2016 Dodge Charger Scat Pack - Family-Friendly Muscle

“In the same way that going public with your billion dollar lotto prize money would, the plum crazy Dodge Charger will make you an instant celebrity. Seriously, Sasquatch could be next to you and everyone would still be gazing at the Charger.”

2016 Dodge Charger Scat Pack – Family-Friendly Muscle

By all means, the Dodge Charger Scat Pack isn’t the sedan we deserve, but the sedan we need. That’s how I felt once the outrageous, lovable and devilishly-fast Charger went back home, and I was forced to carry on with my normal life with less attention, less excitement and much, much less horsepower.

The 2016 Dodge Charger Scat Pack is a bit of a basket case in many ways, as it offers more humph than the lower trims, but then it picks and chooses goodies from its big brothers, the 392 SRT and the mighty Hellcat. That being said, the perfect way to describe the Scat Pack is: Affordable. Family-friendly. Horsepower.

Let’s start with the elephant in the room—the color. Plum crazy is one of Dodge’s retro colors, and the first time you lay eyes on it’ll make you say: “@#$!” It’s obnoxiously cool, and therefore a magnet to eyeballs you didn’t even know were around you. If you like being the center of attention, forget the Ferrari, this is it. If you don’t, then you’ve never experienced attention like this, and you’ll like it. Trust me.

“How can a hot-as-heck, 485 horsepower, purple muscle car, be the right fit for a family?”

I’m glad you ask! Regardless of the trim, the Charger is a proper sedan, and I’m not talking about a tiny and cramped car with four doors. I’m referring to a proper mid-size, spacious, comfortable and safe four door car with ac vents and usb power outlets in the back seat. On top of that, there are two sets of LATCH upper and lower anchors, plus an enormous trunk for you to throw your groceries, strollers, and suitcases into. Should you need to strap two full-size car seats, pack two strollers and burnout your way to the pediatrician’s office. You can do that.

In case you didn’t catch it, I mentioned the fact that the backseat of the Charger features two fully-adjustable ac vents, along with two usb power outlets. This is important. Not only because lots of manufacturers forget to add these, but because these tiny-but-important features are normally found on more luxury-centric vehicles. Plus they’re also important if you don’t want your kids to freeze/sweat to death, or not be able to charge their electronics—which could also lead to death (at least in their eyes).

While I’ve made it very clear that the rear occupants are more than taken care of, it’s the driver and front passenger that truly get pampered with comfortable seats and user-friendly technology. Our test vehicle’s only optional feature was the Uconnect 8.4 infotainment system, which includes XM/HD radio, navigation, and bluetooth connectivity, and happens to be one of the easiest to understand and operate systems in the industry.

https://www.instagram.com/p/BEmqNeOpUkY/?taken-by=driveswgirls

Personally, I’d totally splurge on the alcantara and nappa leather performance seats ($1,595), and the driver confidence package, which includes blind spot monitoring, cross traffic detection, and auto-dimming mirror for $595.

Although fully-loaded cars are a blast to test-drive, I understand and completely approve that by keeping the options low, Dodge highlighted what a hot-bargain the Charger Scat Pack really is, as sticker on this purple beast is just $41,685 including a $995 destination charge.

It wasn’t only me that spent plenty of seat time on this bad boy—Missi did too! And needless to say, she really enjoyed it! More importantly, it fit her well. Missi measures a towering 5’2, so the long and bulging hood could’ve been a potential problem vision-wise, but the driver’s power-seat elevated enough to offer her a good position where she could drive and park without any concerns. Plus the standard rearview camera helped everyone backup like a pro.

Needless to say, a quick stab of the throttle and the rear tires light up into clouds of smoke (not that I’d ever do that), and if you dare push the sport button; then the silky-smooth 8-speed transmission will shifter faster, harder and give you more revs and more power on-demand.

Sad to see you go…

Ask me what I love most about the Charger Scat Pack, and of course I’ll say the 392 HEMI under the hood, the launch control gadget, the rockstar-like attention I received while driving it, etc. but there’s much more to it…

Ask both of us as parents what we loved most about the Scat Pack, and it’s got to be its versatility. We enjoyed exhilarating country drives with the windows down, mundane errand-running and kid-shuttling services, drove through some pretty nasty weather, and even strapped our bike rack to it and turned it into a utility vehicle. The Charger did it all, and did it looking darn good.

If you like performance, good looks, and you want to share that with your family, get a 2016 Dodge Charger Scat Pack.