Review: 2015 Dodge Challenger R/T 392 Hemi Scat Pack Shaker…’nuff said

This ain’t the most powerful Dodge Challenger that you can buy, but once you’ve experienced the R/T 392 Hemi Scat Pack Shaker, you might wonder what the folks at Dodge were smoking when they dreamed up the vicious SRT Hellcat.

Driving a Dodge Challenger R/T 392 Hemi Scat Pack Shaker represents a relentless exercise of restraint. Strutting down the road, its shaker-style air intake throbbing and pulsing with each stab of the car’s throttle, this version of the Challenger reminds me of every loud-mouthed, beer-swilling, overconfident, and undereducated dude I’ve ever encountered.

My God, though, the power and thrust produced by its 485-horsepower, 6.4-liter V8 engine is addictive. And it peels back a vindictive layer of your personality that you’d rather not acknowledge.

You can loaf along at low rpm, letting the optional 8-speed automatic transmission do the shifting and allowing the engine’s multi-displacement system to maximize fuel economy, looking out over the Challenger’s broad hood and that super-cool shaker scoop, just trying to be a responsible citizen of the world. Then, the moment a fellow motorist does something idiotic in your presence, a push of your right foot transforms the R/T Scat Pack and its driver from Bruce Banner into the Incredible Hulk.

Roaring through its active exhaust system, and shrieking forward with a most tenuous degree of traction, this beast becomes an implement of retribution when that jerk ahead cuts you off, or when that moron squats in the left lane of the freeway doing 65 mph, or when that dimwit ahead can’t seem to understand that a successful freeway merge requires a sufficient amount of speed to match the flow of traffic.

“Yeah, I’ll teach you a lesson! Listen to this mutha’ roar!”

You can loaf along at low rpm, letting the optional 8-speed automatic transmission do the shifting and allowing the engine’s multi-displacement system to maximize fuel economy.

Brains reside within the car’s brawn, though, thanks to a thorough refresh for the 2015 model year. Unapologetically stuck in the 1970s, the Dodge Challenger’s design is the only “retro” element of what is actually a technologically sophisticated machine.

While styling updates intended to evoke the 1971 Challenger represent minor adjustments for the new model year, changes beneath this modern muscle car’s skin are more significant. From the new R/T Scat Pack option and an 8-speed automatic transmission with paddle shifters to a new interior featuring the latest Uconnect infotainment technology and modern safety systems, the latest Challenger is clearly rooted in the 21st Century.

Equipped with the 392 Hemi Shaker option, which plants a functional air intake atop the R/T Scat Pack’s 6.4-liter V8, and the extra-cost automatic transmission, my B5 Blue Challenger test vehicle wore a starting sticker price of $44,990.

Equipped with the 392 Hemi Shaker option, which plants a functional air intake atop the R/T Scat Pack’s 6.4-liter V8, and the extra-cost automatic transmission, my B5 Blue Challenger test vehicle wore a starting sticker price of $44,990. A navigation system and an upgraded Alpine sound system bumped the price another $1,490.

What my test car did not have was the Driver Convenience Group, which includes a blind spot monitoring and rear cross-path detection system, or the Technology Group, which installs an adaptive cruise control system, a forward collision warning system, rain-sensing wipers, and automatic high-beam headlights. This is fairly sophisticated stuff for a rough-hewn classic muscle car.

Unapologetically stuck in the 70s, the Challenger’s design is the only “retro” element of what is actually a sophisticated machine.

So too is the Uconnect 8.4 touchscreen infotainment system. Standard for this version of the Challenger, it includes Bluetooth calling and music streaming, HD Radio, satellite radio, real-time traffic, and a voice recognition system. A free subscription to Uconnect Access is also a part of this package, supplying 9-1-1 Call technology, voice texting capability, and Internet radio applications for the first full year after purchase. With Uconnect Access, you can even transform the Challenger into a Wi-Fi hotspot, though service is 3G rather than 4G.

Challengers equipped with the Shaker or Scat Pack upgrades also have Dodge Performance Pages technology. Using the Uconnect touchscreen, this feature allows the driver to program the car’s individual drive mode settings, switch to the Challenger’s Sport driving mode, activate the Launch Control system, track performance metrics, and more. As a result, drivers can tailor the driving dynamics to specific preferences, and make maximum use of the Scat Pack’s hardware.

Using the Uconnect touchscreen, this feature allows the driver to program the car’s individual drive mode settings.

Equipping the Challenger with goodies from last year’s Challenger SRT, the Scat Pack is about more than just a big engine. It includes performance-tuned steering, a performance-tuned suspension that’s lowered half an inch compared to stock, ventilated front brake discs clamped by 4-piston calipers, severe duty engine cooling, and an active exhaust system. These upgrades make it possible to carve a canyon in a Challenger, though the car’s girth and restricted outward visibility are liabilities on narrow roads with tight corners.

You can identify the Scat Pack model by the special bee emblem affixed to the front fenders, and this version of the Challenger includes a unique aluminum wheel design wrapped in summer performance tires, a black rear spoiler, and a shark-fin antenna.

Adults have lots of room up front, and enjoy very comfortable seats.

A 180-mph speedometer is also standard for this model, because this version of the Challenger will go that fast, according to Dodge. Add the Shaker kit for the cold air induction system, unique striping, and a satin black fuel filler door, plus leather seats, heated and ventilated front seats, and a heated steering wheel with power tilt/telescopic adjustment.

With those details out of the way, you can see that a Challenger R/T 392 Scat Pack Shaker delivers plenty of performance, technology, and even a few luxuries for under $50,000. But does this car provide any practicality? Can it be used as a daily driver?

Sitting on the same platform as the Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300, the Challenger is actually shorter than both sedans.

As long as you don’t mind averaging 17.2 mpg, which is what I got during the course of a weeklong test, then the answer is yes. Sitting on the same platform as the Dodge Charger and Chrysler 300, the Challenger is shorter in length than those two full-size sedans, yet it remains a big car.

Adults have lots of room up front, and enjoy very comfortable seats. Bigger people might not be happy with the amount of legroom in the back seat, but you can easily tuck three kids across the rear bench. Plus, the Challenger’s trunk swallows 16.2 cu.-ft. of cargo, more than most midsize sedans. The liftover height is ridiculously high, but I’d have no qualms about making like Clark Griswold and taking a family vacation in a Challenger.

The 2015 Challenger won J.D. Power awards for both quality and overall appeal, beating out both the Chevy Camaro and Ford Mustang.

If these facts and observations still don’t convince your significant other that a Challenger can do more than simply go fast in a straight line, explain the value equation. You don’t need to get the performance version I tested. Base prices start at $27,990 for a Challenger SXT with a robust 305-horsepower V6, and even after adding the Super Track Pak and the Driver Convenience Group for key performance and safety upgrades, you’re spending just over $30,000. That’s a deal, in my book.

Excuse the pun, but this Dodge is no one-trick pony. That might be one reason the 2015 Challenger won J.D. Power awards for both quality and overall appeal, beating out both the Chevy Camaro and Ford Mustang, despite the fact that the Mustang is completely redesigned and celebrating its 50thanniversary.

Only the Challenger accommodates my family without someone complaining about something. That is, aside from my driving. 

I’ll say this much about the legendary Chevy vs. Dodge vs. Ford battle: Only the Challenger transforms me into a grinning idiot on a regular basis, and only the Challenger accommodates my family without someone complaining about something.

That is, aside from my driving.