The end of an era is coming: Dodge muscle cars will lose the hellcat engine in 2023
Muscle cars Dodge, Challenger and Charger, will end their existence in 2023. The American firm will find a way to build its electric vehicles and thus stay ahead of the curve and meet the demands of the day.
As the wheel of time turns and progress moves forward, automakers across the industry are gearing up to put the past behind them, and with it, internal combustion engines. For Dodge, that means the Dodge Charger and Challenger are on the cutting board. Popular muscle cars will be available until the end of 2023.
“I will have this car, this platform, this powertrain as we know it by the end of 2023. Two more years to buy a Hellcat and then it will be history," Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis said, pointing out that Charger and Challenger production will soon come to an end. While in August this is no longer the case.
Unprecedented production
The LX platform loader was launched in 2005 and thus will have been in production for eighteen years by the time the curtain goes up. This is an almost unprecedented production for a modern car, although updates and facelifts have done a lot to keep the Charger up to date. The Challenger is also going crazy, because it has been on sale since 2008.
Dodge is charting the path to 2024 in its 24 Months of Muscle calendar, counting down the days until the end of a successful era for the company. Events already featured on the calendar include the launch of Jailbreak models and the return of the Direct Connection parts catalog.
There are hints of 22 other events on the schedule, which suggests that Dodge has a lot more in store before the last call. Dodge's efforts to hire a top donut maker are also part of its broader "marketing" strategy. Others, yet to be revealed, have logos hinting at possibilities, such as the tire track on a horse and the Fratzog logo, which will now be associated with electric vehicles.
Dodge goes electric
In the future, with a goal of launching in 2024. Dodge "will be doing electrification differently than everyone else," Kuniskis said, adding, "That's why I'm waiting until I finish all my patents."
Kuniskis also indicated that the plug-in hybrid will join the Dodge lineup as a new vehicle, rather than a version of an existing model. A third opening is also planned for 2022, but the Dodge CEO hasn't said anything about what that might be.
Dodge will have to walk a tightrope for years to come. Companies need to switch to electric vehicles. However, he also wants his fans to be happy, fans who have fallen in love with the company's muscle car line and consider electric cars anathema to gasoline-powered fun. Whether he can convince them to join the journey into the future remains to be seen.
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