ACR is Dodge for American Club Racing, and this nameplate is best remembered in conjunction with the Viper. On the other hand, remember the 2011 SEMA Show and the one-off Challenger SRT8 ACR?
Dodge might be thinking about revisiting the concept for a limited edition, expected next year for the 2021 model year. Mopar Insiders quotes an adjustable dual-element rear wing made out of carbon fiber, a detachable extension for the front splitter, and “additional dive planes” for better aerodynamics. This sounds like a road racer to our ears, and like the Challenger SRT Demon, the ACR would ship only with the driver’s seat.
$1 would be the price of the passenger seat, an option that also applies to the Challenger R/T Scat Pack 1320. The biggest problem with such a specification, however, is that the Challenger ACR is still a Challenger. Heavy, wide, and wallowy in high-speed corners, it’s hard to imagine how the engineers could improve on a tried-and-tested recipe.
Mopar Insiders doesn’t have any information in regard to what’s hiding under the hood, but the road racer from Wesley Motorsports relies on the 797-horsepower Redeye specification of the Hellcat. The 6.2-liter supercharged V8 might not be a match for the engine in the Challenger SRT Demon, but nevertheless, it’s still top dog for the 2019 and 2020 model years.
Only Ford comes close with the Predator in the Mustang Shelby GT500, a 5.2-liter inspired by the Voodoo V8 in the Mustang Shelby GT350. The supercharged engine develops 760 horsepower and 625 pound-feet of torque from the factory, and pricing can surpass $100,000 quite easily.
On a related note, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is believed to have pushed back the next generations of the Charger and Challenger to the 2023 model year. A press photo of the 2020 Challenger reveals 2,023 miles on the odometer, the kind of mileage that could serve as an Easter Egg.
It remains to be seen if FCA will borrow the Giorgio platform from the Alfa Romeo Giulia or underpinnings from Maserati, two possible replacements for the LX-based vehicle architecture of the outgoing models. Of course, switching to either of the two also means that hybridization is coming.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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