I've been waiting for a mid-size 2-door sports car for a while now.

I owned a Monte Carlo SS that I heavily modified -- but I'd rather not spend my time tweaking something out when I can get it from the Factory with a nice warranty on it. I don't think I ever want to go through the nightmare of trying major tweaks and keeping the computer controlled emissions system happy again.

I want something that handles corners, can accelerate hard and can stop just as well. You have to do a lot of work on older cars to get that kind of performance -- especially in the suspension and braking systems. If (and when) I go fast, I want to have a measure of control of what I'm doing.

I always was a fan of the older Dodge / Plymouth cars and the wonderful motors they had. My father owns a van with a 440 in it and I can attest to how wonderful that motor sounded when you lit it up (and it's still running after 30 years). My next door neighbor was a race car mechanic (when I was growing up) and I got to hear some of the stories of Richard Petty and some of the legends of the '60s.

I had about given up hope and was ready to cave in and either get a Charger or a Mustang, which neither suited exactly what I was looking for when the Challenger concept came along. So I've been waiting and I'll continue to wait for the 2009 model so I can get the options I want.

Well, I thought I'd share why I'm waiting for the Challenger...