2015 Dodge Challenger Review: A Modern Muscle Car

Continuing the success of the Dodge Challenger, the company decided to give it a minor facelift for the 2015 year. However, underneath all that nip/tuck, thankfully, the essence of this muscle car remains the same. Let's take a closer look.

Design

While all three cars in this segment are unique, it is a tie between the new Mustang and the Challenger. In my opinion, the Mustang was an in-your-face machine with its mean front grille, but the new look has made it desirable again. The Camaro appears to be a lovechild of American muscle and Japanese tuner aesthetics.

The Challenger scores high for capturing the looks of the original model perfectly and blends that with a modern era. It is long, has big chrome rims, and can be tedious to park, thus retaining the muscle marque perfectly. However, the tail lights could have been better as they make the car look somewhat domestic. Other than that, there are no complaints as it looks just right. Perhaps that’s the reason why, since 2008, the look hasn’t changed significantly. They will need to think long and hard to top this design.

Interior

As an American muscle car, expect a plastic-heavy interior; however, Dodge has significantly improved it with the 2015 refresh. Among the trio of muscle cars, this is by far the most pleasing car to sit in. The interior is essentially taken from the 2014 Dodge Charger and tailored to suit the coupe style.

Owners of the last Challenger will be pleasantly surprised to find a robust interior since the previous one appeared cheap from every angle. This model features a proper touchscreen infotainment system with solid buttons and knobs, providing a premium feel. Now the car feels complete.

The visibility, however, remains a challenge. The car is significantly wider than your average city commuter, which doesn't help if you're inexperienced with such vehicles. Similarly, the C-pillars are a hindrance, making reversing out of parking tricky due to limited visibility. The car's length also necessitates parking sensors, but thankfully, the reverse camera is a revelation.

In terms of space, the Challenger is spacious for a two-door coupe, comfortably fitting four adults. As for boot space, it offers plenty, ensuring practicality, especially since this is not an SRT model.

The Challenger boasts a simple ensemble of features for a sub-200K car, covering all the modern necessities such as:

• Airbags
• Parking sensors
• Heated steering wheel
• Bluetooth connectivity
• Touchscreen display
• Radio, CD/AUX
• Nifty features like 0-100 sprint recording and G-force monitor
• Tyre pressure monitor

Overall, I am satisfied as this car is designed for driving, and they did not want gadgets to distract the driver.

Drive

The pièce de résistance of any muscle car is its engine. Customers buy such cars primarily for their big engines, and thankfully, the 5.7L V8 producing 375 BHP is just about right. While the Mustang is more powerful, this engine is still commendable. However, it is time for Dodge to refresh their engines as they feel outdated.

This car doesn't spin its wheels with the slightest pressing of the gas pedal like the previous model, showcasing improvement. It wants to play but remains manageable. Whenever I pressed the accelerator while coming out of a turn, the car would try to skid, and then the traction control would engage to stabilize it after a brief tail wiggle.

During the test run, the car accelerated from 0-100 in 6.2 seconds, which is standard for a V8 muscle car. The fuel economy is also reasonable, consuming 14.4 l/100 km – a fair figure considering it carries a 5.7L naturally aspirated engine. Additionally, I applaud Dodge for replacing the slow 5-speed automatic transmission with a much smoother 8-speed gearbox. However, they could improve the manual gear shifting, as there is a noticeable lag between shifts.

This car handles like a muscle car – it is big and heavy, which doesn't bode well in corners. However, the brakes are efficient and provide a solid feel. During the test run, the car decelerated from 100-0 in 2.9 seconds, which is acceptable. The suspension has also improved from the previous model, as I didn’t feel the urge to scream over bumps and potholes. This iteration effectively differentiates between comfort and sport suspension. Yay!

Verdict

To summarize, if you have the old Challenger and have been driving it for over three years, the 2015 model is a decent upgrade. However, if you have never driven one at all, then definitely give this modern Challenger a shot.