I also got a 23 WT and went with the same RC rock sliders. Love the look with its angles, plus already been trailing and they are a lifesaver with the rock/pebble deflection.
I would likely suggest a rental or your Cruze. The Vegas off rodeo is about 20 minutes out of city limits and in the hills. I drove my Challenger on the dirt access road. Not ideal, but it was fine.
I live in Vegas and my Challenger is jet black, but I have limo tint. It definitely gets hot, but with a window shade it's not really much worse than other vehicles I've had with lighter colors.
How are you only getting 12mpg out of a 6.2L? You can be the most aggressive driver in the world and still should be getting 21+ mpg out of that LS. I have a 6.4L Challenger, and get between 23-27 highway, even heavy footed.
The last 2 vehicles I've bought were at the no haggle Dodge dealer here in Vegas. It was unbelievably easy. (I had also been cross-shopping to know what the price/values were). If we can't just order online (i.e. Tesla), simple straightforward take it or leave it pricing should be the default.
As much as I love my scatty, I plan on trading it for my Wildtrak whenever it's built and delivered. Until then, I'll just keep doing burnouts and enjoying my time with it. It is really a fun machine.
My DD is currently a Challenger 392 which I will likely be trading in for my Wildtrak whenever it shows up. Fortunately, I work form home and my office is 2 miles away when I do need to go in. The hemi is definitely thirsty, but I'll actually get a small bump in city driving from my current...