Why I Disliked The Charger and Do Not Mourn Her Loss
When I checked back in to my visual review for “The Third Man,” I noticed that there was some debate on there about Sam’s car, his Charger. I made some very negative comments about it: in fact, I called it “stupid” and crowed “ding dong, the witch is dead” when it got crushed. Some people were curious about why I didn’t like it. So I’m here to set the record straight about why I dislike the Charger so much and open the floor for a nice, friendly debate about the pros and cons of the car.
I’ll start off by saying that I absolutely adore classic muscle cars, almost every one of them. The golden age of muscle cars, i.e. the late “˜60s/early “˜70s produced so many classics it’s hard to choose just one favorite. But for me, no car will ever beat a “˜69 Chevelle SS. Bobby’s car, in other words. It looks like this:
?Excuse me while I wipe up the drool. Since I don’t have a spare $40,000 lying around to get myself one of these babies, I have to make do with a more modern car that’s, yes, made of plastic. I drive a Scion xB, aka The Box. It looks like this:
It’s not nearly as pretty as the SS, but I love it! It’s fun, it’s crazy-looking, it has great gas mileage, and it’s been super reliable. I do not regret for one moment buying this car because it is awesome. Okay, the engine is small and it doesn’t have very good pick-up, but other than that, it’s perfect for me.
But what I really want is a classic muscle car. I want a muscle car so bad, I can taste it! When someone drives by in a classic muscle car, I almost crash my cute little boxy car because I’m so distracted. The thing is, though, all these new muscle cars that the car companies have been putting out? The only one I like is the Dodge Challenger, and that’s because it looks the most like a “˜60s car to me. The rest suck. They really, really suck. Why do I think they suck? Well, if you haven’t guessed by now, I am a very visual person, and the look of something like a car is an important factor to me. So if a car doesn’t look the way I like, I don’t like the car. The new Chevy Camaro looks like it’s smiling at me. I haven’t like the way a Mustang looks since the late “˜60s. I don’t like the indented side panel thing. And the Charger. Where do I begin with the Charger?
I had a chance to drive a Charger once when my mom rented one last year on a vacation we took to Arizona. We did a lot of highway driving, so I got to really open her up and see how she felt. Now, we didn’t have Sam’s model, of course, because that would have been prohibitively expensive. But it was still a Charger, just more of a sedan version. And yeah, it definitely had a powerful engine, way more powerful than mine. But it was sluggish to respond, the acceleration was not what I had hoped for, and it overall really disappointed me. It was also an automatic, and since I drive a manual, that was just maddening. I want to tell the car when to shift, darn it!
So for me, the Chargers now all look like a sedan, even the most muscley of them all. I want a muscle car to look and act like a muscle car, not a sedan. If I wanted a sedan, I’d go get a Civic or something. A muscle car means mean, raw, aggressive power for me. That’s what I want in my muscle car. And yes, that is going to mean lower gas mileage, less comfort, fewer amenities. The Charger especially feels like a sedan/muscle car hybrid to me, like they are trying to market it to people who had a muscle car growing up and had to get rid of it due to family obligations. But now look! It has power and you can take your kids to karate class! That may be a better business model, but it’s not going to make me like the car.
Now, one commenter in my visual review wondered whether my dislike of the Charger was because it was Sam’s car. “Why can’t Sam drive a car of his own?” she asked quite rightly. For me personally, my dislike of the Charger in no way was affected by the fact that it was Sam’s. Of course he can drive his own car, especially when he’s out on his own hunting. When I heard he was going to have his own car, I really hoped it would be awesome because two super sweet cars are better than one! That said, do I prefer to see them together in the Impala? Hell yeah, I do. It feels like that’s where they belong, together in the Impala. But my dislike of the Charger is simply because it’s a Charger. If Dean drove the very same car, I would hate it just as much. In fact, I hated the Charger even before Sam got one. I have pretty much hated them since I drove one. And so many people drive them where I live that it just compounds the problem! If I’m going to be stuck in traffic every day, I don’t want to be surrounded by Chargers!
Of course, compared to the Impala, not many cars are going to be able to hold their own. The Impala is a beauty, and she’s extremely important to our characters, which makes her even more special. It would be hard for any car to come into that kind of relationship and look good, so for one of my most hated cars to come on the show and drive around with the Impala? Yeah, I was glad when it got crushed.
So there are my reasons for disliking the Charger. Rational? Probably not. And I recognize that we’re all entitled to our own opinions about everything, especially what kind of cars we like. So why don’t you tell me yours? Who liked the Charger and why? Anybody out there share my distaste for it?
😆 Ardeospina. I consider my question more than asnwered on your part. Thank you! I’m glad the reason is the Charger itself and not the fact the Sam has a car which is not the Impala. However, I meant the negativity of fandom in general towards the Charger so I’m curious about what the answers will be.
That said, I confess that I too prefer the two of them together in the Impala like old times. I just think that Sam should have a right to his own car if he wants one, Charger or not. What lies behind his wish, well, it’s open to more discussion.
Just a note: I still see the Charger as a he, a “bad boy” fitting his driver’s current status. 😉
Things become clearer now! Visuals are the #1 attractor when it comes to the muscle for you. Yes, very important. (though how you can be visual and like the box, I’ve no idea:D) I’ve never (sigh) driven a Charger, but if I did, it would have to be the SRT8. I’ll agree that anything else = less in the Charger world. Oh, and before I forget, just a quick reminder that the Impala is an automatic, so cool cars CAN be auto.
Oh, and the SS Chevilles? There are at least two that I see on my road rather often. Pretties?!
I like the SRT8. Shocking news, I know. I’ll admit, when I first saw it, I was a little ‘meh’ since the body isn’t anything like the classic beauties that I drool over. For the newer look, it isn’t bad, but nothing to get my engine started. Then I looked deeper, peeked under the hood and yum. This is a boy you’ve got to get nekkid, so to speak, to appreciate. So I guess we’re different in that respect.
So here is the quick run down on this bad boys guts.
• 425 HP HEMI V8 engine (6,000 rpm and 420 lbs torque @4,800 rpm)
• 6.1 Liter engine (note, not the 5.1 engine which is probably what you drove)
• 14 mpg in the city and 20 mpg on the HWY (not the best but not awful)
• Electronic Stability Program
• 5 speed, yes, automatic, but with a Mercedes Benz source transmission
• Sport suspension
• 0-60 in under 5 seconds with a top speed of 165 mph
Now come on, how is that not sexy?
And there are some nice amenities.
• Not sure if Sam had it, but it can come with a subwoofer, which even Dean might appreciate! And a 6 disc changer which I would appreciate.
• I misprinted in my last post, the seats are offshoots from what’s in the Viper.
• Heated seats (as a Montanian, gotta mention THAT!)
• For this kind of car, a pretty big trunk. Extra storage underneath. Important for hunt…things.
Now, don’t get the idea that I’m some sort of car nut, because I’m not. But I was a mechanic once upon a time, so I tend to appreciate what’s inside as well as out. Granted, I didn’t work on reciprocating engines, so that is newish territory for me. Turbine is a whole other world of mechanics, way over complicated.
Anyway, I may be biased. My own baby, who I slaved over, was far from sexy, beautiful, or attractive when it came to esthetics. And, she was old. Perhaps one could call her a classic in the category of helicopters. A child of the sixties. So next to the newer models, she was small, old, slow and awkward looking. But, she was a work horse. While some of the sexier models had to return to the hanger often, she just kept on flyin. (not that she didn’t have her problems!) So when I look at a vehicle, I want to know about more than how pretty it looks, I want to know about performance.
As far as I can tell, the Charger performs. And I’ll admit, the body has grown on me. He is understated, sleek, and with some hidden curvatures. Not super sexy at first glance, but keep looking at him and the beauty comes out…at least for me. Sure, he’s plastic. He’ll never measure up to the Impala (pretty much the most important object in the universe). But for my life? One please. In black.
I kinda liked the Charger. I thought is was a pretty cool looking car. Especially liked the fact that Sam had his own car, which would make it easier for Dean to take a side trip to Cicero for a long weekend. But, didn’t feel sad when it met its demise. The Impala is by far, the better muscle car.
My favorite car is the ’65 Ford Mustang. My ultimate favorite would be the kind of Mustang that War drove in Good God Ya’ll. Now, that was a sweet car. If I could have my dream car, I would have that car in black, with some kind of stripe or colored trim. Maybe someday (when I’m rich).
I liked the Charger – not so much the car itself, which I’m fine with, but the spirit of it. Sam’s Charger is the General Lee! Well, it’s the 2010 Dodge Charger, not the ’68/’69 models used for the General Lee. Eric Kripke has mentioned loving memorable TV cars, so that’s the connection I made in my head. Sam would have a modern car, but they tied it back to the classics. I have to admit, I did enjoy seeing the Charger destroyed as a result of Cas’ fall, but I really wish we could have gotten a glimpse into the trunk of the car. Did he deck it out like he did the Impala in Mystery Spot?
Biker Grrrl here so all cars are a bit meh for me. Still you can’t get many armaments in a top box and they do let the rain in and after several states worth of riding you wouldn’t be fit for much monster fighting until you’d had a nice lie-down and half a gallon of deep-heat so the Impala has obvious advantages!
Didn’t mind the Charger particularly in a box-on-wheels sort of way but it had no personality. unlike the Black Beast Of Sacred Memory …
Hi Ardeospina
I have to say I’m not much of a car person. When it comes to the ins and outs of a vehicle as per the engine, gas mileage and accessories…I have no clue. If I hear the sound that the engine is running when I turn the key and it gets me from point A to B..I’m generally happy.
When it’s – 25c (-13F) or more and the heat and defrost work…I’m extremely happy.
However on a visual standpoint I do love the antique and classic cars. They had so much more character to them. Today’s cars are nice looking including the Charger, but there’s nothing really unique about them.
As for the show having the brothers both back in the Impala, it was inevitable and it is where both belong, well for me it is. It’s comforting to see them together like that, makes me feel like everything’s going to be ok with them again. But I have to say I kind of enjoyed the “Battle of the Vehicles†between the brothers. I could of gone a few more episodes with the banter and them competing with each other.
Great article Ardeospina ❗
I agree that it wasn’t the fact that Sam had his own car that I was disliking(is that a word? :D), it was the Charger that I did not like.
I do not drive, but I have always loved the cars from the mid to late 1950’s. I love the 1957 Chevy Bel Air.
I love the fins and the chrome on these cars. The cars now are all streamline and molded to move with the wind. 😀 😀 Plus, they all look the same, no matter what make they are.
I think that your car, the Scion xB, is cute. It does not look like your typical family car, which I think looks like a bullet. 😉
Poor you, surrounded by Chargers, isn’t that the fifth level of Hell?? 😛
After this week’s episode, I do not see a bright future with Dean and Sam in the Impala. :cry:: :cry::
Flamey, this was indeed interesting. There is a fascination about American cars to my European eye, I have to admit. And as much as I love the Impala, of course, who couldn’t?, I have practical issues, too – owning an Impala today would probably be followed by tremendous costs of fuel, repair, tools.
My fave car is one of the old Jaguars which I’m never gonna be able to afford. Sniff.
But I liked the Charger, too. it reminded me a bit of my own car, a black Opel Astra, though mine is not that bulky… For me it was Sam’s batmobile. I’M not particularly sad that it’s gone but I wouldn’t have minded it to be around a bit longer.
Thanks for this article, dear, Jas
I’m a bit slow, but it just dawned on me that the individual who wrote this article, also wrote (the wildly funny :-)) “Conversations With Sam and Dean, Volume 1” –
https://www.thewinchesterfamilybusiness.com/article-list/category15/10859-conversations-with-sam-and-dean.html