Next Dodge Charger to retain internal combustion

The Dodge Charger might not quite be as done with internal combustion as Stellantis would have you believe, following a US report claiming the iconic American muscle car nameplate will actually be broken into two streams for its next generation: the petrol-powered Charger and electric-only Charger Daytona.

That’s the latest word from Mopar Insiders, which claims to have sources close to the next-generation Dodge Charger sedan and Challenger coupe projects who’ve indicated the new Charger will be powered by the US car-maker’s new twin-turbo 3.0-litre ‘Hurricane’ straight six-cylinder engine, which is destined to replace the iconic HEMI V8 in both muscle cars and the RAM 1500 pick-up range from next year.

No, it’s not a V8, but in its highest state of tune (detailed so far) the force-fed six pumps out 373kW/644Nm – considerably more than any of the outgoing Charger variants besides the flagship Hellcat family, which will likely be succeeded by the Charger Daytona EV model line.

Both streams will comprise multiple variants and trim levels, as per the model they replace, but the apparent decision to power the Charger and possibly Challenger nameplates with hot sixes is rumoured to be partially in response to the aggressive expansion of the Ford Mustang portfolio and the Chevrolet Camaro’s retirement.

Ford is keen to beat the V8 drum as long as possible and even confirmed last week an electric Mustang was still at least a decade away, while the Camaro’s US market exit leaves a sizeable hole to be filled, especially since the two-door Chevy coupe could be had with six-cylinder power.

The Dodge insiders also claim the Charger Daytona will look similar to the Charger Daytona SRT concept shown last year (pictured above and below) with a 500kW ‘Banshee’ battery-electric powertrain, and will most likely debut in the first half of 2024 before production starts in the third quarter ready for the 2025 model year.

Rumour has it the two-door Challenger equivalent could actually appear first, given its production start is supposedly set for mid-2024.

Dodge has previously confirmed the production muscle cars will develop anywhere between 340 and 500kW, and that 400V and 800V electrical architectures both in the pipeline, the latter of which could be borrowed from the ferocious Maserati GranTurismo Folgore.

So while Dodge’s famous rear-drive duo is done with eight-cylinder power, V8-like power outputs and performance will live on thanks to forced induction and battery-electric technology.

The question is: will the first all-new Dodge muscle cars in almost two decades (the existing LX platform-based Charger and Challenger were released back in in 2005 and 2008 respectively) finally be produced in right-hand drive and made available in Australia?

Watch this space.