Anyone older than their mid-twenties remembers the ugly old station wagons with wood paneled sides driving around the hood. My memories are burned deep into my mind from an ugly old green beast of a wagon my grandparents had when I was about 13. Dreaded where the days when I had to ride in that thing down to the grocery store with my tutu (grandma) to pick up that weeks supply of food. It drove like a ship taking about 12 hours to get up to full speed and another 12 hours to stop it! Let’s not even talk about turning radius, suffice it to say you needed a football field or a 40 point turning system of backing up, pulling forward over and over again until finally you were headed back in the right direction. All was fine and dandy until a few model years ago when Dodge decided to bring back the wagon. The first one I saw brought those memories flooding back to me of the green beast and those trips to get grub at the store with tutu. How could this be I thought to myself? Why? There is no way this thing will sell. Fast forward to present day.

The transport company dropped it off at my office and I reluctantly signed and got the keys for my grocery getter car of the week. I slowly walked out to the parking lot with my head held low to take it for a spin to grab some smokes from the nearest store. There before sat a wagon to kick all wagons asses! Perched atop 20-inch rims, with beefy semi- low profile tires, the looks made me feel a little more excited about the impending drive. Inside the wheels you also notice oversized aftermarket Brembo brakes helping with the muscle look. I slowly walked around the car noticing the low roofline sloping downward in the back giving a slightly chopped custom look. The grill and front fascia are flat reminding me of a flat nosed bulldog, perfect for the tough look this car deserves. The bumpers, door handles and mirrors are all body color matched giving it a nice, fluid clean look. Although the car is long the styling holds up well to even the most discerning eye giving appeal to a broad base of customers though primarily attracting middle aged men.

The interior on the SRT-8 is nicely appointed with leather seats and suede accents, redundant steering wheel controls and an easy to use comfort cluster for music, ac/heating, etc. There is plenty of storage throughout the vehicle and legroom is more than comfortable. Storage capacity is excellent, both with the back seats up and down but when the 60/40 splits are utilized the back can accommodate long objects such as a surfboards or lumber.

Mechanically is where the Magnum shines brightest. With various models available from a V6 up to the SRT-8 model boasting a 420 h.p. 6.1 liter Hemi. Luckily the Magnum comes equipped with an electronic stability program because the power is outrageous. During my test drive week my buddy convinced me to take the E.S.P. off and punch it. As you can probably guess the Magnum got sideways in a hurry allowing for a comical slide into a parking spot on the side of the street which was luckily abandoned by most so it was all safe. Great thing is not only did the engineers build a car with enough horsepower to shoot you from 0-60 in about 5 seconds but also with the brembo brakes the stopping distance is awesome.

Whether you’re looking at the base V6 model or the SRT-8 model that I drove, the classic styling with bold features will definitely excite you. Handling is more than adequate and spaciousness is never in question. The ride quality is good both for short trips to the store or long multi-state family vacations. If you’re in the market for a 5-passenger vehicle with plenty of storage room but still want some power to get your blood pumping, the Magnum is a perfect fit for you.