2006 Dodge Charger First Drive

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Introduction

DANVILLE, Va. - Step back in time to 1966. Remember the rumble? The pony-car era was in full gallop when Chrysler unleashed its first Charger, constructed on the chassis of a ho-hum sedan called the Coronet. Although the Charger's wedge shape became a styling imprint of the times, its sheetmetal wasn't its true zenith - its performance was. This two-door fastback, with stylish hidden headlamps and full-width taillights, came with three V8 engine choices, including a 426-cubic-inch Hemi, which propelled its two tons of muscle from the start line to 60 mph in less than five seconds. Priced at $3,128, with 203.6-inches of length and room, this Dodge coupe was an affordable everyday driver that combined performance and style like few others.

However, it was Lee Roy Yarborough, who posted an average speed of 163.9 mph qualifying for the 1967 Daytona Festival of Speed, who truly made the Charger a revered nameplate. And, a decade later, an orange '69 R/T model with a Confederate flag on the roof starred on a popular TV show and further stamped the Charger into the gray matter of the American public.

Today, Confederate flags are out. Muscle cars, however, are in and the Charger is back! This time with four doors and Dodge's aggressive styling. Whiners among the Charger faithful ought to take notice: Muscle cars aren't defined by the number of doors they have - but by the amount of grunt under the hood. With the great Hemi engine in the R/T, a limited-production Daytona, and an upcoming road-ripper called the SRT-8 on the way, this reborn muscle car of haloed celebrity has landed square on its feet - even though it sits tall on them. In fact, Dodge has transformed its classic coupe of some three decades past into a versatile modern-day sedan, and the 2006 Charger not only turns heads, but won a place in our hearts during a day-long drive to evaluate it.

Morphed from the Chrysler 300 platform, the 2006 Dodge Charger is more sleek and curvy, but, more importantly, muscle-car DNA has been successfully transferred into its genetic code creating a lineup with more convenience, thanks to those four doors, and a base model priced under $25,000. Yes, the Charger is alive, still full of muscle car fun and now a better fit for more Americans.