CAMARO already striking fear @ the Dodge Dealers...

[SS4EVER]

I drove past two Dodge dealerships over the weekend and noticed the plethora of Challengers sitting on the lots. Seriously... they each had like 15 or more Challengers at each lot. Both these dealerships are prob within a 15 mile radius of each other as well. From what I could see there was actually a pretty good blend of SE's and R/T's there in every color, with maybe 2 or 3 SRT-8's...

I know they said that most of the initial 6,400 08 SRT-8's that were produced were purchased but there are definitely some still out there...

Which had me wondering.... I actually went out Sat evening with my girlfriend and one of her best friends and her boyfriend, who actually works @ one of the Dodge dealers and I asked him what was going one with all the Challengers at the dealer.

He works in the service department but he said that Dodge made way too many after seeing the huge initial demand for the SRT-8 Challengers, and assumed that the SE's & R/T's would sell just as well if not better due to being less expensive (reminds me of what GM did with the SSR & GTO, after they killed off the Camaro & Firebird actually for).

He also stated that due to Chrysler financial pulling out of the leasing business, their dealership's total monthly sales have almost nearly declined by 50% in the last month, (not to mention August being one of the worst months this year for the big three) also being a contributing factor.

But the last thing he said was what put a smile on my face that night... He said that they are afraid that when the Camaro comes out next year that it will also really hurt the Challenger's sales...

He did actually say that the Challengers are going for sticker or below sticker now as well...

Although I'm hoping the same thing doesn't happen with the Camaro, and hopefully GM actually looks at their pasts mistakes and doesn't make the Camaro another GTO...

February can't come soon enough...

[kevin2323]

Iagree with you on some points but let me correct you.

All the challengers for 08 were not purchased by people which was the first speculation. But mainly by dealers looking to gauge the crap out of people. All those challengers you see, even though they are SEs and RTs are probably marked up about 5-6k. You are right. Why do you think the challenger came out before the camaro? To sell as many as possible before chevy came out with there car. Once the camaro comes out hopefully dodge will have an answer with new powertrains in 2010. The 09s just got in. They arent going to fly with dealer markup. Wait a few months and they will be selling for invoice. The 08s are still out there because dealers claim it to be limited and still havent jumped off the wagon. Plus dodge is only making 30k challengers a year. So it won't hurt them that bad if they sit on the lots for a couple of months till the hype dies down.

[The_Blur]

It's good that the Challenger pricing is finally under control. I'm sure Dodge wasn't happy to see that they were being marked up to ridiculous numbers. I hope the Challenger does very well. Chrysler is a great company that is definitely improving of late, and its heritage is one I would not like to see leave the car industry.

[Congoman775]

Originally Posted by kevin2323

Iagree with you on some points but let me correct you.

All the challengers for 08 were not purchased by people which was the first speculation. But mainly by dealers looking to gauge the crap out of people. All those challengers you see, even though they are SEs and RTs are probably marked up about 5-6k. You are right. Why do you think the challenger came out before the camaro? To sell as many as possible before chevy came out with there car. Once the camaro comes out hopefully dodge will have an answer with new powertrains in 2010. The 09s just got in. They arent going to fly with dealer markup. Wait a few months and they will be selling for invoice. The 08s are still out there because dealers claim it to be limited and still havent jumped off the wagon. Plus dodge is only making 30k challengers a year. So it won't hurt them that bad if they sit on the lots for a couple of months till the hype dies down.

point is , they arent selling, and its all downhill from here due to the Camaro coming up and cleaning up.

[Mr. Wyndham]

Originally Posted by Congoman775

point is , they arent selling, and its all downhill from here due to the Camaro coming up and cleaning up.

And then the Mustang in a year...or two...

I sure hope the upgrade/refresh...whatever...for the Challenger next year is impressive enough to steal back some of the thunder that will be taken from it.

When you think about it...all this "Camaro is late" talk...The Challenger is early, and that might have been a disadvantage to it, rather than a head-start.

[kevin2323]

Originally Posted by Dragoneye

And then the Mustang in a year...or two...

I sure hope the upgrade/refresh...whatever...for the Challenger next year is impressive enough to steal back some of the thunder that will be taken from it.

When you think about it...all this "Camaro is late" talk...The Challenger is early, and that might have been a disadvantage to it, rather than a head-start.

true but i dunno why this post says that a bunch of SEs and RTs are sitting on the lots. They just got there, that is my point. Give it some time we got till feb.

[Confuzed]

Believe me even the Camaro will be a hot selling the first year but that it'll be who's the best between the trio..
Every one of these cars' fans will claim thier car is the best. So wait and let the days tell.

[JiXeR'z DoDgE/FoRd KiLLeR]

I'm a fan of all them but the Challenger is too heavy imo. Though it has alot of power behind it. THe stang is the lightest of them all but the slowest. The CaMaRo comes in 300 pounds lighter than the dodge, and slightly VeRy slightly less power. So thats why it's my pick out of the three cars. Three months ago my car was a Roush 427R mustang not anymore. And I wouldn't dare buy a Charger LoL! Anyway back to the discussion I would much rather have a CaMaRo than a ChaLLeNgEr. Two guys were in my job talking about they had new ChaLLeNgEr SRT8z and I showed them picks of the CaMaRo and the stats of the LS3 and they both were like "Aww man I should've waited!" Little things like that are proof IMO that the CaMaRo will sell better.

[nester7929]

Originally Posted by JiXeR'z DoDgE/FoRd KiLLeR

I'm a fan of all them but the Challenger is too heavy imo. Though it has alot of power behind it. THe stang is the lightest of them all but the slowest.

Depends on what level. Base V8 is GT vs. R/T, in which the GT wins without effort, same with GT500 vs. SRT-8.

[kevin2323]

Originally Posted by nester7929

Depends on what level. Base V8 is GT vs. R/T, in which the GT wins without effort, same with GT500 vs. SRT-8.

blah blah blah...

[JiXeR'z DoDgE/FoRd KiLLeR]

Originally Posted by kevin2323

blah blah blah...

I'm not a challenger lover but I think the r/t will murder a GT sorry. And if you super/turbo the srt8 the right way it'll murder the GT-500.

[kevin2323]

Originally Posted by JiXeR'z DoDgE/FoRd KiLLeR

I'm not a challenger lover but I think the r/t will murder a GT sorry. And if you super/turbo the srt8 the right way it'll murder the GT-500.

The new RT with the 6 speed and 392 gears. Stock vs stock you bet it would

[STEVE LS3 SS RS]

I also noticed Challengers sitting in front of dealers near the road 2 days ago. They are very nice looking. I just would never own a Dodge, even though they are much better.

[KatarHol]

Originally Posted by kevin2323

Once the camaro comes out hopefully dodge will have an answer with new powertrains in 2010.

Maybe for the SRT8 and SE,but i believe you are stuck with the R/T Hemi.2009 IS the upgrade.....and a GT would so murder that car. It's not even worth arguing. The R/T is out of its league.