Manoli Katakis 
The Dodge Splitter Guard Saga continues. Its origins are murky, but over the last couple of years, the trend of Challenger and Charger owners leaving on their banana-colored plastic protectors has spread faster than the damn coronavirus. Dodge thought they found a cure for the disease but changing the color of the splitter guards from yellow to pink, but its effectiveness only applies to new vehicles. Turns out, however, that there may be a better cure for splitter guard goons: good old fashioned shaming and mockery.
Take this photo of a recent car meet, for example. Yes, those are yellow pool noodles affixed to a variety of vehicles that don’t come with splitter guards. Maybe the Mopar mafia got the message. And if you look closely, you’ll see that even a Dodge Charger partook in the festivities, clipping a foam noodle to the front splitter like the Mustang and Subaru next to it.
Despite efforts to curb the misuse of the Dodge splitter guards, it’s become both a subculture and a cottage industry. For example, you can regularly find these plastic bananas on eBay for $100 from opportunistic sellers.
Why it became popular to leave the guards in place is a mystery, especially considering that the pieces themselves read “to be removed by dealer” in all caps. The main issue is that leaving the splitter guards in place will eventually lead to some nasty looking paint damage from road grit becoming trapped between the guard and the splitter.
The Dodge Challenger and Dodge Charger muscle cars have become an absolute force in the car market since their 2015 refreshes. The two models have amassed a devout following, and continue to sell quite well despite their relative old age. The Charger remains the champion of the full-size sedan segment, and the Challenger has cemented itself as the official runner-up behind the Mustang in muscle car sales.
