All-Wheel-Drive Dodge Challenger GT is For Real, Finally
CARS.COM — Snow-belt muscle-car fans, start writing your relatives for holiday cash. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has finally unveiled one of its worst-kept secrets with the all-wheel-drive 2017 Dodge Challenger GT, and it goes on sale in the first quarter of 2017.
Related: What’s the Best V-8 Muscle Car for 2016?
The GT heralds the introduction of all-wheel drive to the Challenger lineup, but it isn’t cheap. At $34,490 including a destination fee, the GT is more than $6,000 pricier than the base rear-drive Challenger, with which it shares a 305-horsepower, 3.6-liter V-6 and eight-speed automatic transmission. But the GT also gets Nappa leather upholstery, heated and ventilated seats, 19-inch wheels, a backup camera, a heated steering wheel with power tilt and telescoping adjustments, and an Alpine stereo with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and Chrysler’s 8.4-inch multimedia touchscreen. Most of those features are optional on the regular Challenger.
Options include Nappa- and Alcantara seats, a performance steering wheel, a moonroof and even more stereo speakers and wattage. FCA spokeswoman Kristin Starnes told us the GT won’t offer any of the Challenger’s V-8 engines, however.
The EPA leaked fuel-economy numbers — 18/27/21 mpg city/highway/combined — for the Challenger GT in October, and FCA confirmed them, or at least the city and highway figures. That puts the all-wheel-drive Challenger GT behind its rear-drive sibling by 2 mpg.
The all-wheel-drive system, as in the Challenger’s Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger cousins, features an active transfer case and disconnecting front axle to remain essentially rear-wheel drive until low traction requires power up front. (Dodge and Chrysler are both FCA brands.)
The GT gives muscle-car shoppers an all-weather choice, something unavailable in the rival Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro — though if you can live with a different body style, similarly priced sports cars like the Volkswagen Golf R, Ford Focus RS and Subaru WRX STI also have all-wheel drive.
