Leader of the Pack: The 2020 Dodge Charger R/T Scat Pack Plus

The 2020 Dodge Charger R/T Scat Pack Plus.

More than 50 years ago, Dodge made one hell of a racket in the performance car world with what it called the "Scat Pack".

For those of you who have only heard the term on nature walks, "scat" has other meanings, including a form of jazz singing, and the slang usage that applies here, to go quickly.

0 to 60 in 3.5: The 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk

The 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk.

Sir Isaac Newton’s third law of physics says for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction.   So it is with automobiles.  At a time when many manufacturers are making vehicles that run on electricity, Fiat Chrysler is making the 2019 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk.  It runs on gasoline.  Lots and lots of gasoline.  So. Much. Gasoline.

Change of the Guard: The 2019 Ram 1500 Longhorn Crew Cab 4X4

The 2019 Ram 1500 Longhorn Crew Cab 4X4.

There's a saying (no idea who said it first) that it's not hype if you can back it up.

All that hype you've been hearing about the 2019 Ram 1500?  It's not hype.

Ram (formerly Dodge Truck) has been playing the long game.  They revolutionized pickup truck styling 25 years ago.  That massive, macho thing that pickup trucks have now elevated to an art form?  Ram (then Dodge) did it first.   And now that some trucks have taken it to an illogical extreme, Ram has found a way to do massive, imposing...and elegant.  The front of the 2019 Ram 1500 is just plain gorgeous.

Good Bad But Not Evil: The 2018 Dodge Durango R/T AWD

The 2018 Dodge Durango R/T.

Being a child of the 60s and 70s, who was old enough to have posters on the wall during what we thought was the Golden Age of Muscle Cars, only to have the party end thanks to emissions regulations, insurance surcharges and Arab oil embargoes just as I got my license, I just have to love Dodge.  With the exception of the sad-sack Journey and the pre-historic Grand Caravan (which we liked---in 2010),  Dodge is just one big toy store, full of things that any red-blooded American boy or girl could use to have fun, cause mayhem and lose one's driver license.

Loud and Proud: The 2017 Ram 1500 Night Edition Crew Cab 4X4

The 2017 Ram 1500 Night Edition Crew Cab.

There is very little to prepare you for the sound that comes when you push the "START" button in the 2017 Ram 1500 Night Edition.  The best written approximation is:

BAROOOOOMMMMMBURBLEBURBLEBURBLEBURBLEBURBLEBURBLEBURBLE

And after you've eased it out of your driveway and you give it....oh, let's say 1/16th throttle to start down your street:

BBBBBWWWWAAAAAHHHHHHHRROOOOOAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRR

Yes, that thing's got a Hemi.

30 Minutes With: The 2017 Dodge Challenger T/A 392

The 2017 Dodge Challenger T/A 392.

Publisher's note:  Normally, the cars you read about here at TireKicker are loaned to us by the press fleets of the various manufacturers for several days.  Seven is typical.  Occasionally, we'll get a longer period of time, and sometimes it'll only be three or four days.  Our "30 Minutes With" series are cars that we spent half an hour behind the wheel of during the just-concluded Western Automotive Journalists Media Days in Monterey, California.

Day one of Media Days is a driving program, with journalists taking cars from the staging area at Quail Lodge in Carmel Valley to Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca via Laureles Grade.  Once there, you swap cars with another journalist for the drive back, and then swap cars again once back at the Quail. Apart from an hour's lunch, this is your day from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.  Each run is about half an hour, and driving 10 to 12 cars back-to-back-to-back gives you interesting points of reference about the next one.

My ninth car of the day was one of the most fearsome...the 2017 Dodge Challenger T/A 392.

How Do You Spell "Bwahahahaha"?: The 2015 Dodge Challenger R/T

The 2015 Dodge Challenger R/T.

One second before starting the engine of the 2015 Dodge Challenger R/T, I thought what I'd always thought about the Challenger: Namely that it was a big, dumb, brutish appliance for men in their 60s who missed out on having a muscle car back in the day. An over-the-counter supplement that could be bundled with Centrum Silver, Viagra, Minoxidil, Super Beta Prostate and Osteo Bi-Flex.

Then I started the engine.