I don't see that at all, at least not according to the fans at car shows (especially Mopar-specific shows) I've been to. I mean, yes, the E-bodies were slightly too big (to easily accommodate the big blocks) but nobody was looking at the Charger as a ponycar. Obviously too big. I agree that it was unique in its looks and social status compared to the other B-bodies but the general public saw the 'Cuda and Challenger as ponycars, just not as cool/popular as the already-established market dominating Mustangs and Camaros and Firebirds. I mean, even the Cougar was a ponycar sister to the Mustang and it was a relative failure, too (and slightly bigger?). But not because buyers saw some Mercury Montego as a ponycar or something. Ponycar is specific in terms of size (smaller than intermediate), if a Charger is a ponycar then so is every other B-body intermediate in the line. Which then includes Road Runners and GTXs. Mopar was racing 'Cudas and Challengers (not B-bodies) in Trans Am races against other ponycars. Of course the AMC Javelins complicate that but they were pretty small for intermediates, they could compete (and did). Trying to race a Charger in that racing series would have been a titanic waste of time.
The 1st-gen Chargers weren't bad, but they were clearly Coronets with some last-minute fastback idea slapped on that didn't really fit the rest of the car (square as shit). The bend of the back part was wrong, started too far back, etc. They obviously fixed that in '68, goddamn what a beautiful car!! A subtle massaging of that back slope and it's iconic. The original was egh. We
shall not discuss the import that simply had a Charger name stuck onto it! Ya, the Charger 500 was not nearly as stylish but probably much better on banked ovals. The 3rd-gen Chargers tried too hard to be sleek, they looked like giant Corvettes, which to my eyes is the same as seeing a grown man accurately dressed like a Boy Scout. You cut maybe a half foot off the front (get rid of that pointy 'Vette nose vibe), fix the back window area (no sloped rear glass, add back in the flying buttresses), it would be right again.
The current Charger was a direct offshoot of the then-new Chrysler 300, which was itself a modern throwback to the boxy luxury cars of olde. And a bit of a cheap rip-off of a Bentley. So that made sense, as did the Magnum. But the new Charger looking like a 300 with a body kit was terrible looking
as a Charger. As a Magnum Sedan, sure, nice car. But a Charger is sleek, it's got style (the rear window area specifically), it doesn't look like a loaf of bread.
And now that EV concept, oh my god! The hips look right (similar to the older
1999 Charger concept car), much of the rest of the body looks right (minus that industry standard bottom of the fenders/rockers extending too far down), 2 and
only 2 doors goddammit, wide rectangular grille, aaaaaahhhhhhhhh. I mean, an enterprising insane person (a hero, let's call him) could buy one of those and probably separate the body from the guts and force it to fit onto a current Challenger or Charger chassis, depending on the length.
I agree, but it appears to be the future of silent EV cars (in terms of mods). From what I've seen of at least one idea, the sound is calibrated to the pedal position and gear changes (if there is such a thing in an EV). I still think having a highway gear for an EV is a good idea, multiply the RPMs for improved mileage and motor life. The episode of All Girls Garage where they installed one of those (Borla?) onto an EV (the Mustang Mach-E, I think) was "impressive", meaning it did mostly sound like a real car, not some toy version, and it sounded convincing outside the car (where it would actually be sort of useful). They raced it against a ICE Mustang. Personally I would prefer some future sci-fi sounds for an EV, like it's a vehicle from Star Wars, but still calibrated to the pedal and useful as a warning to pedestrians and kids.