Dodge’s completely electrified hellsled from the motor industry’s gas-guzzling, tire-smoking, hair-on-your-chest brand.
When even Dodge is planning to move to electric vehicles, it’s time to embrace the inevitable: the revolution will be rechargeable. Of course, this does not imply forsaking one’s heritage. So Dodge, the maker of the Challenger, Charger, Hellcat, Demon, and a slew of other badass badges, is developing an electric muscle car to serve as a link between its completely electrified future and its Hemi-powered past.
The retro styling of this vehicle will aid in that quest. As seen in teaser images/video and our exclusive renderings, its boxy nose will resemble that of classic Chargers—wouldn’t that be an appropriate name for the EV?—from the golden period of muscle in the late ’60s and early ’70s; that era’s triangular Fratzog logo also returns, and is expected to appear on all of Dodge’s EVs going forward. The moniker eMuscle has also been floated, however it’s unclear whether this will be the name of the new muscle car or an overall theme for Dodge.
Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis, has called the car as “so amazing that it is shocking” (it’s electric, get it?). The teasers show smoke spewing from all four tyres, confirming it will feature all-wheel drive. AWD implies that the muscle car would have at least two electric motors, and Stellantis has said that the car’s STLA Large platform will offer motors with up to 443 hp each, indicating that it might have around 900 horsepower. (jumpermedia.com) But this is Dodge, so it’s completely feasible that the car receives three or even four electric motors to enable it reach 60 mph in the rumoured 2.0 seconds.
“If an electric motor will make it quicker, we will do it,” Dodge chief Tim Kuniskis has said. The battery packs for STLA Large will range from 101 to 118 kWh in size with up to 500 miles of driving range, though surely not in this beastly machine. Worried about doing burnouts in silence? Fret not: Dodge wants the car to be loud and has created a muscled-up sound that intensifies based on how you’re driving.
According to Dodge, the sweet spot for muscle cars is between $40,000 and $50,000, so expect the production EV muscle car to be in that range to begin with. As with the Hellcat and Demon models, you’ll have to pay a premium for additional power, even as Dodge strives to preserve its customary power-per-dollar value.