Dodge has announced that it will be doing away with its Challenger and Charger vehicles as it transitions to electric cars.
On Monday, parent company Stellantis said it will end production of the Dodge Charger and Dodge Challenger by December 2023. Seven special-edition versions with a “Last Call” plaque will be available in the forthcoming Dodge Charger and Challenger selection.
Consumers will be able to choose between the Demon, Hellcat, Redeye, Scat Pack, Shaker, Jailbreak, and a seventh model that will be announced at an automotive industry convention in November.
The wildly popular fast cars have been staples in the mid-late 2000s amongst new muscle car enthusiasts. The Hellcat model has especially become a bestseller for its 700-horsepower and rap music co-signs.
The move comes as Stellantis moves to invest $99 million to begin producing hybrid-electric cars at plants in Michigan, Indiana, and Toronto. The company also plans to team up with Samsung to develop a $2.5 billion electric vehicle battery plant in Kokomo, Indiana.
Given that Dodge scores the worst for average fuel economy and carbon emissions, CEO Tim Kuniskis has been adamant for a number of years that gas-powered muscle cars will gradually go.
“The days of an iron block supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 are numbered,” Kuniskis said in a statement to CNBC. “But the performance that those vehicles generate is not numbered.”
While there is no word yet on what will replace the beloved cars, Dodge will offer a convertible Challenger in the “Last Call” lineup.
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