Mopar revealed yesterday two Dodge Challenger Drag Race Package cars at the 29th Annual Mopar Mile-High Nationalst at Bandimere Speedway in Morrison, Colorado. Both cars were inaugurated with their first drag strip runs by the #1 driver of the Top 50 drivers from its first 50 years, “Big Daddy” Don Garlits and Judy “Miss Mighty Mopar” Lilly who is one the only female driver to win two NHRA national events in one year.

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Just as General Motors has been driving Volt powertrains around Detroit in last-generation Malibu sedans, so the latest reports indicate Tesla may be testing its Model S sedan under Dodge Magnum wagon skins. While the corporate connection isn’t as clear, the argument for something unusual going on beneath the surface of the car spotted is persuasive.

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Most automakers are struggling with horrible US market conditions right now, but unlike competitors such as Toyota and Ford, Chrysler doesn't have sales in other areas of the world to fall back on. The Pentastar is looking to improve its fortunes overseas while also benefiting from low labor costs by partnering with the Great Wall Motor Company. The young Chinese automaker doesn't specialize in the small vehicles Chrysler needs here in the States, however, as the company's primary focus is on trucks and SUVs.

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As the years pass, fuel saving technologies like hybrid drivetrains will become increasingly common. Chrysler currently holds the distinction of having the worst average fuel economy of any major manufacturer in the United States, which is certainly not something they are proud of, we're sure. The automaker's first hybrid vehicles, the Dodge Durango and Chrysler Aspen duo, were just priced at a fairly aggressive $45,340 base and speculation has already begun on what models will be next in line for the hybrid system.

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Chrysler has apparently been watching the lukewarm sales of the Chevy Tahoe and GMC Yukon hybrids and taken the lesson to heart. When the GM hybrids debuted earlier this year they were priced from $49,590 for the 2wd Tahoe to $52,885 (plus delivery charge) for the 4wd Yukon. The 1,100 or so sales through April was a sure sign that the market was apparently not ready to pay that kind of change for a full-size hybrid SUV. GM is now offering $4,000 cash rebates on those same hybrids while other manufacturers can't build hybrids fast enough.

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Whenever a new performance vehicle makes it into the hands of eager customers, a run to the dyno never seems to be far behind. This has again proven to be the case with the new Dodge Challenger, as a company known as Speedfactory has just done the deed on its new steed. What sets this particular vehicle and its dyno numbers apart from other SRT8s, though, is its Vortech supercharger.

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It's hard to think of a way to make the Chrysler Sebring or Jeep Compass even less attractive, but a 2% price increase is a good start. It's not like Chrysler has control over the price of commodities, which is part of what's driving the increase that begins June 16th. Dealers will have to cough up extra cash the next time they replenish their inventories, but whatever's already on the lot will be unaffected. Chrysler's Stuart Schorr contends that the price bump brings Chrysler in line with its competitors. Unfortunately, Chrysler's product lags even the domestic competition, so price parity for a lesser vehicle is hard to swallow. If anything, the poor schmo who looks at the horrid interior materials in a Patriot and still buys the darn thing deserves something besides a handshake from an adversarial salesperson.

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Another victim of the downturn in sales of full-size pickup trucks was revealed today as Dodge will be closing its Saltillo plant in northern Mexico for a period of two weeks. The plant produced nearly 170,000 Ram trucks last year. Yesterday, Chrysler CEO Robert Nardelli indicated that Ram production would need to be adjusted to reflect weak customer demand, and this seems to be the adjustment. According to reports, the plant was idled on Monday and its two-thousand workers are set to return to work on June 23.

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Dodge and its Ram badge has long been associated with power, and the marque is considered to be Chrysler's performance brand. In these days of record high fuel prices, though, being associated with horsepower could also mean an association with the guzzling of gasoline. Believe it or not, Dodge does not want this image, so it may be tweaking its marketing strategy a bit in a bid to change with the times.

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Looks like late night television's most famous car nut is the latest person to fall under the spell of the new Dodge Challenger SRT-8. Autoblog friend Delbert Shoopman says he was walking around the NBC lot in Burbank and happened upon one black Challenger parked directly across from the Tonight Show studio. Further snooping revealed a Jay Leno parking tag on the spot (above). We snooped a bit ourselves and found a blurb on Chrysler's internal blog, Firehouse, where they talk about Jay's latest acquisition.

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The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety has smashed up a 2008 Dodge Grand Caravan and the results are mostly good.

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If you're one of the lucky 6,400 customers to lay claim to the 425 hp Dodge Challenger SRT8, we have good news. The first 1,000 special edition Challengers have already been built, and they're en-route to a dealer near you. For those of you that won't be getting your Hemi-powered muscle car in the first wave, you won't have to wait long, either. Every SRT Challenger will be produced by the beginning of July, which means Woodward should be full of good-looking retro coupes come August.

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Remember the 1970’s Dodge Challenger R/T from the 2002 “2Fast 2Furious” sequel to The Fast and the Furious Movie? Well that car is up for sale on eBay and even though it might not have matching numbers for its 426 Hemi V8 engine (it’s an R/T clone), the car was fully restored and has clocked only 80 miles on its odometer.

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Today Chrysler announced that its iconic Dodge Viper muscle car hit a production milestone of 25,000 cars, and to celebrate the achievement officials have planned a number of events including the presentation of a brand new 2008 Viper SRT-10 to NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Kurt Busch. The Viper, which is produced at the Conner Avenue Assembly Plant, has been one of Chrysler’s most iconic sports cars since its launch in 1991 when the car was first produced by Chrysler as a modern take on the classic American muscle car. Over the years a number of variants have been spawned including the most recent Viper SRT-10 ACR track special.

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Can a car known for pure, raw power complement a famous catalog known for luxurious, upscale products? Neiman Marcus will find out soon with its 2008 Hennessey Venom 700NM, which will sell for $179,500 in the spring Men's Catalog.

The car's mission starts with a 700-horsepower, 645-lb-ft engine propelling it from 0-60 mph in 3.3 seconds, a time matched by the $14,500 Hennessey Venom 650R package on which the Neiman Marcus edition is based. For comparison, a stock Viper produces 600 horsepower and 560 lb-ft of torque. Stock Vipers or even ACR-edition Vipers, though, won't get black-and-red leather trim inside, embroidered floormats, and matching luggage that fools no one into thinking the Venom 700NM is the perfect weekend getaway highway cruiser. The Venom 700NM also gets a giant rear wing tested at 200 mph. Also significant, however, is that cost of the seven Venom 700NM Vipers includes the price of one day of high-performance driving school at Lonestar Motorsports Park.

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