Amateurs step aside. Racing Junkies can step to the front of the line. Here is the quintessential racing car developed from the simpler Factory Five Mk3 Roadster. It is the transformer of the modern race car world. They took the foundation of the already proven mk3 chassis and modified it to meet SCCA GT1 criteria. Then they upgraded it once again for high-level competition and this little hot-rod has now been dominant in racing classes all over the US for almost a decade. As one of the 2006 Champ Car "Fast Laps" cars, this car is hailed as a great open track weapon and amazing spec racer. The appeal here is the versatility because the car can be literally transformed into such a wide array of competitive entry specs.
Let's take a look at how this transformer came to existence. Before it was winning so many different competitions, this car was just a humble roadster, all be it with a bit of a track record in its own class. It all started back in 1998 when Tim Suddard of Grassroots Motorsport magazine took one of the original street roadsters out for a spin to put in a good review for his magazine. After taking it for a spin, the editor mentioned how he would love to see the roadster transformed into an open track car. Transformer be born!
Having already won the regional SCCA autocross and the annual Run & Gun, Suddard felt sure that the roadster could be redesigned into a champion race car. He was definitely right about that. Now the Challenger has been transformed into the "everyman's" race car that is winning all over the place. The great appeal is that it can be used as an open track weapon or re-configured for spec racing and wheel-to-wheel. This has brought success in so many different classes such as sprint racing, rallies, road racing, endures, hill climbs and drag racing! With such a long list of achievements, the Challenger can truly be called the Transformer of champion race cars. The question only remains, which race car do you want to run your Challenger in? Racing junkies may have a tougher time deciding now that this dream car can offer them everything they ever wanted. Be careful what you wish for junkies. You might just get what you asked for!
