The 1999 Charger R/T Concept’s Role In Defining The Modern-Day 4-Door Sedan From Dodge

Summary

• The 2006 Dodge Charger with four doors reshaped the perception of what a muscle car and family sedan could be
• The Dodge Charger R/T concept in 1999 was the inspiration for the modern four-door Charger, and while it didn’t enter production, it had a major impact on the future of the Charger nameplate.
• The Charger R/T concept showed that the number of doors doesn’t affect styling or performance, and it paved the way for high-performance four-door sedans in the auto industry.

When Dodge rebooted the Charger in 2006, it was scandalous that the fabled muscle car came equipped with a couple of extra doors. Performance rides are two-door coupes, not four-door sedans. At least that’s the way it used to be, but the sixth-generation Dodge Charger had sharp styling and killer power, completely reshaping the perception of what both a muscle car and a family sedan was. The new Charger made extra doors extra cool.

Back during the classic era of cars, many of the coolest cars came in decidedly uncool four-door variations. A Chevrolet Chevelle could be had in its proper two-door style, or it could be delivered as a four-door sedan and even a station wagon. It was possible to option a Chevelle with a big, powerful engine, but even the extra ponies couldn’t make a four-door anything but a dorky family car. None of the classic Mopars came in extra-door configurations, which made the 2006 four-door Charger an even bigger surprise.

The ’06 Charger, which became a modern icon itself, had its roots in a 1999 concept vehicle that bore little resemblance to the eventual production vehicle. A few styling cues, the name, and the four-door configuration are the only things that held over for the rebooted Charger, but the concept was an interesting exercise in design that lit the fuse for the modern four-door sedan. Prior to the concept, sedans were stuffy luxury vehicles and family cars, but soon became high-performance rides that are both cool and sporty.

In order to give you the most up-to-date and accurate information possible, the data used to compile this article was sourced from various manufacturer websites and other authoritative sources, including Stellantis, MotorTrend, and the Automobile Catalog.

1999 Dodge Charger R/T Concept

Four-Door Performance

Chrysler hit the North American Auto Show in 1999, with a stunning concept vehicle they called the Dodge Charger R/T. It was a revival of their iconic nameplate, which hadn’t been used since it was devalued as a Dodge Omni trim package in the 1980s. It was also one hell of a good-looking ride, that blended elements from the second-gen 1968 Charger and the more recent Dodge Viper.

With a long nose, short decklid, and Coke bottle shape, it paid homage to the classic Charger, while the sloped front end and side scoops were a nod to the Viper. The design was so amazing that it took a while to realize this updated muscle car had four doors. Chrysler decided that two-door coupes were falling out of favor, so they went with four but took the time to hide them in the design.

Dodge Charger R/T Concept Features

• Leather bucket seats
• Leather and carbon fiber interior
• NASCAR-style three-spoke steering wheel
• Pistol-grip shifter
• Brushed metal pedals
• Stacked triple analog gauge cluster

The Dodge Charger R/T concept vehicle wasn’t just eye candy either, as plenty of performance was packed under the hood. In another curious design decision, Chrysler put a supercharged compressed natural gas (CNG) engine in the concept car, figuring that cleaner-burning fuels would be the wave of the future. They kind of missed the mark on that one, but the 4.7-liter CNG V-8 cranked out 325 horsepower and could propel the lightweight 3,000-pound car from 0-60 mpg in 5.3 seconds.

The drawbacks for the CNG engine were that the storage tanks were huge, taking up most of the truck space, and they only offered 200 miles of range before a fill-up was needed. Still, this was a fully functioning high-performance Charger, something that had been missing since the late 1970s, so it was exciting. As MotorTrend reported, it also set the stage for the modern retro-style muscle car.

Charging In A New Direction

Charger R/T Concept Canceled

As amazing as the Dodge Charger R/T concept vehicle was, it never made it into production. Around the same time as the concept came out, Chrysler merged with Daimler-Benz and there was no room in the company’s vision for it. The idea of a rebooted Charger, however, was still something very appealing, so seven years later, the sixth-generation muscle car was introduced.

The 2006 Charger was very different from the concept car in overall styling but did retain the four-door configuration as well as the performance engine options. It was also a far cry from its classic OG Charger ancestor other than it had a bold, aggressive stance and could light the tires up.

Sixth-Gen Charger Trims and Engines

• Unnamed base – 3.5-liter Magnum V-6
• SE Plus – 3.5-liter Magnum V-6
• SXT – 3.5-liter Magnum V-6
• R/T – 5.7-liter Hemi V-8
• Daytona R/T high output 5.7-liter Hemi V-8
• SRT-8 – 6.1-liter Hemi V-8
• Super Bee – 6.1-liter Hemi V-8

The 2006 Charger came in many trim levels, with a competent 3.5-liter V-6 as the standard engine and some really impressive options. The top dog was the Charger SRT-8, with a 425 horsepower 6.1-liter Hemi V-8, making it the first Dodge in a long time that could run a quarter-mile in the 13s.

Showing how far technology had come, 6.1 liters is 370 cubic inches, and it made the same number of ponies as the legendary 426ci Hemi engine of the classic Mopar muscle cars. Putting that kind of power in the rebooted Charger was a genius move for Dodge because it made even the skeptics realize that a four-door sedan could also be a legitimately badass street machine.

Bridging The Charger Generations

From Classic To Concept

The Dodge Charger was launched in 1966 as a fastback pony car, that was a little odd-looking and not very successful. Two years later, in 1968, however, the second-gen Charger was a smash hit and regarded as the quintessential muscle car of the classic era. The third generation got a slight re-style that people either love or hate, but for at least the first year in 1971, it still had all the freaky-powerful engine options available.

By the fourth generation, in the mid-1970s, the Charger became a land yacht personal luxury vehicle with underwhelming power. By the sixth generation of the 1980s, the de-evolution was complete, and the Charger was a goofy hatchback with a wimpy inline-four-cylinder engine. The one thing consistent across all generations was that a Charger only had two doors.

Power and Performance Comparison

(Performance stats sourced from Automobile Catalog, MotorTrend, and Stellantis)

With the 1999 Dodge Charger R/T concept car, suddenly the iconic muscle car was a four-door sedan. That held over to the eventual production Charger of 2006. As initially shocking as it was to Charger purists, it’s really not that big of a deal because there was nothing to compare them to.

Putting a 1970 Chevy Chevelle SS 454 next to the ’70 Chevelle four-door sedan with a 250 I-6 makes it easy to determine which one is the kickass ride. There are, however, no two-door versions of the Charger R/T concept or the sixth-gen Charger, so the four-door versions are by default the most killer. Both vehicles are cool-looking and fast, which are the two things at the core of what it means to be a Charger.

Dodge Charger R/T Concept Legacy

Ushering In Four-Door Performance

While the 1999 Dodge Charger R/T concept vehicle never made it into production, it still had a major impact. It inspired the reboot of the Charger nameplate and those cool side scoops were eventually incorporated into the modern muscle car.

More importantly, the concept proved that the number of doors has no impact on styling or performance. Fast, sporty cars were no longer limited to coupes or sports cars. It showed that blowing doors off could be just as fun with four doors as it was with two. It wasn’t just the divisions of Chrysler that realized sedans could be high performers, but pretty much the entire auto industry.

High-Performance Four-Door Sedans

• 2008 Chrysler 300 SRT-8 ($25 horsepower)
• 2019 Mercedes-AMG S65 (621 horsepower)
• 2020 Lexus GS-F (467 horsepower)
• 2023 Audi RS3 (401 horsepower)
• 2024 Cadillac CT4-V BLACKWING (472 Horsepower)

Another aspect of the R/T concept car’s legacy is that it has clearly inspired the next chapter of the Charger story. Dodge announced that 2023 would be the last model year for the gas-powered Charger, replacing it with an all-electric version. The Dodge Charger Daytona SRT, due at some point in 2024, comes with several electric motor options ranging from 445 horsepower to a blistering 1,320 horsepower.

The criteria for being a true Charger is that it’s cool-looking and fast, so the next-gen EV counts. Speaking of looks, the styling of the Charger Daytona SRT is suspiciously similar to that of the Charger R/T concept car with the only real difference being the new ride has gone back to being a two-door.