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Being born in 1981, I missed the definitive and quintessential muscle car era. Today my work in the automotive industry covers a wide range of vehicles, from family haulers and trucks to small hatchbacks and sports cars. I’m lucky enough that during a certain portion of the year, I get to teach consumers about the new versions of the Dodge Challenger and Charger.
And man are those cars it on a stick . . .
Modern Day Muscle
The Challenger/Charger of today is as contemporary as any other vehicle. Both have top safety ratings, full on-board stability control systems, navigation, Bluetooth capability, and even heated and air conditioned seats. The Hemi engines under the hood have the latest fuel-saving tech and the TorqueFlite transmission has highly optimized ratios. These cars, like all others on the market, benefit from advancements in engineering and design. But when you accelerate with a 6.4 Hemi under the hood . . . it’s like being in a time machine.
At that moment, I am no different than the 75 million baby boomers in the 1960s who wanted the rawness of an advanced V8. While I understand from a business sense the popularity and demand of small SUVs, my Detroit roots want to see defiant, powerful, and even outrageous cars have their place: Challenger, Charger, Camaro, Mustang and the like.
Throwback Performance
Top Muscle: The Rarest Cars from America’s Fastest Decade chronicles the golden days o...