The 2007 Dodge Demon Concept Was The American Miata That Never Was
American-made sports cars are a curious category in the overall marketplace. There's quite a bit of distance between comparatively accessible muscle cars like Mustangs and Camaros and almighty supercars like the Dodge Viper or Ford GT. For various cultural and technological reasons, there's just not that much in the space between them. That hasn't been for lack of trying, however. American carmakers have made several attempts to wean U.S. motorists off fuel-guzzling big iron in favor of the fast, economical roadsters that fare so well in European and Asian markets.
None has ever won America's heart: rather than buying local, U.S. gearheads tend to get their speedy two-seaters from Asia. The Nissan Z-series, Toyota 86, and various models of Mitsubishi and Hyundai, among others, have filled that niche over the years, along with one of America's most popular foreign models — the Mazda MX-5 Miata.
Dodge/Stellantis
Per official sales stats, the Miata isn't just an American favorite; it's one of the best-selling sports cars of all time (per Garage Dreams). That being the case, it's hardly surprising an American manufacturer tried for a homegrown competitor to run down the mighty Miata. The 2007 Dodge Demon concept was that competitor, designed from the ground up to outperform its Asian rivals at an accessible price. Here's what happened.
American know-how, Japanese engineering. What went wrong?
The Dodge Demon wasn't the first American ride to challenge the mighty Miata. The Pontiac Solstice and Saturn Sky both slotted into that market segment and enjoyed reasonable buy-in (via IGN). The Demon is important because it went one better. It didn't intend to play along but actually to outperform the Miata in virtually every respect. Its 2.4-liter V4 put down 172 horsepower and 165 foot-pounds of torque, no small achievement in a car with a curb weight of just 2,600 pounds, as detailed by Stellantis North America in the original press release. When the Demon debuted at the Geneva Car Show, it turned heads, not least because it wasn't the usual concept car mockup. The model at Geneva was a fully operational vehicle. Several guests even got to give it a spin.
Dodge/Stellantis
In the end, like so many promising concepts, the factors that worked against the Demon were well outside of its control. It was released at the end of the less-than-spectacular DaimlerChrysler era of Dodge's business when even diehard American drivers had begun to whisper that the glory days of domestic car production were over. With money short after the ill-fated merger and questions about whether demand would ever recoup costs, Dodge eventually elected to save money and keep the Demon in chains.
Dodge/Stellantis
That said, the name at least has gotten a good airing since. Dodge gave the Demon name to the drag-race spec Challenger, a ludicrous 840-horsepower beast with a quarter-mile under 10 seconds (via Motor1). It may not be the common man's all-around roadster that the 2007 Dodge Demon was meant to be, but at least its name is out there burning asphalt.