I can't cite the Prowler and Viper? Then the Japanese Car Fans can't site the Skyline GTR and Honda Civic Si as innovative products.

Chrysler has built plenty of good vehicles in the last 20 years many of which were leaders in innovation:

1. The cab-forward movement was pioneered by Chrysler. Its a design strategy that shifted the passenger compartment forward and spread the wheels outward creating a more aerodynamic albeit unpopular shape today. Nevertheless still innovative in that it shed the notion of how a car had to be packaged.

2. The introduction of the Neon SRT-4 heralded a new horsepower war. Dodge generated huge amounts of power out of the Neon's powerplant yet still maintained its civility. In a time when the Civic Si's 160HP seemed like a lot the SRT-4's 230HP was a major improvement. This upp'd the ante, and you can thank Dodge that today our sport compacts come with more guts.

3.) I'm going to cite it anyway....the Viper. Besides its obvious reasons, the Viper started as a concept with no promise of being produced. But Dodge did a 180 and in less than one year it was a production model. At a time when car makers took 3-5 years to develop a car, Dodge did it in 1 year. Since that time, car makers have shaved years off development using the same strategies Dodge pioneered in 1989.

4. The dodge truck. The full size Ram proved that a truck didn't have to be just utilitarian, but that it could be nice to look at and civil. Add to that the Dakota was way ahead of its time, as a mid-size truck. Something Nissan tries to take credit for with the Frontier

5. The sport compact car/hatch. Yes, thats right. You can give dodge the credit. Sure a bit later than 20 years ago when it all started. But the innovative Shelby Chargers, Daytonas, and GLHS's were light years ahead of the Japanese when it comes to real performance in a budget package. In fact today, those 20 year old Shelbys could lay waste to some modern "performance" imports.

6. V-10 Trucks. Today a common site on any construction site. Dodge was the first to offer an oversized powerplant for oversized work loads. Then there is the diesel versions....a market segment that the Japanese don't even try to compete with.

7. Making retro cool. When most car companies were making jelly beans with wheels in the mid 90's. Chrysler/Dodge started making cars that had some appeal.
The Prowler and even the lowly PT Cruiser paid homage to yesterday's hot rods.
Rising from the dead, the Charger and Challenger offer everyone a chance at reliving the musclecar era all over again. When most car companies try to make a car for everyone. Dodge has never been afraid of making a car for the enthusiast.

8. The PT Cruiser. Love it or hate it (okay hate it) you have to recognize that it ushered in an era of personal, economical, and affordable mini transport. Like a shruken mini-van it was the first of a wave of small transporters that hit the American shore. Scion Xb anyone? Do you really think we would have seen so many little boxes on wheels had Chrysler not sold a shit ton of PTs? (Plus a turbo PT will kill a Xb....but they are both fugly)

9. The mini-van. Yes it came about a little over 20 years ago. Today Chrysler still manages to make the right van for the right price. Thats hard to do for 20+years consistently. The Odyssey is a nice vehicle, but priced like a luxury car, so it better be nicer.
new yearly innovations on the Caravan keep everyone else trying to keep in step.

10. Jeep and Marketing. Chysler saved Jeep. An American institution. The original off road vehicle for the mass public. Yes, there are better off road vehicles that can take you to places you'll never end up going in real life. But at what price?
The Jeep (aside from the dismal Compass) has always delivered what's promised at an affordable price. But the real innovation here is the marketing. Its more than a vehicle its a lifestyle brand. Chrysler has done a good job of selling the "feel" of owning a Jeep to the world. Including a magazine, and clothing line. Something other car makers only wish they could do as well. And, you probably won't find more die-hard fans than Jeep fans. Its more of a cult and less of a owners group. Plus the Cherokee SRT-8 is just superb.

11. SRT. The marque's high performance division can make even the most benign car a fire breathing monster. If any one of the SRT-8 cars were Japanese cars, there'd be SO MANY nutswingers on this message board it would clog the server.

12. Risk taking. When it fails its bad, but when it works it's innovative. The modern Chrylser 300. Who thought a wannabe Bentley could sell so well. When the world said no one wants big rear drive American sedan, Chysler said , "screw you."
and built one anyway. Sure it doesn't break any new ground, but it sure beats another front drive jelly bean.

I could probably keep going, but it's fruitless. There are just too many people out there that are too close minded to realize that when it comes to quality and innovation....the Japanese do not have the market cornered. Yes, the big 3 have had some hard times, but this is the same big 3 that pulled through the great depression and WWII. If people would get their heads our of their collective asses and walk into a Big 3 dealership they might realize that there is a whole new world of cool cars and trucks out there.

 

"11. SRT. The marque's high performance division can make even the most benign car a fire breathing monster. If any one of the SRT-8 cars were Japanese cars, there'd be SO MANY nutswingers on this message board it would clog the server."

I agree with that 100%..There isnt a Srt-4-6-8 that I would not drive..There all nice/fast/affordable(for the most part) cars/trucks.

 

Actually its funny you say close minded... I love all cars. All my teenage friends drove and modified Chevy's and that's what I learned my mechanic skill on for a while till I started with Toyota and then worked my way to Honda eventually. (the car in my sig is my first Honda) After the first Chrysler bail out in the early 80s they did innovate for about 8 yeas and then in the 90s they fell off again with quality and designs, and now its biting them in the ass. As stated above they were about 8-10 years late on the v8/hemi movement. Hell I still saw the redneck "Hemi" commercials when gas was $4.10 a gallon and not a single Caliber commercial on tv during the nfl season. They were behind the times unfortunately and still could not get a clue ...

 

People buy Acuras with Honda motors, Lexuses with Toyota motors, and Audis with VW motors, no one seems to care about that.
Besides, the Duratec is as good an engine as any other out there. Plus that this is the same powerplant that was in Ford's highly successful European Touring cars. And A Twin-turbocharged version of this engine is used in the Noble M400, a British supercar. The engine is rebuilt and tuned to a max power of 425 bhp at 6500 rpm, with a torque figure of 390 lb·ft at 5000 rpm.
If if I had an X-type I'd be proud to show off it's engine.

 

You still didn't disprove anything I claimed as innovative in your counter-list. Everything I cited still stands. Did you just site "F&F" as a major stepping stone in car development?
I don't think so. Noting but a blip on the radar screen. Come on man....give credit where it's due. You don't have to like what Chrysler has done, but you can't discount it's innovations.

And yes, the SRT line IS certainly innovative. Sure there is Sti and TRD, and SVT, but none of them make the performance increases that SRT can claim from their cars. That and the fact that they are still street-able is truly revolutionary and innovative and that's why I listed it.

Why can't people let go of the stigma of the past product flops by the Big 3? I don't blame Nissan for making the Axxess, or Toyota for making the overwhelmingly slow Echo. Mitsubishi's new Galant looks like a bad origami project, what about the original Honda Passport that was a re-badged Isuzu, that was an abortion.

Everyone forgets that even the Japanese makes have some dark moments in their portfolio as well. Not one car maker is perfect.

 

The SI has been built years before the SRT-4 I could understand if the SRT-4 has been out in the same amount of time as the Si, but it hasnt. Of course it was a major improvement. Seems it was a major improvement to lour (bad sp??) people away from civic's, integras etc.. etc..


Back in my High school days when the hipe of all kids were into getting a Si, or swapping out their d15/d16 for a b16 or higher no1 was talking about neons. I've been out of high school for almost 10 years and no1 had a neon or talked about one when I was in school.. It was either a Honda civic, RX-7, Mustang, or eclipse very few had the old school toyota's and datsuns/nissans

 

It's all Honda over there if im not mistaken. Acura vehicles are called honda's in japan. Mercury doesn't exsist over seas. It's called Ford. I still have lots of friends stationed over seas. Lots of the locals try to purchase Mercury emblems and stick it on their Fords for example a Cougar. Just like how people over here change the RSX name and put a integra name instead and some change the acura to honda.

 

Don't get me wrong. If I could afford a Dodge challenger Id get it. I think they are so hot.. I would love to have a black one with a nice size supercharger, some nice 20 inches sitting low. haha. That would be so cool. . Let a 4cyl gsr, or si, with a turbo come towards me. I would embarrass it

 

No, the innovation lies in that until the SRT-4's 230 HP motor was unveiled the performance benchmark was Honda's, by comparison, anemic 160HP 4 banger.
The fact that Dodge milked so much power out of the 2.4 liter econo-motor was staggering and innovative.

 

The benchmark was the integra type-r's 190ish up. Those cars were using technology from the 80s/90s and dodge finally put out a fast ff car in 2002? The srt4 was bulit for power and the hondas were built to go around curves. They weren't really in the same class. The neon rt, maybe, but not the srt4.

The big 3 have plenty of fine cars, but the reputation they earned with thier out of touch business practices have hurt thier newer models chances for success.

I would rock the he'll out of an Omni GLH, but gm gave up on hot hatches.