2012 Dodge Challenger: adaptive dampers and the Yellow Jacket

This record's own dek describes 2012 as the year adaptive dampers reach the SRT8 392, paddle shifters spread across the range, and a Stinger Yellow "Yellow Jacket" edition is built in an unstated number. This record's own overview states that the SRT8 392 kept its 470-hp, 470-lb-ft 6.4-liter HEMI and gained a two-mode adaptive damping suspension, priced at $43,995 plus $825 destination, with the TR-6060 six-speed manual standard and a five-speed automatic with paddle shifters optional.¹

The rest of the range comprised SXT and SXT Plus with the 3.6 Pentastar V-6 at 305 hp, and R/T and R/T Classic with the 5.7 HEMI, per this record's own overview. In December 2011 Dodge opened orders for the SRT8 392 Yellow Jacket, in Stinger Yellow with black stripes and embroidered logos, stating only that "a limited number" would be built for the US market, a figure this record's own key facts confirm was never published as a count.^2,3

This record's own overview states that no 2012 model-year production figure was found, with Chrysler's reported 43,119 calendar-year 2012 US Challenger sales reused as the best available substitute. This record's own production section documents three worldwide color-production counts: 2,225 Header Orange cars across SXT, R/T and SRT8, 2,154 Blue Streak cars across all models, and 1,819 Stinger Yellow cars, though this record's own note explains that the Stinger Yellow figure mixes R/T Classic cars with the SRT8 Yellow Jacket, so the Yellow Jacket count on its own remains unpublished.^4,5

Three engines are documented: the 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 at 305 hp and 268 lb-ft on the SXT and SXT Plus, the 5.7-liter HEMI V-8 at 375 hp and 410 lb-ft on the R/T and R/T Classic, and the 6.4-liter (392) SRT HEMI V-8 at 470 hp and 470 lb-ft on the SRT8 392. Two transmissions are documented, the TR-6060 six-speed manual, standard on the SRT8 392 and available on the R/T, and the five-speed automatic with AutoStick, which gained paddle shifters for the year on the SXT Plus and R/T's AutoStick as well as the SRT8 392's optional automatic.²

This record documents an extensive options list, including the Yellow Jacket package itself, seven-spoke 20x9 forged wheels with Goodyear F1 Supercar tires for the SRT8 392, a Super Track Pak for the non-SRT models, and an 18-speaker, 900-watt Harman Kardon audio option. Nine exterior colors are documented, three of them carrying the production counts noted above, alongside three interior trim descriptions and a specifications section carrying the SRT8 392's standard 20x9 five-spoke forged wheels, a 23-mpg EPA highway figure, and preliminary curb weights of 3,834 lb for the SXT and 4,082 lb for the R/T.^6,7

This record's own performance section carries two manufacturer claims for the SRT8 392, 117 feet of 60-0 mph braking distance and a 0.90g skidpad, and its identification section documents VIN codes distinguishing the base, R/T and SRT8 trims and confirming Brampton Assembly as the build plant for the year. This record's own conflicts section is empty for the year, leaving the Yellow Jacket's unpublished count as a documented gap rather than a logged dispute; unpublished leads are likewise empty.⁸