How many miles can a Canadian/American-made Dodge Challenger last? When you’re in the market for a new or second-hand Challenger, that’s, of course, a very reasonable question to ask. After all, you’re probably looking to get the most bang for your buck. In this blog, we’ll look at the most popular models but first, let’s start with a quick answer:
On average, a Dodge Challenger lasts between 170,000 – 190,000 miles. A Dodge Challenger needs to go to the garage for unscheduled repairs about 0.22 times per year with a 14% chance of a severe problem. Furthermore, Dodge Challenger owners spend an average of $650 per year on repair costs.
Having said that, we’re certainly not done. Below we’ll first explain in more detail how many miles a Dodge Challenger can last. After that, we’ll compare the Challenger to its main competitors in terms of potential mileage and compare the Challenger to other Dodges. Furthermore, we also discuss the common problems that a Challenger can have for the models produced between 2008 and 2018, how much maintenance will cost per year, and how to maintain a Challenger. Read on!
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Want to know how many miles this Dodge can still last with an almost empty fuel tank? Read this blog we wrote earlier.
How Many Miles Will A Dodge Challenger Last?
To answer how many miles a Dodge Challenger can last, it’s important to look at the amount of Challengers that Dodge has produced and see how many of them have actually reached certain mileages.
To determine this, we used autotrader.com. Here we first selected all Dodge Challengers that were made before 2016. This is because younger cars don’t yet have had a lot of time to reach higher mileages and skew the data.
Selecting all pre-2017 Challengers, we found that there were 2.974 of them. Using this database, we divided them into groups, as you can see in the table below. We found that 2,22% of them had passed the 150,000 miles mark and that 13,52% had reached the 100,000 miles mark.
| Amount Of Miles | Percentage Of Cars |
| Cars With 150.000+ | 2.22% |
| Cars With 100.000 – 149.000 | 13.52% |
| Cars With 45.000 – 99.999 | 43.85% |
| Cars With 0 – 44.999 | 40.42% |
What’s interesting to see in this table is that the Dodge Challenger doesn’t seem to be a high mileage car. Over 84% of Challengers have less than 100,000 miles on them, with a substantial amount even below the 45,000 miles mark.
This doesn’t directly have to do with the car’s reliability, but it tells us that the Challenger doesn’t often reach higher mileages. Either because the car can’t handle higher mileage or because people don’t use the Challenger in that way.
Furthermore, we also looked at the Challenger with the highest recorded mileage. The reason for this is that this gives us an even better picture of what the Challenger is capable of in terms of mileage. Here we found several Challengers that passed the 230,000 miles mark, which indicates that the Challenger is capable of higher mileages if the owner wants to and when maintenance is kept up with.
Also read: Types Of Gas A Dodge Challenger Takes (Explained)
How Reliable Is A Dodge Challenger Compared To Its Competitors?
Besides comparing the Challenger to its own standards, it’s also important to compare the car to its main competitors to get a good overview of its reliability. That means that we had to compare the car to the Ford Mustang and the Chevrolet Camaro.
For all these cars, we only selected the ones that were produced in 2016 or before. We found that the Challenger does seem to underperform in terms of how many of them have reached the 150,000 miles mark. The Mustang is definitely on top here, with the Camaro in second place.
| Model | Sample Size | Cars With 150.000+ Miles | % Percentage Of Cars With 150.000+ | Highest Mileage |
| Dodge Challenger | 2974 | 66 | 2.22% | 230,000 |
| Ford Mustang | 6195 | 262 | 4.23% | 210,000 |
| Chevrolet Camaro | 3996 | 130 | 3.25% | 230,000 |
It could very well be that the data is skewed here because of the long-standing production of the Mustang. Therefore, we felt that it’s important to look at the number of miles the car has driven. What we found is that the Challenger is on top and shares first place with the Camaro. The Mustang has a maximum of 210,000 recorded miles which means it does seem to underperform the Challenger.
However, in conclusion, we would say that the Dodge Challenger does seem to be as reliable as its competitors and that there’s no clear difference between the cars in terms of reliability.
How Reliable Is A Dodge Challenger Compared To Other Dodges?
Furthermore, we felt it’s also important to compare the Dodge Challenger to other Dodge cars. This gives you an even better understanding of the Dodge Challenger’s reliability and an overview of the quality standards that Dodge has in general.
We found here that the Dodge Challenger seems to be on the lower end of the spectrum in terms of how many have reached the 150,000 miles mark. It’s not as bad as the Charger, but it is outperformed by all the other cars.
| Model | Sample Size | Cars With 150.000+ Miles | % Percentage Of Cars With 150.000+ | Highest Mileage |
| Dodge Grand Caravan | 5635 | 541 | 9.60% | 290,000 |
| Dodge Charger | 13,465 | 252 | 1.87% | 250,000 |
| Dodge Dart | 1355 | 44 | 3.25% | 180,000 |
| Dodge Challenger | 2974 | 66 | 2.22% | 230,000 |
| Dodge Journey | 8087 | 280 | 3.46% | 240,000 |
| Dodge Durango | 10485 | 438 | 4.18% | 280,000 |
| Dodge Caliber | 330 | 77 | 23.33% | 230,000 |
| Dodge Nitro | 271 | 77 | 28.41% | 260,000 |
| Dodge Dakota | 548 | 182 | 33.21% | 300,000 |
| Dodge Avenger | 829 | 162 | 19.54% | 250,000 |
In terms of maximum mileage reached, we can say that it’s not as bad as the Dart (which has some serious flaws), but it is again outperformed by the other Dodge cars. This does seem to be a bit worrying, although we still have to say the Challenger does seem to be able to reach decent mileage.
How Much Does A Dodge Challenger Cost In Maintenance Per Year?
Besides knowing how many miles a Dodge Challenger can do, it’s also important to know how much you’ll have to spend on maintenance to reach that higher mileage. To get a grip on this, we’ve used the data of repairpal.com. In the table below, we’ve written down the annual maintenance.
We found that certain model years seem to be fairly affordable for a car this size. Mainly the models produced between 2016 – 2017, 2009 – 2013. All of them have an annual maintenance cost of $662 or lower.
| Year Of Manufacturing | Dodge Challenger Maintenance Cost |
| 2018 | $ 982 |
| 2017 | $ 655 |
| 2016 | $ 662 |
| 2015 | $ 758 |
| 2014 | $ 721 |
| 2013 | $ 606 |
| 2012 | $ 642 |
| 2011 | $ 578 |
| 2010 | $ 560 |
| 2009 | $ 564 |
| 2008 | $ 686 |
However, there are definitely some models that seem to cost a lot more than the other ones. The 2018 model is, for some reason, horrible, with annual spending of $982. Also, the 2014 – 2015 and the 2008 models have higher costs than you would want to see on the Challenger.
Also read: The Complete Cost Of Maintaining A Dodge
Dodge Challenger Common Problems
Below we’ve therefore created a list with the four most common problems you should look out for.
However, it is important to know that the Dodge Challenger doesn’t have many problems in every model. Rather, each model seems to have its own problems that will add up over time. If you want to buy a Dodge Challenger, it’s important to inspect the car before buying one thoroughly.
NOTE: Before buying a used car, I always like to make sure the vehicle isn´t having any problems that you should be aware of. The easiest way to do this is by buying an OBD2 scanner. These scanners can easily be plugged into any car you’re interested in, and they’ll give you a rundown of potential problems.
Shifting Problems
Dodge Challengers do seem to be notorious for transmission issues. This is especially common in 2009 and 2012 – 2016 models. Look out for a harsh 4 to 3 downshift, especially. Dodge has released an update for the transmission control module to address this problem. If your car hasn’t been upgraded, make sure the dealer takes care of this before buying the car. Otherwise, you’re probably looking at a $100 expense.
Also read: Dodge Challenger Transmission: Overview, Problems, Fluids
Noises When Steering At Low Speeds
In 2008 – 2012 models, it’s common to hear honking or hissing noises when steering at low speeds. This is mainly caused by problems with the power steering return hose. Replacing this costs between $250 – $350. If this is not causing it, you may need to replace the rack and pinion, costing you $1,500 – $1,800.
Electrical Problems Because Of Alternator
Another problem with Challengers is that some of them seem to have faulty electronics. It is good to know that Challengers who have this problem will likely already fail early on, so if your Challenger has already been on the road for a while, it’s most likely safe.
Electrical problems occur in all different shapes and sizes. Sometimes the instrument cluster fails to illuminate the cause of problems. Other times the power steering turns on and off again. The problems are most likely caused by an alternator that wears out prematurely. Fixing this will cost $500 – $1,000.
Is A Dodge Challenger A Smart Buy?
Finally, it’s also important to discuss if the Dodge Challenger is a smart buy or not. Therefore, we need to consider the mileage the car can reach, maintenance cost, how many problems the car has, and how much value you’ll get for your money.
As previously discussed, we do feel that the Challenger holds its own in terms of potential mileage it can do. It may not be a car that normally has extremely high mileages but compared to its competitors; we see no reason to say the car is unreliable in terms of mileage.
However, some models have some pretty major issues and higher maintenance costs because of it. As discussed, we feel that some models are best avoided and others that will most likely provide you with good value for your money over the long term.
Finally, it’s good to know that a Dodge Challenger that’s 6 years old (and has a mileage of 72,000 miles) has lost almost 49% of its value. Assuming that the car can reach 200,000 miles, it will likely still have 9,5 years left if you drive 13,500 miles per year. This gives a Challenger a lot of value for the money you spend. We would advise against buying a new Challenger given that the car depreciates almost 25% in its first year.
Are you in the market for this Dodge? Don’t forget to check out our extensive list of the largest Dodge dealers per state!
Dodge Challenger Maintenance Schedule
For a Dodge Challenger to reach high mileage, it’s important to make sure the car receives its regular maintenance. Below we’ve outlined the maintenance schedule that Dodge has provided for the Challenger, so you know what to expect in the future.
- Change the oil every 10,000 miles
- Rotate the tires every 10,000 miles
- Replace the cabin air filter every 20,000 miles
- Replace the air filter every 30,000 miles
- Change the spark plugs every 100,000 miles
- Change the automatic transmission fluid and filter every 120,000 miles
- Flush the coolant every 150,000 miles.
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Hi! My name is Stefan; I’m the owner and lead writer at TheDriverAdviser.com.
I’m an active writer on this blog myself, as well as a novice car mechanic. For the really technical stuff, I find writers with experience as a mechanic or who have studied mechanical engineering.
Read more about our fantastic team on our about page!