Dodge Charger R/T (1999 concept)

Last updated
The 1999 Dodge Charger R/T concept Dodge Charger R-T Concept (17087253500).jpg
The 1999 Dodge Charger R/T concept

The Dodge Charger R/T is a functional concept car developed in 1999 by American automobile manufacturer Chrysler. It took many styling cues from the 1960s Chargers (most notably the second generation) but, unlike the original, had four doors. The designers attempted to blend the rear doors into the design so they would not be noticed very easily. The decision to add four doors was due to the declining sport coupe market in North America. Compressed natural gas was purported as being in the lineup for a possible fuel source.

Development History

The concept's exterior design was supervised by Tom Gale, [1] head of Chrysler's styling department. The interior design was done by design partner Trevor Creed. While the concept car shared the long nose and rearward cab of the original 1966 Dodge Charger, it was shorter overall. It was 187 in (4,750 mm) long as compared to 203 in (5,156 mm) for the 1966 Charger. It was also lighter, 3,000 lb (1,361 kg) versus 3,650 lb (1,656 kg). Other design features shared with the 1966 Charger included coke-bottle styling, flying rear buttresses, full length taillamps and air intakes on the front and sides. [2] The vehicle was fueled by CNG (compressed natural gas) technology. It had functional side scoops, and the chrome plated, central mounted exhaust was somewhat reminiscent of the Dodge Viper. The concept had functional air exhausters sculpted into its rear fascia. It used a new storage tank system to deliver a 300 mi (480 km) range while not compromising storage space in the trunk. [3]

The interior of the car featured bucket seats for four occupants, a centre console running the full length of the dash board, a three-spoke steering wheel inspired by NASCAR race cars and rotary styled gauges. The interior was upholstered in black and red leather and had a carbon fiber trim. The centre console along with the back of the seats had exposed metal parts. [2]

The cylinders, or pressure cells, inside the fiberglass storage tank were lined with a gas-impermeable high-density polyurethane (HDPE) thermoplastic and wrapped in a hybrid mix of high-strength carbon and glass filaments with an epoxy resin. The cylinders were laid into a foam egg crate to absorb impacts. The fuel could be stored at 3,600 lb³ of pressure. The car was powered by a 289 cubic inch 4.7-liter V8 engine with 2 valves per cylinder and a single overhead cam, rated at 325 hp (242 kW) at 6,000 rpm. [4] The engine was mated to a five-speed manual transmission. This was the first rear-wheel-drive car built on the Chrysler LH platform, with all prior cars built on the same platform being front-wheel-drive. The car was rumored to accelerate from 0 to 60 mph in 5.3 seconds. [5]

Following the Daimler Chrysler merger, the management went in another direction for the company, and the concept car was not placed into production. A newly developed Dodge Charger (LX) would not reach production until the 2006 model year. The new Charger bore little resemblance to the 1999 concept.

The car was featured in the video game Midnight Club 3: DUB Edition. [6]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plymouth Road Runner</span> Type of muscle car manufactured by Plymouth

The Plymouth Road Runner is a mid-size car with a focus on performance built by Plymouth in the United States between 1968 and 1980. By 1968, some of the original muscle cars were moving away from their roots as relatively cheap, fast cars as they gained features and increased in price. Plymouth developed the Road Runner to market a lower-priced, basic trim model to its upscale GTX.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Caravan</span> Vehicle created by Dodge

The Dodge Caravan is a series of minivans that was manufactured by Chrysler from the 1984 to 2020 model years. The Dodge version of the Chrysler minivans, the Caravan was marketed as both a passenger van and a cargo van. For 1987, a long-wheelbase Dodge Grand Caravan was introduced. Produced in five generations across 36 model years, the Dodge Caravan is the second longest-lived Dodge nameplate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrysler Cirrus</span> Motor vehicle

The Chrysler Cirrus is a mid-sized 4-door notchback sedan introduced by Chrysler motors for the 1995 model year. Built on the Chrysler JA platform, the 4-door notchback sedan joined Chrysler's roster of "Cloud Car" models drawing their names from meteorological terms, including the mid-priced Dodge Stratus it was based on introduced at the same time, and the low-priced Plymouth Breeze variant a year later.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Charger</span> Series of automobiles marketed by Dodge

The Dodge Charger is a model of automobile marketed by Dodge in various forms over seven generations since 1966.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Challenger</span> Motor vehicle

The Dodge Challenger is the name of three different generations of automobiles produced by American automobile manufacturer Dodge. However, the first use of the Challenger name by Dodge was in 1959 for marketing a "value version" of the full-sized Coronet Silver Challenger.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrysler 300</span> Full-size car

The Chrysler 300 is a full-size luxury car manufactured and marketed by Stellantis North America and its predecessor companies as a four-door sedan and station wagon in its first generation and solely as a four-door sedan in its second and current generation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Dart</span> Motor vehicle

Dodge Dart is a line of automobiles marketed by Dodge from the 1959 to 1976 model years in North America, with production extended to later years in various other markets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Omni</span> Motor vehicle

The Dodge Omni is a subcompact car that was produced by Chrysler Corporation from the 1978 to 1990 model years. The first Chrysler model line produced with front-wheel drive, the Omni and Horizon were also the first front-wheel drive economy cars assembled in the United States. Marketed for eleven years with very few changes, around 2,500,000 Omnis and Horizons were built with the Plymouth badged versions more popular than the Dodge branded models.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eagle Vision</span> Car model built by Chrysler

The Eagle Vision is a full-sized, front-wheel drive four-door sports sedan produced from 1992 until 1997. It was marketed by Eagle, replacing the AMC/Renault-designed Eagle Premier. The Eagle Vision was badged as the Chrysler Vision in Europe. The Vision debuted at the 1992 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. As one of the LH sedans, it was Automobile Magazine's Automobile of the Year in 1993, and ultimately the only Eagle model to be completely designed and built in-house by Chrysler.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrysler Concorde</span> Motor vehicle

The Chrysler Concorde is a full-size, front wheel drive four-door sedan that was produced by Chrysler from 1992 to 2004. It assumed the C-body Chrysler New Yorker Salon's position as the entry-level full-size sedan in the Chrysler brand lineup. One of Chrysler's three original Chrysler LH platform models, it used revolutionary cab forward design.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ram pickup</span> American full-size pickup built by Stellantis

The Ram pickup is a full-size pickup truck manufactured by Stellantis North America and marketed from 2010 onwards under the Ram Trucks brand. The current fifth-generation Ram debuted at the 2018 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan, in January of that year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Durango</span> American mid-size SUV

The Dodge Durango is a mid-size/full-size SUV produced by Dodge in three generations starting with the 1998 model year. The first two generations were very similar in that both were based on the Dodge Dakota and Dodge Ram, both featured a body-on-frame construction and both were produced at the Newark Assembly Plant in Newark, Delaware through the 2009 model year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrysler Neon</span> Compact car manufactured by Chryslers Dodge and Plymouth

The Chrysler/Dodge/Plymouth Neon is a front-engine, front-wheel drive compact car that was introduced in January 1994 for model year 1995 by Chrysler's Dodge and Plymouth divisions in two- and four-door body styles over two generations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Coronet</span> American car model sold 1949–1959, 1965–1976

The Dodge Coronet is an automobile that was marketed by Dodge in seven generations, and shared nameplates with the same bodyshell with varying levels of equipment installed. Introduced as a full-size car in 1949, it was the division's highest trim line and moved to the lowest level starting in 1955 through 1959. The name was reintroduced on intermediate-sized models from the 1965 until 1976 model years. Muscle car versions were available starting in 1965 with the 383 and 426 wedge cu in Chrysler RB engine, followed in 1966 by the powerful 426 cu in Chrysler Hemi. Other performance models included the "Superbee", and featured, the 383 cu in Magnum, among other engine options. The nameplate "coronet" is a type of crown worn by royalty.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrysler PT Cruiser</span> Compact car line produced by Chrysler

The Chrysler PT Cruiser is a retro-styled compact car that was manufactured and marketed internationally by Chrysler in 5-door hatchback wagon (2001–2010) and 2-door convertible (2005–2008) body styles—over a single generation, with an intermediate facelift for model year 2006.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Super Bee</span> Motor vehicle

The Dodge Super Bee is a mid-sized muscle car marketed by Dodge, that was produced for the 1968 through 1971 model years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Charger (2005)</span> American full-size car

The Dodge Charger is a full-size four-door sedan, first introduced at the 2005 North American International Auto Show and built by American automobile manufacturer Stellantis North America, a subsidiary of Stellantis. It is available in rear-wheel drive or all-wheel drive drivetrains. The Charger was developed to continue the Dodge Charger line with its muscle car heritage, and replaced the Dodge Intrepid as Dodge's full-size sedan. The seventh generation Charger debuted for the 2011 model year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dodge Charger (1966)</span> American specialty car model by Dodge

The Dodge Charger (1966), also known as Dodge Charger (B-body), is a mid-size automobile that was produced by Dodge from 1966 to 1978, and was based on the Chrysler B platform.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrysler minivans (AS)</span> Motor vehicle

The second-generation Chrysler minivans are a series of minivans that were manufactured and marketed by Chrysler Corporation in North America and Europe from 1991 to 1995. Officially designated the AS platform by Chrysler, the second-generation minivans were an extensive revision of the first-generation chassis and body. As before, passenger and cargo configurations were sold by Dodge, Plymouth, and Chrysler divisions. The first minivans offered with driver-side airbags and with optional integrated child safety seats, the second-generation Chrysler minivans offered all-wheel drive as an option for the first time; a manual transmission would be offered for the last time in the North American market.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chrysler minivans (NS)</span> Motor vehicle

The third-generation Chrysler minivans are a series of passenger minivans that were marketed by the Chrysler Corporation from the 1996 to 2000 model years. Designated the NS platform by Chrysler, these minivans were sold by Chrysler, Dodge and Plymouth divisions in passenger configurations; minivans were exported under the Chrysler brand. While the second-generation AS platform was a revision of the original vans, the NS platform marked the first ground-up redesign of the Chrysler vans since their 1984 introduction, ending the use of components from K-Car derivatives.

References

  1. George, Patrick (August 26, 2015). "The Next Dodge Charger Looks Like This: Report". Jalopnik . Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  2. 1 2 Krebs, Michelle (February 2, 1999). "Dodge Charger Concept - All American Attitude". Motor Trend . Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  3. gazeo.com. "Dodge Charger Concept - CNG that never was - gazeo.com". gazeo.com.
  4. Garrett, Mike (March 15, 2020). "Back in '99: Did The Dodge Charger R/T Concept Lead To Hellcats and Scat packs Of Today". www.drivingline.com. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  5. "The 1999 Dodge Charger R/T concept car". www.allpar.com.
  6. "The 1999 Dodge Charger R/T concept car". www.allpar.com.