Mopar® Dodge Avenger Driver Johnson to Start No. 4 at NHRA Winternationals

February 12, 2012 , Pomona, Calif. - Allen Johnson will lead a field of four Mopar®-powered Dodge NHRA Pro Stock cars into the elimination rounds at the 52nd Annual NHRA Winternationals in Pomona, Calif. The Mopar Dodge Avenger driver took the No. 4 spot in qualifying and will match up with Erica Enders in the first round of eliminations at Auto Club Raceway at Pomona.

Johnson turned in a 6.550-second pass at 211.00 mph in the only qualifying session on Saturday, before a heavy rainstorm washed out the fourth and final scheduled round of qualifying. Johnson ranked No. 4 on the final qualifying ladder thanks to his 6.548/211.39 run yesterday, which was tied for quickest of the session.

“We’re very happy to get the season started strong, with a qualifying spot in the top half of the field,” said Johnson, who finished fourth in Pro Stock points last year. “There’s a great HEMI engine in our Mopar Dodge, and I’m feeling confident in the car, myself and my J&J Racing squad.

“We’ve got a lot of folks out here from Mopar, Dodge and our new associate sponsor, Magneti Marelli. We’re hoping to end their visit to Pomona with a celebration in winner’s circle, if all goes according to plan.”

Four-time NHRA Pro Stock champion Jeg Coughlin Jr. will make his first race day start in his new Mopar/JEGS.com Dodge Avenger. Jeg Jr. placed his Dodge in the show in its debut event with a best pass of 6.637/209.20, and he’ll start in the No. 14 spot, going head-to-head with Ronnie Humphrey in the first round of eliminations. The 52-time Pro Stock winner will seek his 13th career final round appearance and seventh career victory at Pomona.

Rounding out the Mopar-powered Dodge Pro Stockers is Vincent Nobile, the No. 6 qualifier, who will face Greg Stanfield in the opening stanza. V. Gaines, starting 15th, will lineup against Mike Edwards.

2011 NHRA Funny Car champion and Mopar-powered Dodge Charger R/T driver Matt Hagan will begin his title defense starting from the ninth spot, with the unfortunate draw of fellow Don Schumacher Racing (DSR) teammate Ron Capps as his opening round foe. Mopar-powered Dodge DSR pilot and No. 2 qualifier Jack Beckman will face off with Bob Bode, and the fourth member of the DSR squad, Johnny Gray, will start his Dodge No. 3 and meet Tim Wilkerson in round one. Gary Densham, the No. 10 qualifier in a Dodge, will do battle with Jeff Arend.

Mopar-First Features
Mopar has introduced numerous industry-first features including:

• Vehicle-information apps: first to introduce smartphone vehicle-information applications, a new channel of communication with consumers
• Electronic owner manuals: first to introduce traditional owner manuals in a DVD and brief user-guide format
• Wi-Fi: first to offer customers the ability to make their vehicle a wireless hot spot
• Electronic Vehicle Tracking System (EVTS): first to market with a new interactive vehicle tracking device that sends owner a text when vehicle is driven too fast or too far based on pre-set parameters
• 2011 Mopar Challenger Drag Pak: first to introduce a 500-plus cubic-inch V-10 drag-race package car
• Camper trailers: first to introduce off-road camper trailers
• WiTECH: first to support vehicle diagnosis and software updates leveraging off-the-shelf personal computers and a dedicated wireless tool network

About the Mopar Brand
Mopar is Chrysler Group LLC’s service, parts and customer-care brand and distributes 280,000 parts and accessories. With the creation of the Chrysler Group and Fiat S.p.A. partnership, Mopar is extending its global reach, integrating service, parts and customer-care operations in order to enhance dealer and customer support worldwide. Combined with Fiat S.p.A., Mopar’s global portfolio includes more than 500,000 parts and accessories which are distributed in more than 120 countries. Mopar is the source for all genuine parts and accessories for Chrysler Group and Fiat S.p.A. brands.

Mopar parts are unique in that they are engineered with the same teams that create factory-authorized vehicle specifications for Chrysler Group and Fiat S.p.A.vehicles — a direct connection that no other aftermarket parts company can provide. A complete list of Mopar accessories and performance parts is available at http://www.mopar.com.

75 Years of Mopar
Mopar (a simple contraction of the words MOtor and PARts) was trademarked for antifreeze product in 1937. The Mopar brand made its mark in the 1960s — the muscle-car era. The Chrysler Corporation built race-ready Dodge and Plymouth “package cars” equipped with special high-performance parts. Mopar carried a line of “special parts” for super-stock drag racers and developed its racing parts division called Mopar Performance Parts to enhance speed and handling for both road and racing use.