http://www.auto123.com/en/news/car-n...tid=97424&pg=2


[quote]
The new Dodge Challengers start to roll off the line

By Kevin 'Crash' Corrigan,
View author's other articles
Wednesday, May 14, 2008

If you're one of the lucky ones waiting to take delivery of your new 2008 Dodge Challenger, then I've got some good news for you. I've just returned from the production launch, which means that your big day is getting that much closer.

Together with members of the media, corporate big wigs, and perhaps the most important of all, the men and woman who actually work on the line, I was at Chryslers Brampton plant to celebrate the return of that famous muscle car nameplate.


Approximately 7000 new Challengers will now start rolling down the line. Out of those, around 700 or so shall be staying in Canada, 100 will be going down Mexico way, and the remainder will be heading Stateside.

Demand from the dealerships is quite high, to put it mildly, and some dealerships will actually have to wait until the 09 model year production starts in August before they'll even have one in their showroom to show their customers.

Only the SRT model is in production at the present. However, an RT and an SE are to be added with the 2009 lineup.

Big news!
The new Challenger is big news whichever way you look at it, but it is certainly a major achievement for the Brampton Assembly Plant in Ontario, as they beat out several other manufacturing facilities to win the rights to build what Reid Bigland, Chrysler Canada's President and CEO describes as "the company's new Halo car"! He also came up with another phrase which I just loved; he referred to it as "the ultimate mid-life Chrysler"!

The Brampton plant is a very impressive operation indeed, and along with the adjoining Brampton Satellite Stamping Plant, employs approximately 3,200 workers.

This facility occupies 269 acres just north of Toronto and features Chrysler's Flexible Manufacturing Strategy which provides for the production of higher quality products at lower cost. This unique system combines off-the-shelf robotics with customized and interchangeable tooling to build a variety of products on a single assembly line. In fact, at present, there are several models coming down the line, including Dodge Chargers, Chrysler 300's, and of course, now the Challenger SRT.

Now I don't know if that was purely that luck was on our side, or if it had been carefully staged for us visitors, but it certainly was impressive!

Now that's a word which can be used to describe the Brampton facility, and especially after seeing just how these vehicles are put together. Starting off in the stamping plant where huge machines form the sheet metal panels, we moved on to the first of the assembly areas. It is here that the front underbody panel is connected to the rear and the actual build process begins.


Next, we witnessed the side panels being installed, which could be described as where the cars really start to take shape. At this stage I was quite surprised by the number of computers and robots in use. In fact, it could be said that there were very few human employees in sight and their roles would be better described as purely overseers. However, as we progressed through stage after stage, the process became much more hands on.

We then viewed the driveline components being assembled, and even witnessed these being hoisted up a floor to connect with the body shells. Naturally, from there on, the assembly involves human workers to a much larger degree.

I can honestly say that my somewhat short description truly does not do justice to the process, nor does it portray the fine workmanship of the Chrysler employees who take great pride in what they do.

That became rather apparent at the end of our tour, when many of them joined with us to celebrate the launch. You could see th

 

some interesting news.thank you.

 

Reading the other threads on this board, one can assume only that the new Challengers roll right off the line ... and into some kind of massive black hole, from which they may or may not ever emerge. Till I see BUNCHES of them sitting on dealers' lots -- not selling, along with all of Chrysler's other gas-guzzling behemoths -- I really won't believe they even exist.

 

Maybe the top brass at Ma Mopar are liking them so much that they want to keep them all!!

 

I can't blame them!

 

Ironically enough...the announcement that our friends in UK would not be receiving them at all, are receiving all of them....Greenwich is the black hole to which you refer. Through some super secret Tesla tele-transporter, our Limey friends are getting all of 'em!

 

I've said it before and I'll say it again: This is absolutely the coolest car nobody has ever seen... [:@]

 

Yeah, being that we're approaching late May, I really thought it wouldn't push past May before we started seeing delivered Challengers in the wild. I know I keep a keen eye out as I'm headed to and from work on the Interstates and as I pass Dodge dealers....

I am of the sentiment, don't let'em out before they're ready.

Hopefully, they will get the hint and look at models that did well, and follow that trend as far as styling them.

 

My only question... where are they rolling to... and when???[:@]

 

That is true they do the stripes in Windsor after the 4 hour truck ride from Brampton then get put on a rail car. Can you guess why they have not started striping any yet???

YES YOU ARE RIGHT THEY HAVE NOT SHIPPED ANY NEW CHALLENGERS OUT OF BRAMPTON YET!!!

You are wrong on one thing well two things they have built less than 500so far and they are only building about 40 a day. After every 20 Chargers/300's they will build 1 Challenger and the plant is building about 900 cars a day well that is how many they built today.

quote:

ORIGINAL: Cuda340

Automotive News reports 550 built last week and 382 the week before. Production is ramping up! Dodge's deadline for completing all of the 2008s is mid-July when the factory closes for vacation. By the 2nd week of August, the R/Ts will start production and the SRTs in September.

On the negative side, someone posted on another site that the company in Windsor, Canada that installs the hood decal has not completed its first car for retail sales. They were supposed to start last week.