves a pit of pressure in that regard. Thank You.

[ChallengerIRL]

LuS1fer said:

How much are 2015 Charger Hellcats? A bit more under the radar and less in your face, despite being the most powerful sedan in the world.

2015 Hellcat - €50k
2015 V6 Challenger - €11-15k
2015 V8 Challenger - €14-20k

I am thinking of importing the car to Ireland, driving for a bit then selling it on or driving it back to UAE in September.

Being 100% honest, it is more of the asethic of the car I prefer and for a first time trip like this for me, a V6 300bhp is more than enough.

If all goes well, I would love to do this trip at the end of of each working season, getting more adventurous as the time goes by.

[ChallengerIRL]

Camaro said:

Wasn't there an issue with the 5.7 Hemi eating their timing chains or something? Not sure if that is still relevant to the 2015 models, but it was something to do with 5.7 V8 model.

I will investigate this further but again, I don't think the Hemi will be the first option but if the right car comes up it might just be. Thanks.

[ChallengerIRL]

LuS1fer said:

I believe they can suffer sill corrosion because of foam injection...read it somewhere.

I will look into this too but I can't imagine it would be a big problem for a desert car. Thanks.

[ChallengerIRL]

Matt Harper said:

A couple of additional points to consider:
The timing chain issue on 5.7L Eagle engine was not widespread, far more frequent in cold-climate cars and not much of an issue since 2015.
These are heavy (4000lbs+) cars the 3.5L Pentastar equipped cars are quite under-powered. OK for 2 weeks vacation in the US, but not a great car to travel transcontinental and they depreciate in a quite scary way. Not sure what used values are like in Ireland - in the US they are piss-poor.
These cars don't come with a spare wheel OEM - not even a space-saver donut. The trunk is big enough to accommodate a full size wheel/tire.
OEM all-season tires are awful.
6.1 and 6.4L Apache engine needs good quality premium gas but is otherwise bullet-proof. If the car originates in middle east it should have a cooler thermostat, but that is worth checking.

It certainly looks like, after import duties are paid that I can at least break even on the car but I would not expect a quick sale. Thanks for the info engine types, spare wheel and thermo, I will look into all these more.

[ChallengerIRL]

jonah35 said:

I’ll go against the grain....

Just jump in it and drive it home.

Doubt you will need any prep or anything at all.

It’s a new Ish car and should just take it in it’s stride

I would hope so but side of the road in Iran scratching my head and thinking "I should of posted that thread on Pistonheads" is not the look I am going for.

[ChallengerIRL]

mfp4073 said:

Yes indeed, that was my intention. As with all information on here you can take it into consideration.......or not.

Edited by mfp4073 on Saturday 30th December 22:18

Indeed, 50% of the reason of posting this was to figure out any potential re-sale issues and of course things to look out for before I buy.

[ChallengerIRL]

powerstroke said:

I would guess the engine choice would make the most difference come resale time
best would be a V8 auto in a nice bright colour ... as for reliability I would do a full service and
buy a spare belt full size spare wheel , tyre foam oil and coolant bulb kit decent jack and a few hand tools , good luck it sounds like a great adventure...

I am swaying more towards the V8 auto now. Thanks, fingers crossed I can and will pull the trigger on this. So, far, I am not being scared away from it.

[ChallengerIRL]

Total loss said:

Just out of interest, what would be the route home? How do you get past Syria & Iraq? I'm guessing the rest of the journey would be quite straight forward.

It currently looking like this....




Ferry from Sharjah, UAE to Bandar Abbas, Iran which is where the map route starts from above. The ferry is about 12hrs and crosses the Persian Gulf.

I originally looked at going through Saudi, South Iraq, Syria and then into Turkey but I was advised in another thread about the ferry to Iran. I have heard Iran is really cool and the people are great so I think that route is going to be the one.

• Edit - If in the next few months the political climate changes to a point that it would be extremely stupid to do this journey in its current form then I plan on shipping the car to Italy, Greece or Croatia and starting from there but taking in a lot more of Europe on the way home.

Edited by ChallengerIRL on Monday 1st January 20:58

Edited by ChallengerIRL on Monday 1st January 21:00

[ChallengerIRL]

rufmeister said:

09 Challenger SRT8 owner here, I’d drive it anywhere, it feels really strong and a nice drive. Did the South of France to Milton Keynes in ours, was effortless.

Is the car comfortable? Some days I will be planning on 1200km split between 2 drivers and I am really hoping for comfortable seats. I have yet to get the chance to sit in a challenger but I my thinking is its a big American tank so it bound to at least be comfy to cruise in.

[ChallengerIRL]

rufmeister said:

Very comfortable. The seats are lovely and wide and supportive too. I suffer from a herniated disc, so comfort is important.

I’d chooose an auto for that journey if I had to, mines manual and getting stuck in traffic is hard work going through the gears.

Any help needed, feel free to ask.

Any pictures of the seats certainly look comfortable but good to get your feed back on that. I am sure as time gets closer I may PM you to ask a few more questions but for now I am just trying to gather as much general info as possible. In regards transmission I was always more auto for this type of journey and car. I've never associated an American car with a manual but I was/am open to be told I am making mistake......yet to hear that though.