http://pictures.dealer.com/t/titusvillecdjcllc/0157/0f58a047cac7653fa28759de07c51f72x.jpg
Well, finally got to get behind the wheel of the Challenger R/T Scat Pack on Thursday. Drove the car pictured above. Didn’t like the color, but it didn’t matter.
The interior is not exactly ‘luxury-grade’, but still, I didn’t think it was bad at all, and huge improvement over the pre-2015 models…
2015…
Pre-2015…
Didn’t notice much hard plastic inside; mostly soft-touch materials and aluminum. Seemed to be put together rather well. Wish the car had a handbrake, although for more practical reasons and not for less-mature ones… 
Seats were comfortable, but could use a bit more side bolstering. Visibility outside wasn’t as good as the Mustang, but better than the Camaro. Didn’t mess with any HVAC controls, but they seemed intuitive enough. Car had a 7" configurable LCD display between the tach and speedometer, and a 8.4" touchscreen in the dash. Didn’t mess with any of it because (1. I couldn’t care less about whatever ‘telematics’ automakers seem to be shoving down motorists’ throats these days and if it was an option, mine wouldn’t have it and (2. I have no idea how any of it works (for that matter, nor did the sales rep that accompanied me).
Interior room was quite ample; my shoulders, head and legs did not lack for space in this car at all (whereas my legs feel rather penned in the Mustang), and the back seat actually appeared to be able to seat two fair-sized adults.
Now, for the drive:
I didn’t get to start the car; the sales guys had that honor, but I didn’t really mind as I stood behind the car as they fired it up. I thought my 5.0 in my Mustang had a pretty good sound to it on startup, but it has absolutely nothing on the 6.4L Hemi in the Challenger. It awakens with an authoritative, almost beastly growl, considerably louder than my 5.0, then settles down to a more mellow, quieter burble. The sales rep pulled the car out of the lot, I jumped in, put the shifter into D, let off the brake, and I was off…
I pulled onto the somewhat empty highway from the dealer lot and accelerated rather leisurely to the local speed limit of 55. The 8-speed automatic in this car shifted extremely quickly, yet smoothly, better than any automatic I’ve ever experienced. The roads were relatively smooth here, the Challenger rode very nicely, and soaked up whatever few bumps and imperfections there were with aplomb. The Challenger shuts off 4 cylinders at cruise/light throttle, but I could barely notice it. The car is very civilized and remarkably quiet whilst at cruise.
After a few minutes of highway driving, I pulled onto some back roads that I’d taken my Mustang through in the past to see how well the suspension handled rougher, less-maintained pavement, as well as some curves. The fully-independent suspension shrugged off bumps, irregularities and potholes with considerably more compliance, along with less harshness than the Mustang. When I introduced it to some gentle-to-moderate curves, I was pleasantly surprised that it handled them quite nicely; it didn’t feel as nimble as my Mustang through these curves, but it was quite competent nonetheless, especially for it’s weight (~4200lbs) and the rather skinny tires relative to its size (245/45/20 on all 4 corners). I had no complaints about the brakes, (14.2" rotors up front, 13.8" rotors in the back, all with 4-piston Brembo calipers)except that they were perhaps a tad touchy/grabby.
Satisfied that this Challenger could actually handle to my satisfaction, I was about to pull back onto the highway that I was on earlier. I was rather reluctant to really put the car through its paces, as it only had 20 miles on it, but the salesman actually encouraged me to ‘give it some gas’. I pushed the accelerator down to about half-way, and the Challenger ROARED. I went from 25mph to 60 in what seemed like only 2 or 3 seconds. It just bolted forward with so little drama aside from the glorious sound of the 6.4 Hemi and my body being pushed back into the seat. The transmission downshifted from 8th to whatever gear it needed to be (not really sure) with an amazing rapidity, yet so smooth, not at all jerky or shuddery like other automatics I’ve experienced. The automatic in the R/T Scat Pack had both a manual-shift gate in the console, as well as paddle shifters on the steering wheel, but I didn’t use either. The transmission just always seemed to know EXACTLY what gear it needed to be in while I was driving. And the exhaust note the car makes under hard acceleration is just incredible. The active exhaust on this car is just right. Nice and quiet during cruise, and very loud and raucous when you’re on it. The 6.4 in the Challenger just trumps the 5.0 in this area, no question in my mind.
After about 25 minutes, I took the car back to the dealership, and parked it next to my Mustang. As expected, it dwarfed it quite readily, especially with regards to overall length. So much that I’m not sure if it would fit in my garage! 
Still, my final verdict for the 2015 Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack is…I like it. A LOT. And I want one. BAD. So much so that I am definitely going to order one by the end of this year, so help me…
(p.s…this Challenger has some apps in which you can adjust certain parameters of the car via the 8.4" touchscreen; Engine response, transmission mode/shift quality, traction/stability control, steering feel, and several others that I can’t recall. But I’m rather certain that these settings were in their base/normal modes during the test drive. I’d LOVE to see how it would run with the settings set to sport/off… 
)
It’s a bit too big and heavy for my tastes. At nearly $39k, it’s the most expensive of the group. Also, if you don’t order it with the (from what I’ve heard, excellent ZF 8-speed) automatic transmission, you get slapped with a $1000 gas-guzzler tax. 
), and available now adds to the appeal. That and I REALLY want to distance myself from my Mustang, and by extension, Ford Motor Company ASAP.
). Strangely enough, I haven’t been terribly excited during most of my wait, but my anxiety level has since shot way up in the last week or so…
