Brampton tipped to build Dodge 'Challenger'

[Mr.DJ]

Brampton tipped to build Dodge Challenger

DaimlerChrysler AG will resurrect its Dodge Challenger muscle car, and the auto maker's Brampton, Ont., assembly plant is the leading contender to build the two-seater.

The move -- expected to be announced today at a NASCAR race in Florida -- gives the Chrysler group a competitor in a segment that Ford Motor Co. has dominated in recent years with the Mustang and puts the third-largest U.S. auto maker a step ahead of General Motors Corp., which has not yet publicly announced its intention to bring the Chevrolet Camaro back to life.

Chrysler is expected to build 30,000 Challengers a year in Brampton once full production is reached later in the decade, industry sources said yesterday. A concept version of the car was unveiled in Detroit in January, but it was overshadowed by Camaro, which was reintroduced at the same time.

The Dodge Challenger and its sister the Plymouth Barracuda had their heyday in the early 1970s when gas prices were low and the Big Three dominated the North American car market. Production of the car ended in 1974.

The Brampton plant is almost certain to win the project because Challenger is based on the same platform or basic underbody as the cars already made there, the Chrysler 300, Dodge Magnum and Dodge Charger, and is the only Chrysler assembly plant that makes those cars.

Chrysler officials met as recently as last week with representatives of the Canadian Auto Workers union to discuss changes it is seeking to the labour agreement in Brampton in return for building the car there, union sources said yesterday.

Among the changes are eliminating 45 janitorial jobs in Brampton, using more outside contractors to do some jobs now done by skilled trades employees and changing the pay structure for workers on the third shift so that they receive eight hours pay for eight hours work, instead of the 8.75 hours of pay they now receive for eight hours of work.

Buzz Hargrove, CAW president, said yesterday that the union wants Chrysler to build the Challenger in Brampton.

"Our concern is that the sales are dropping off on the Magnum and 300C and if we can get this and another 30,000 to 40,000 units a year, it secures the third shift -- certainly over the next two or three years," he said. "That's a big reason for us to be fighting to get it."

Detroit newspapers and The Wall Street Journal reported yesterday that the announcement will be made today in Daytona Beach, Fla.

Chrysler sent out a media advisory Thursday saying a major product announcement would be made today. Chrysler officials refused to comment yesterday on the reports.

Resurrecting the Challenger would provide a boost for the entire Dodge brand, one industry observer said yesterday, noting that any Chrysler announcement increases the pressure on GM to go ahead with the Camaro program, which is slated for a GM plant in Oshawa, Ont.

"The NASCAR crowd buys cars," the observer said. "They buy American cars."

The Chrysler announcement caps a string of moves by DaimlerChrysler this week. The company unveiled a massive incentive program yesterday that includes an employee discount for all buyers, interest-free loans for up to three years and as much as $6,000 in rebates on selected vehicles.

In addition, the auto maker took the wraps off a new national advertising campaign featuring DaimlerChrysler chairman Dieter Zetsche.

"We definitely need to put Chrysler on its own merits . . . and separate it from the other brands in town," Mr. Zetsche told a news conference in Auburn Hills, Mich., that was also webcast.

Muscle warrior

The muscle car wars are on. The Chrysler group will jump in by bringing back the Dodge Challenger, which will take on the Ford Mustang and reach the market before GM gets its Chevrolet Camaro into production.

The Challenger and its sister the Plymouth Barracuda had their heyday in the low-gas price era -- the early 1970s. Production of the car ended in 1974.

Length: 197.8" (5025 mm)

Wheelbase: 116.0" (2945mm)

Exterior: Challenger Orange

Interior: Black

Engine: 6.1L Hemi (425hp@6000rpm/420ft.-lbs@4800rpm)

Drivetrain: RWD/ 6-speed-manual

Interior of the retro-styled Challenger concept car

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Source: GlobeAndMail.com | Business
by Greg Keenan - Auto Industry Reporter
Saturday, July 01, 2006

[68RT/71GTX]

I do not know if it was wishfull thinking or precognition, but last Wednesday
I ordered my personalized plate for the next car. It is in keeping with the
same vein as the ones that I already have. Since I live in Brampton, I
can now sit at the gate and wait for mine to be built. My wife's grandson
works on the line and he says that they are working on arranging a family
tour of the plant. I cannot wait as I have never seen how they go from
flat sheet metal to a heart throb

[2008Challenger]

I wonder if they will beat the Camaro to the showrooms.

[WildBillTX]

Looks like thats part of the game plan. To get the Challenger out a year or two ahead of the Camaro will get a lot of old bowtie fans to jump to DCX once they see it on the streets and fall in love. And that there are reports that the Camaro will be built in Australia like the the GTO was may turn off a lot of people who want an car built in the Americas.

I think the demand will be so great for the Challenger they will have to make more than 30,000 to satisfy everyone.