With roots in the DaimlerChrysler era, the Charger, like the
Chevy, has global genes. (It’s imported, too, from an assembly plant in
Ontario, Canada.) But as a proper Mopar, the SRT8 is simply bigger and badder
than the Chevy ever will be.
But as a proper
Mopar, the SRT8 is simply bigger and badder than the Chevy ever will be
The Charger’s extra-strength Hemi rumbles to life with
authority and always feels ready to overwhelm the rear Goodyears with its 470
pound-feet of torque. Our best runs happened without the car’s launch-control
software and required a careful throttle foot to optimize wheelspin. Get it
right and 60 mph passes in 4.2 seconds, three ticks quicker than in the SS. A
similar gap exists at the quarter-mile mark (12.6 seconds to 12.9), with the
Charger reaching 114 mph to the Chevy’s 111. The momentum continues to a
drag-limited 178 mph, long after the SS’s 160-mph governor kicks in.
While the SRT8’s 0.90 g of grip on the skidpad can’t match
the Chevrolet’s amazing 0.95-g effort, it did need one less foot to stop from
70 mph (in a short 152 feet). It almost tied the SS’s speed in our slalom test
and returned the same 17-mpg average during our 700-mile road trip. Recognizing
the importance of such figures to owners, Dodge includes a nifty performance
meter in the Charger’s cluster, as well as cup-holder-like recesses in the
underhood plastic for lengthy driveway debates about pushrods and engine-block
paint.
At 4371 pounds,
the Dodge is 440 pounds heavier than the Chevy and feels every ounce of it
The big Dodge looks the bruiser, too, particularly with our
392’s black accents and darkened 20-inch wheels. A numbered badge on the
console lends some exclusivity, even though the black roof and rollers are
available on all SRT-fettled Chargers. Combined with the beat of a
large-displacement V-8, the SRT8 channels the old-timey vibe of the Pentastar’s
Nixon-era classics.
But with 19 points separating it and the SS, along with
higher base and as-tested prices, the Charger would need to actually transport
us back to Woodward Avenue in its heyday to be considered the winner. At 4371
pounds, the Dodge is 440 pounds heavier than the Chevy and feels every ounce of
it. Its dashboard is as wide as a Ram pickup’s, and the pinched windows and
high cowl amplify the sense of corpulence.
The SRT’s
loud-and-proud character is true to muscle-car tradition, and that’s sufficient
for many in the Mopar choir
An overly stiff suspension carries the bulk. Body roll is
tolerable and the adjustable dampers give tight control with auto, sport, and
track settings, but all the choice are excessively firm. The stiff legs
unsettle the chassis over sections of road that didn’t faze the Chevrolet.
Along with hydraulically assisted steering that’s somehow less communicative
than the SS’s electric setup, the Charger is a blunt weapon that feels large
and detached in rough use.
Despite the intuitive touch screen, heated-and-cooled cup
holders, and adaptive cruise control, the Dodge’s inferiority creeps into its
cabin like a haze of burnt rubber. Some of us preferred a few of the
interior-trim finishes and liked the comfort and support of the thickly
bolstered SRT seats, but overall material quality and refinement fall short of
the overachieving Chevy’s.
The SRT’s loud-and-proud character is true to muscle-car
tradition, and that’s sufficient for many in the Mopar choir. But the SS is
simply the better car in every other measure.
