Paladin06

First three production Dodge Challengers to be auctioned off
Filed under: Coupes, Sports/GTs, Auction Action, Dodge

click above image for more high-res pics of the Dodge Challenger

The production Dodge Challenger won't arrive until next year, but Dodge is already planning on how it's going to get the most out of those first three examples, which are all scheduled to be top of the line SRT-8 models with HEMI Orange paint, hood stripes and the 6.1L V8 engine. Car No. 1 that leaves the Brampton, Ontario assembly plant will go to the winning bidder of an auction to be held at the famous Barrett-Jackson Collector Car Auction in Scottsdale, AZ, which runs from January 12-20 of next year. We'll be there to watch the gavel fall, and when it does, all proceeds from the sale are going straight to notMYkid, an organization that promotes understanding of youth behavioral issues. The right to own Car No. 2 will be decided by an auction that starts earlier on Sept. 26th, 2007, though this one will be a private auction just for Dodge dealers. All proceeds from the sale of the second car will go to the United Way of Southeastern Michigan. Car No. 3, meanwhile, will be auctioned off on eBay, though Dodge reports it will have more details on that auction later.


http://www.autoblog.com/2007/09/17/f...off/1#c7623962

[Source: Chrysler LLC]

RLSH700

I wish they wouldn't do this, but perhaps that will get rid of some of the initial demand spike.

Paladin06

Ford did this with the first Shelby cars but not the first Mustangs. This could/will cost the dealers to jack up the prices..

hemicuda

I agree. I hate when Chrysler does this. It just drives the initial prices through the roof and in my opinion, ultimately hurts the sales of the vehicles. I don't mind to pay sticker price for a vehicle, but no more than sticker. If I have to, I'll wait or like many other consumers, I'll pick something else.

awsure

This blows. I certainly expect the pricing to be thoroughly stupid at Barrett Jackson as the floor is full of wealthy blowhards that will buy the car so it can sit in showroom somewhere. Normal people are going to have to endure the inevitable price spike generated by this exercise.

I hope I can actually afford one of these now before 2009-2010.

DSkippy

My dad left my mother his 1969 1/2 440 6 Pack Super Bee Stripe Delete, all original numbers, mint condition, no rust, 11K original miles; as a kid, I didn't have an eye for the coronet body, I grew to appreciate when I got older (loved the ridiculously long nose on it and cavern it had under the hood; also the fact they gave working stiffs the ability to go fast and compete with much more expensive peers), but I loved the Chally from day 1. It looked fast (to a kid, just like a hot wheels car).

When I heard they were bringing it back, I decided I was getting one the first year they had'em. I'm not so sure Cerberus will out price them; but it could be a glut if that happens, oh well. Before Daimler took over the brought Prowler out at a tick or two over 30K (of course dealer markup was ridiculous). So I'm going to cross my fingers, hopefully find a dealer who wants to make his/her money on volume and not on gouging and hope the new owners of Chrylser are thinking strategically and not tactically with a "get a spike of revenue" kind of stuff drive interest, publicity and purchasing of the trucks/vans and other mundane vehicles.....

Create some buzz, make it affordable for kids again (at least at some level).....and truly start a new beginning for this company.

Anyhoo, if they price it too high in the first year, I am now resigned to purchase in the second year if I need. It is not an imperative, nothing's going away, and with a little luck, they'll address any bugs in the first year run by the second.

Axel

It's going to happen. Stealers are dealers and there's nothing that we can do about it. If I were running a business and I knew that I could get killer money for something in the first few years, I might do it. But if I knew that I could get more customers and more loyal customers at that and not rape them in the process, I would go that way. Unfortunately stealers, and the manufacturer apparently, don't see it that way and the manufacturer will do nothing to keep the dealers in check.

This said, the first year the Challenger is going to be off the wall. It happened with the Mustang, the Hertz car went for a ridiculous amount, the first run of Mustangs were off the wall, why wouldn't the Challenger be the same way? They not have this auction thing going on, Mustang has no changes to it really and there is no Camaro. Why not jack up the price for something people are going to pay for? Now one year later dealers are taking the X plan for the Mustangs, they start coming out with rebates, they can't seem to give away a Mustang these days. The same thing is going to happen with the Challenger....or will it.

Here's what I worry about. The Mustang had no changes to it in the four model years it has been out, at least nothing that is worth talking about. The second year the Challenger is out it is already going to have changes that are worth talking about. The 5.7 is going to get a change to make it better which will most likely end up in this car, the 6.1 will probably be replaced by the 6.4. These changes alone will be enough to keep the price high. I would hope I'm wrong, but people always will want the newer and better, faster, more powerful vehicle out there and they will wait to get it. Others will want the first ones that are out and will get them. These two things might keep the demand for this car going and high priced for the first two years of run which is a shame. We might not see a drop for demand and some discounts until 2010, but that's just my observations and I so hope they are wrong.

The only hope I see of this not being the case is the competition with Chevy and Ford. New cars will come out and they will all compete. If any try to run the market and overprice it then it's very possible that people will leave the one and move to the other. If that happens then everything I said above may be wrong and we may see decent pricing for all vehicles. Either that or they will turn around and sell them for more money. I guess we'll wait and see.

awsure

We do know that Camaro is coming so certainly 2009 will provide a bit more competitive landscape. I have a bit of an "in" at a dealer but I wonder if that will help much. Generally certain vehicles are set outside employee purchasing options & I have no doubt Challenger will fall into that. I will wait if the prices are stupid high but man I hate too. I hope I do not sound like a spoiled brat but I want one now!!

Jeremiah 29:11

You do sound like a spoiled brat, but I think we all want one too. LOL! We are right there with you.

Yankee

This is precisely why I'm waiting till 09, perhaps late in the year, to get one. First year hysteria is gonna be off the chart, and dealer markup will likely be in the stratosphere. This reminds me of the demented yahoos that just HAD to have the very first Mazda Miata when they first came out in 1990 - dealers were marking them up 5 grand and people were actually paying it.

That doesn't compare to the even more demented yahoos that payed 20 grand and up over sticker when the first Corvette ZR-1s came out... after the first year, dealers could barely give them away and their resale value fell like a rock (of course it didn't help that GM made the lesser Vettes look just like the ZR-1s,but that's beside the point).

So for those that just HAVE to have the very first Challenger (or Camaro, for that matter), have a nut. Being "first on your block" to have one only lasts so long. And don't complain when I get the very same car later on for tens of thousands cheaper.