2013 Dodge Charger Review Photos
Click on any image to see a larger slideshow and captions. Cars.com photos by Evan Sears.
Who you lookin’ at? The Charger is one of the most aggressive-looking sedans on the road, and it was even before being adopted by a growing percentage of law-enforcement organizations. The chrome-free black grille shown comes in the optional Blacktop Package.
Dodge vehicles’ rear ends are probably the most distinctive and easily recognizable on the road. The so-called racetrack taillight ring can be identified from a half-mile away at night.
The Charger boasts a comfortable ride even with large wheels like our R/T’s 19s. Available sizes range from 17 to 20 inches.
The R/T features the 5.7-liter Hemi V-8, good for 370 hp. It provides the robust acceleration you want, but don’t necessarily need.
Some of our editors found the front seats comfortable, some said they were too mushy, and I think the upper part of the backrest is too hard. Your results may vary.
By the numbers, the backseat headroom figures are lower than expected, but adults fit nicely anyway. The legroom is good, but that center floor hump is among the highest and most intrusive you can find.
The V-8 comes only with a five-speed automatic transmission that’s a fine match. Combined with the newish V-6, a new eight-speed automatic makes the lesser-powered model surprisingly respectable.
The Charger has good interior quality. I like the textured aluminum surfaces, but some folks prefer the warmer wood-trim approach seen in the Chrysler 300. Dodge divides the duties between physical controls and the optional touch-screen very well.
The optional Uconnect system has an 8.4-inch touch-screen that makes most screens seem inadequate. Its size allows it to show buttons and other information without completely dwarfing the navigation map.
The Uconnect menus are mostly well thought-out. This one controls the optional heated and ventilated front seats and heated steering wheel. The Sport button up top makes the accelerator more responsive; good to have, but it should be a physical button, not a menu option.
The optional heated and cooled cupholders are an excellent gimmick, but they’re only so effective. Aluminum cans seem to get cooled nicely, but most cups and travel mugs are insulated enough that they don’t allow much temperature transfer.
The storage console under the center armrest isn’t as roomy as I’d like, but it’s great to have the USB and audio jacks close to the front and illuminated rather than hidden in the glove compartment or something.
With a volume of 15.4 cubic feet, the Charger’s trunk is on the low side for full-size sedans, but you’d never know it by looking. Thankfully, the standard rear seats fold flat in a 60/40 split — a feature that’s uncommon among full-size sedans once you step into the luxury space.
Overall, the Charger accommodated our child-safety seats very well. The high-back booster shown fit nicely despite the contoured seats, though the prominent bolsters prevented installing three car seats across.
