The world of high-performance vehicles is often the home of creations that don’t make sense to most people, but feel like the perfect choice for their specific audience. Case in point with the Dodge Charger Convertible, the aftermarket conversion that fills in for the model the factory never built.
Admittedly, with the Charger becoming a sedan 17 years ago, nobody could’ve asked Dodge for a drop-top version of the modern car. Besides, there’s almost no history to back up such a request (I’ll get back to this).
However, when I saw a 2020 Charger Scat Pack Convertible in a 1320video Instagram post earlier today, I remembered Mihnea did a story about Challenger soft top aftermarket work back in March. So here we are, talking about the options somebody seeking an open-top Charger has nowadays.
Why aren’t there more convertible muscle/pony cars around?
Both the current Mustang and the Camaro can be had in convertible form from the factory, with the latter even expanding the open-air fun to its range-topping supercharged ZL1 iteration (there’s no such version for the Shelby GT500, though). Of course, only a limited number of customers will go for these heavier, less spacious, and less rigid versions, which is why Dodge never offered the classic Charger of the late 1960s in such form.
Back in the day, though, you could have the Charger’s platform mates (Plymouth GTX, Road Runner, and Barracuda) with an open top. But sales were limited—the rarity of the Barracuda Convertibles is part of what makes them so valuable these days. And the same reason stood behind Chrysler axing the 1970s Challenger Convertible after just two years.
Nevertheless, when Dodge moved the Charger away from the impossible performance arena and into the personal luxury vehicle for its fourth generation (1975-1978), you could have the coupe with a T-bar roof. Well, that’s as close as the nameplate ever got to fully exposing its occupants to the elements.
Got it, not too many people buy these fun-in-the-sun machines. So how about those aftermarket conversions for the modern Charger?
For starters, the Charger currently found in showrooms is a repeatedly upgraded version of the muscle sedan Dodge introduced in 2005, which adapted many Mercedes-Benz chassis parts for use in the American vehicle. Now, the Germans have built multiple convertibles on what is essentially the same platform, so we know the chassis is up for the task.
And there are at least two U.S. specialists that have included the Dodge Charger in their range of convertible transformations. In alphabetical order, we’ll start with Florida-based Droptop Customs.
This is the specialist Dodge turned to when creating the now-crushed Challenger Convertible prototypes Mihnea mentioned in his story. So it’s no surprise that the builder’s approach features an integration that appears to resemble a factory application.
And this is the main differentiating factor between the said company’s offering and that of Californian builder Newport Convertible Engineering. The latter company’s work, which can be sampled on the Scat Pack Charger I mentioned above, features a central bar that trades off some of the aesthetic value for added rigidity and safety.
Both offerings feature angular designs that seem to fit the retro factory styling of the Dodge Charger and the similarities don’t end here. For instance, both conversions involve added structural bracing aimed at ensuring the structure remains unchanged over the years and provides safety in case of an impact. And this can prove extra useful for those willing to transform their Hellcats.
What about the warranty and pricing?
As far as the warranty is concerned, both solutions preserve the factory offer of the base vehicle. As for the roof, Droptop Customs offers a one-year warranty, while Newport Convertible Engineering covers three years.
The tops are hydraulically actuated and while they do eat up some of the luggage space (Droptop Customs mentions a 20% reduction), the Charger, fortunately, has plenty of room to spare (think: 16.5 cu.ft. or 467 liters).
In terms of pricing, we were only able to find that you have to pay around $20,000 for a Droptop Customs job, which is the kind of money that separates a Hellcat (707 hp supercharged 6.2L) from a Scat Pack (485 hp N/A 6.4L) like the one we have here. So you can bet that the number of owners dreaming of a convertible transformation for their Charger is much greater than those who actually get to enjoy one.
Now, you can check out both Dodge Charger Convertible flavors in the image gallery and videos below. And while we’re talking Chargers that have been taken out of their natural element, how about a Scat Pack Widebody that recently lapped the Nurburgring in the hands of a local expert?
