Brian Chee’s opinion of the 2006 Dodge Charger SRT-8’s Quality:
The 2006 Dodge Charger SRT-8 has pretty much been slammed for quality issues such as gap tolerances and plastics since it’s introduction, and the SRT-8 is just the same, even though upgrades in the interior make it a nicer ride. For around $40,000, it’s fair to expect more in terms of quality, a point that could be fatal for a normal car. Normal is the farthest thing from what the Charger SRT-8 is, however, thanks to that 6.1-liter Hemi sitting up front and the suspension mods below. The quality of this car is in the nuts and bolts, indeed, and that’s enough to make it easy to look beyond odd gaps and bad plastics…maybe.

Christian Wardlaw’s opinion of the 2006 Dodge Charger SRT-8’s Quality:
Except for the seats, the SRT-8 is standard-issue Dodge Charger, with silver plastic trim that is not a bit offensive, soft-touch upper dash and door panels, a mesh cloth headliner, and chrome accents to break the monotony. Seats feature soft and smooth leather bolsters, pebble-patterned cloth inserts, and twill lower cushion sides to reduce squeaks. And with a price tag north of 40 grand, the center console plastic is thin and cheap feeling, and gloss levels are a smidge too high for the dash pad. Still, the Charger feels like a quality piece of work, even if it doesn’t exude it.

Our test car’s build quality was OK, but could have used more attention to detail. The plastic on one of the steering wheel rocker switches was cracking and flaking at low mileage; the center console trim didn’t line up properly with right side of the center stack dash pad; the overhead sunglasses storage compartment had flushness of fit issues; the center console lid was wiggly and felt vulnerable to breakage; the glovebox door didn’t fit flushly; the chrome shifter surround popped off in my hands during a stress test; and the upper dash pad over the gauge cluster exhibited too much flex. On the outside, the Charger SRT-8’s hood was on straight but had huge old-school gap tolerances. The front fascia fit at the wheel wells wasn’t consistent from side to side; the front door gaps were inconsistent from side to side; the right rear plastic trim at the C-pillar was poorly fit; and the rear fascia fits at the taillights were inconsistent.

Thom Blackett’s opinion of the 2006 Dodge Charger SRT-8’s Quality:
Covering the 2006 Dodge Charger SRT-8’s seats is cheap leather and 1980s-era fabric inserts, where better leather and suede inserts are more desirable. The dash has some soft-touch materials, though hard plastics are used liberally on the doors and less conspicuous areas of the interior. An alloy-like finish on the instrument panel and steering wheel spokes looks like a nice touch, but tap the panels only to discover that you’re looking at insubstantial plastic. Using a mesh headliner dresses things up a bit, but there’s no escaping the gap between engine quality and that of the interior parts. Exterior build quality was marred by a few points, such as the front fascia that didn’t line up correctly with the hood or the fenders and various gap inconsistencies.

Ron Perry’s opinion of the 2006 Dodge Charger SRT-8’s Quality:
Dodge has really come a long way with the build quality of its cars but there is still room for improvement, as our test car showed. Outside, even though the body panels were tight, the panel seam widths on the Charger varied wildly from panel to panel. The seams around the hood on one side would almost swallow a Bic pen while the other side was much tighter. Headlight fitment was also off.

Inside, the biggest quality fault is the cheap plastic that Dodge uses extensively throughout the interior. The door panels, which looked and felt horribly cheap, were the low point. I find it odd that there is such discrepancy because the seats with their red stitching and embroidery really portray the look of quality. Add to that the nice gauges and the faux aluminum trim and things really come together. The look just gets lost when you have to touch the plastic or use the cheap switches to raise and lower the windows, for instance. The 2006 Dodge Charger SRT-8 has a lot going for it and with a little more attention to detail it could be great.