2005 Detroit Auto Show #4 - The Dodge Charger

Capitalizing upon the success of the 300C and Dodge Magnum, the DaimlerChrysler Group unveiled the latest addition to its product portfolio based off of the LX platform, the eagerly anticipated 2006 Dodge Charger. To date, the LX platform has garnered well-deserved acclaim for the brand that, if one were to believe all the media hype, was just months ago on the verge of catastrophic financial ruin. The Bentley-esque 300C was universally embraced by everyone from upwardly mobile business executives to inner city street pimps with lucrative rap-recording contracts. The Dodge Magnum actually made station wagons seem cool again by offering a family vehicle that looked awkward picking up the kids from soccer practice but perfectly within its element springing one’s future felons from maximum security detention centers. The power, style and nameplate reputation of the new Charger suggests that this vehicle too will have little trouble finding its niche. The revered Charger moniker will appeal to the mid-level corporate hedonist old enough to remember the passion he had for the vehicle before the Dukes of Hazard was relegated to syndicated showings on Spike TV. The styling will lead him to believe that he has even odds of car pooling with high school cheerleaders that just barely crossed over to fun side of the age of consent. The Charger’s performance will make him confident that, if pursued by the authorities (or the cheerleaders’ parents), he will at least have a fighting chance of beating them to the Tijuana border crossing where he can enthusiastically begin a new glorious career as an international fugitive.