General Challenger

In the early days of the automobile industry, painting was a slow process. It was applied manually and dried for weeks at room temperature by solvent evaporation. 1930 Packard Factory As mass production of cars made the process untenable, paint began to be dried in ovens. Nowadays, two-component (catalyzed) paint is usually applied by robotic arms and cures in just a few hours either at room temperature or in heated booths. (Note- That is why car paint can be waxed as soon as the new owner...

When choosing aftermarket wheels for your Challenger, there is a considerable amount of choice. Car wheel technology has evolved considerably, over the years, from steel- once the preferred material- to lighter weight aluminum alloys. Among all types, you have the option of choosing between forged and cast wheels. In discussing the difference between the two, it is important to distinguish between the advantages and disadvantages of forging and casting. The strength of any metallic product...

A carburetor was the common method of fuel delivery for most US-made gasoline engines until the late 1980s, when fuel injection became the preferred method. This change was dictated by the requirements of catalytic converters and not due to an inherent inefficiency of carburation. Basically, a carburetor consists of an open pipe through which the air passes into the inlet manifold of the engine. The pipe is in the form of a venture- it narrows in section and then widens again, causing the...

Hey guys hopefully you can shed some light on something for me. I think my ext warranty company is trying to weasel out of paying. Ok so long story short my harmonic balancer bolt has backed out some how on its own and allowed the balancer to pull back and put little small shavings in my oil pan. When we pulled the balancer the tip of the crank was blueish purple. Have you ever heard of a bolt backing off like that.

In recent years, Dodge has produced four different Hemi heads. Here is a brief description of each. In 2003, the 5.7 Hemi received the first, followed in 2005 by the 6.1 hemi design. In 2009 and 2011 respectively, the 5.7 Hemi Eagle and 6.4 Hemi Apache head appeared along with Variable Valve Timing (VVT) and the larger 392-inch engine. As the engines got larger, the heads improved with the help of larger valve sizes and improved ports. As cams got bigger, the beehive springs got more...

In the late 60s/early 70s, Dodge was already offering some of the hottest cars of the muscle car era- awesome machines like the Hemi Challenger and 440 Six-Pack Super Bee. Designers, however, decided to rev up the cars’ visuals to match, creating a far-out assortment of vibrant exterior paint colors. These special colors (a $15 option) generated a big buzz in the showrooms and launched an industry trend. The color palettes used by all the automakers were opened up, giving paint designers...

Carbon Fiber is a polymer and is sometimes known as graphite fiber. It is a very strong material that is also very lightweight. Although carbon fiber is five times stronger and twice as stiff as steel, it is lighter than steel; making it the ideal manufacturing material for many parts. These are just a few reasons why carbon fiber is favored by engineers and designers for manufacturing. Carbon fiber dates back to 1879, when Thomas Edison baked cotton threads or bamboo silvers at high...

Performance vehicles are a Chrysler tradition. In the 1950s, an elite team of Chrysler engineers set out to extract extreme horsepower from existing engines. The team created new manifolds featuring long-tube intake runners. The innovative design helped engines ingest more air, translating into improved performance. The new induction system was called “Ramcharger,” and the team behind the technology adopted that name. The Ramchargers’ new engine produced enormous amounts of power,...

Dodge was founded in 1900 by Horace and John Dodge (The Dodge Brothers). It was initially known as the Dodge Brothers Company and used to sell bicycles, but then within two years it became a major supplier of axles, engines, and transmissions to the automobile industry. The company started by producing chassis and engines for the Ford Motor Company and Olds Motor Vehicle Company. However, with the stress and demands of the booming automobile industry, the brothers decided to tinker with the...

Hood pins are used as a secondary restraint for the hood and are attached by a pin and plate drilled through the hood. They were originally made for the racetrack to keep hoods buttoned down at high speeds, but found their way onto muscle cars of the late 60s/early 70s. Hood pins (two per hood) were most prevalent on Dodge and Plymouth muscle cars of that era (e.g., Challengers, ‘Cudas, Road Runners, Daytonas, GTXs, Super Bees, etc.). They were, primarily, a styling element used to give a...

Getting lost while driving, or stopping at a gas station to ask for directions, has become a thing of the past. With GPS in your car’s navigation system, in the portable navigation device on your dashboard, or in your smartphone, it is easy to pull up a map and see where you are, or get directions to where you are going. GPS makes you safer, routes you around traffic delays and helps you find nearby services. GPS (Global Positioning System), a technology we now take for granted, started...

The following Motor Trend article, describes in detail, how the MDS system works. What Is Hemi MDS? (motortrend.com)

Simply put, rev limiters restrict the maximum speed an engine can achieve. They are there to prevent an engine from damaging itself by extending beyond its limits. Any engine is only designed to be able to function up to a certain speed, which is measured in revolutions of the crankshaft per minute. Out of the factory, the rev limiter is set at the point the engine’s maker is happy for it to rev to on a regular basis. It’s not to be confused with the redline, although it can sometimes be...

Fuel economy for vehicles (city, highway and combined) is measured under controlled conditions in a laboratory using a series of tests specified by federal law.The results are displayed for the consumer on the "new car window sticker." Estimating MPG with Laboratory Tests In the laboratory, the vehicle's drive wheels are placed on a machine called a dynamometer. The "dyno" simulates the driving environment much like an exercise bike simulates cycling. Engineers adjust the amount of energy...

a lot of questions have been fielded about how to wire the msd window switch for the 6.4l short runner tuning valve. i sat down on a recent vacation and worked my way backwards to figure how to painlessly wire this system so it works close to what the factory intended. i have acess to all the service information from FCA being that i work for them. get the connector from chrysler for the solenoid. DON'T buy the circuit boss, it is confusing and unnescessary. the red wire from the window...