By Steve & Tamami Laser
We’re fans of all makes and models of muscle cars, including the Dodge® Charger and Challenger. So when we heard that the 2023 model run will be the last for these performance machines “in their current form,” we wondered what comes next? Well, Dodge revealed the all-electric Charger Daytona SRT® (below) on Aug. 17, during Dodge Speed Week in Pontiac, Mich.
While this all-new concept car looks fantastic, with heritage-inspired styling cues, including a two-door, coupe-like silhouette, long hood, and short rear deck, it’s a pure EV underneath. Yet the automaker says that it “Drives like a Dodge, looks like a Dodge and sounds like a Dodge.”
While key performance figures and powertrain specs have not been announced, Dodge says that the concept features an 800V “Banshee” propulsion system along with standard all-wheel-drive. It also boasts an “eRupt” multispeed transmission with electro-mechanical shifting, said to provide distinctive shift points, and a “PowerShot” button on the steering wheel that delivers an “adrenaline jolt of increased horsepower for a quick burst of acceleration.”
Styling is both gorgeous and functional, with an R-Wing up front to improve aerodynamics, carbon-fiber intakes in the front and rear lower fascias, flush door handles, and muscular fenders housing 21-inch diamond-cut wheels. Seamless full-width LED lighting front and rear include 3D illuminated “Fratzog” badges, while Banshee badges are affixed to the front fenders.
Inside, the Charger Daytona SRT concept offers lightweight, race-inspired seats, flat top-and-bottom steering wheel with paddle shifters, PowerShot, and drive mode buttons, with Auto, Sport, Track and Drag selections. And, there’s an open-air feeling throughout the cabin thanks to the panoramic glass roof.
The driver is rewarded with high-tech goodies, including a 16-inch instrument cluster, an 8-inch Head-up Display, and a 12.3-inch center screen. There’s a pistol-grip floor shifter on the center console, with a flip-up, jet-fighter inspired cap that houses the start button.
While the Charger Daytona SRT concept looks like a coupe, it’s actually a hatchback, designed to increase cargo carrying versatility. Rear seats fold down, and it looks like there’s plenty of room for gear, especially when compared to previous generation muscle cars fitted with conventional trunks.
Dodge certainly did its homework and created an amazing electric concept car. Yet in the rapidly changing automotive landscape, it remains to be seen whether it will actually build an EV muscle car exactly like this. Or perhaps it may morph into something different, like a four-door, before it reaches production in a couple of years?
The Dodge Charger Daytona SRT shown in this story is a concept vehicle
News sources and photos courtesy of Dodge and Stellantis N.A.
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