Unique Dodge Concepts/Prototypes - And What Made Them Special

Dodge Venom Concept (1994)

Here’s a Dodge concept car from the 1990s some of you probably didn’t know: the 1994 Dodge Venom. With its Viper and Ferrari-like styling, the Venom was actually quite a big hit with car enthusiasts back in 1994, touring the international auto show circuit for several years. That’s a rare in the world of exotic one-off concept cars, where “fresh” might only last for a couple of weeks. But the Venom pulled it off. The Dodge Venom introduced an improved version of past muscle cars, and included all the advantages.

Dodge designed it to showcase its newer design language. Believe it or not, but the Venom was built on a highly modified Neon platform. The wheelbase was stretched from 104 to 106 inches, and converted from FWD to RWD, it also had an ergonomic two-place cockpit nestled in the center of the chassis. The construction was all steel, with a delicate cantilever roofline that’s still quite striking today making it a timeless design. In the aggressive grille openings and flank vents, there was more than a hint of Viper and Ferrari, and the engineering was equally bold. For maximum grip, wheels and tires were considered massive for a car of this size at the time, it had P245/45R19 tires at the front and P245/R4520 tires at the rear. It had a 3.5-liter SOHC 24-valve V6, based on the Intrepid’s production engine, it was tuned to produce 260 horsepower going to the rear wheels, with a 6-speed manual gearbox. Suspension was independent at all four corners via double wishbones, coil springs and gas shocks, while the brakes were four-wheel discs and featured anti-lock brakes (ABS). Optimized for performance on a road or race course, the Venom had a 0-100 km/h time of 5.2 seconds, the existing photography for the Venom shows the car being put through its paces on twisty mountain roads miles from the civilization.

The Dodge Venom attracted plenty of attention at the autoshow, but it never made it to the production line. The Venom’s promotional slogan was, “yesterday’s power, today’s sophistication.”

Dodge Copperhead Concept (1997)

The Dodge Copperhead shown at the 1997 North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Many magazines were impressed with its aerodynamic and unique styling, including its Copper Fire Orange colour and the fact that its sale price would be about $30,000 in the US($45,000 less than the Viper was back then). Unlike the Viper, the Copperhead was made more for handling and driving pleasure, while the Viper was made more for raw power and straight-line speed. The Copperhead had excellent handling due to its low, wide stance. Dodge engineered the Copperhead to be an amazing driver’s car, it was done by stretching the wheels to the end of the frame, adding five inches of ground clearance and a stiff suspension, which meant this car was targeted towards hardcore car enthusiasts.

When the Copperhead was shwn, Dodge received a complaint related to the “Copperhead” name which was taken by a customized 1950 Ford Coupe owned by Billy Gibbons of the American rock band ZZ Top. It had already been registered with the Copperhead name. As a result, DaimlerChrysler unofficially renamed the car, it was then known as “Concept Vehicle” or “Concept Car” instead of Copperhead in scale models, and other merchandise. This made press kits or items with the Copperhead name collectibles. The Dodge Copperhead also made an appearance in the first Gran Turismo and Gran Turismo 2, where it was also known as the “Concept Car”. It had a 2.7L DOHC V6 engine coupled with a 5-speed manual gearbox and RWD.

Dodge Charger R/T Concept (1999)

The Charger R/T shared the long nose and rearward cab of the first generation, but was shorter. It was 4,750 mm in overall length compared to 5,156 mm for the 1966 Charger, and it was also much lighter; 1,361 kg (RT concept) and 1,656 kg (original).
While making an important statement for CNG technology, the Charger R/T was also appealing to the design community. It had functional side scoops like the Viper, also the chrome plated, central mounted exhaust. It even has functional air exhausters. This concept car showcased a new storage tank system that one day might deliver a 480 km range in a CNG-powered passenger car and not take any storage space in the trunk. The pressure cells inside the fiberglass storage tank were lined with a gas-impermeable high density polyurethane (HDPE) thermoplastic and wrapped up in a hybrid mix of strong carbon and durable glass. Finally, the cylinders were laid into a “foam egg crate” to absorb impacts. It was surprisingly strong for its weight. While the concept car was not going into production, a new Dodge Charger LX was produced in 2005 for the 2006 model year. Although built on the same Chrysler LX platform as the R/T concept car was, the new Charger bears little resemblance to the 1999 concept, nor the 2nd generation Chargers that inspired the concept car.

This concept was far ahead of its time.

Dodge Viper RT/10 Concept (1989)

The Viper RT10 concept debuted at the 1989 Detroit Auto Show, and the orders began to flow before the show ended, and the project was approved. There were two other prototypes; the late-1989 V8-powered VM01 and the cast iron V10-powered 1990 VM02. The VM01 used a 360 V8 engine, then the largest Chrysler made, whose basic design went back many years; that engine was also the basis for the V10. The original V10 was based on Chrysler’s venerable 360, Lamborghini (partly Chrysler-owned at the time) worked on the cooling system, crankshaft balance, weight reduction, and the fine tuning. The Italian automaker’s expertise in aluminum was also tapped, since the Viper had an aluminum block to save as much as 150 pounds of weight in order to make the car less nose-heavy. The legendary Chrysler engine designer Willem Weertman, who had headed the design of the 273-318-340-360 series, was also called in to help.

Bob Sheaves wrote that the Viper’s public goal was secondary to its private goal; to see if Chrysler really could develop new methods to lower vehicle costs. For that reason, it was originally intended only to last through 1997, at which point it would be replaced by a completely new vehicle. In addition, the Viper was a test of Francois Castaing’s preferred engineering system as used at AMC; an independent cross-functional team was created, made its own rules and created its own supplier base. The team leader sifted through scores of volunteers to find appropriate people.

Chassis prototypes (test mules) were used to study and tune the dynamics. A year after Viper RT10’s auto show appearance, a V-8-powered mule was being tested in May, a Viper was the official pace car of the Indianapolis 500. Finally, in December 1991, the first red Viper RT/10 production vehicles rolled off at the New Mack Avenue assembly line exactly three years after the concept car’s 1989 auto show debut.

Dodge M80 Concept (2002)

Designer John Opfer said that his role models were the Jeep Wagoneer and the Mitsubishi based Dodge Raider compact pickup; “It not only has a clean, modern design, but it is truly functional. You can easily get to your gear in the back, and if the bed is not long enough, you can open the flipper-glass and add the cabin to your load-length.”It was similar to the Chevrolet Avalanche’s midgate setup.

The Dodge M80 was a small truck, with a satin stainless steel look, Dodge crosshair grille and headlamp surrounds, classic round lamps, and metallic slate-gray, molded-in colour plastic fenders. The M80 also had fender vent vanes, push-button door handles (not common back then), integrated plastic side storage lockers, dual spin-off fuel-filler caps, and stamped-steel 20” wheels with 265/50R20 tires. The five-foot bed was protected by a durable “PET-plastic” liner and bulkhead, using myriad tie down cleats including a Mopar bike, ski, and surfboard racks. The tailgate had stamped “Dodge” and “4x4” lettering. The back of the cab had a full width flipper glass.

It was based on a steel Dodge Dakota frame, and using an independent short and long arm front suspension and a solid axle with rear leaf springs, the M80 used many existing components. Power came from Chrysler’s new 210 hp, 315 nm 3.7L V6 engine with 5-speed manual gearbox and 4x4 transfer case including low and high ranges. The M80 weighed just 2,500 pounds, close to the Neon’s weight. Dodge calculated that it could do 0-100 km/h (62 mph) in around 8 seconds flat, with a top speed of 160 km/h (100 mph).

Dodge M4S/Turbo Interceptor PPG Pace Car Prototype (1981-1987)

The M4S was famous because of its appearance in The Wraith, a movie from 1986. It had a mid-engined layout, and it had a confirmed top speed of 313.5 km/h and could go from 0-100 km/h in just 4.1 seconds, with more than 440 hp coming from its rather small displacement (by American standards) 2.2L I4 turbo engine. It was a transversely mounted 2.198 cc Cosworth-headed DOHC 4 cylinder with dual Garrett T25 turbochargers, and Bosch fuel injection, the car weighed just 1.160 kg.

The Dodge M4S was a pace car. And four of them are still around, one at PPG Headquarters, one at the Chrysler museum, and two others. For a time, a replica was being made as a kit car with a different engine. Thanks to Derek Beland.

J.E. Hartman who sent the photos wrote; “this is a 1982 Dodge 2.2 turbo Charger concept car, an all out design modification built SVI under contract for PPG as a pace car. Its cost is reported to be about $300,000. This is one of a kind, it saw service in 1982 and early 1983 Indy car races. Mine has gull wing doors also, it was donated to Harrahs in 1985 where it sat for 20 years.”

The Turbo Interceptor driven by Charlie Sheen in the movie The Wraith, as mentioned earlier, was the Dodge M4S concept car, which cost an estimated $1,500,000.

The abbreviation M4S stood for Mid-engine, 4 cylinder, Sport. The original car was built by Dodge and PPG industries to be used as a Pace Car for sprint racing venues.
6 prop cars were built, 4 of which were dummies and destroyed during filming. The other two were the stunt cars. One is currently being restored.

Dodge ZEO Concept (2008)

It was a four passenger sports car, the electric version was powered by a single 268 hp electric motor with a lithium-ion battery. It is a RWD sports car that has space for four, and can do 0-60 in 5.7 seconds. It can go up to 400 km between charges. The plug-in hybrid version has a 64 km electric range.

The ZEO was a take on a muscle car, Chrysler chief designer Trevor Creed said. The power comes from a 268 hp electric engine (electric version), and the battery pack is large enough to propel the flat little thing up to 400 km which was the same range offered by the Tesla roadster. The ZEO was said to be able to have Hemi-like performance, dashing from 0 to 60 mph in less than six seconds. It doesn’t hurt that the RWD “pseudo-wagon” weighs just 1202 kg

ZEO stands for “Zero Emissions Operation,”it was 173 inches long which meant that the the ZEO was about an inch shorter than a Dodge Caliber and a hair slimmer. The height is 51 inches, and the wheelbase is an inch longer than the Avenger’s at 110. The motorized scissor doors open suicide-style (like the Mazda RX-8). Inside, it has white seats that were offset beautifully by the black carpets, and there’s the usual smattering of show-car high-tech electronics on display. The view out is as splendid as the view in, thanks to the unique windshield/sunroof that starts at the bonner and reaches up over all four seats to the back to the liftgate.

Chrysler claimed operating costs of just three cents per mile, which meant that it could be achieving around 130 mpg if it was a gas-powered car. And we wouldn’t be surprised to see the name re-appear on Chrysler’s first electric-only automobile, whenever that comes around.

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