Well, that was decidedly unexpected - albeit also entirely welcomed! Sure, some will be all too eager to say that it’s too little, too late. But we (mostly) think that it’s way better than nothing.
So, unless you have been living under a Mars rock for the past year or so, the news that Stellantis has ordered its precious Dodge brand a strategy switch from the full ICE lifestyle to a partial EV revolution has already perspired. But never mind the fresh Dodge Hornet, which is way better-looking and cheaper than its Alfa Romeo Tonale sibling.
The real sadness is gravitating around the ICE-powered Dodge Charger and Challenger pony/muscle cars. Back in August 2022, the American carmaker announced the 2023 model year production as the last one with ICE power under the hood. Naturally, to mark the end of the era, there would be one last hurrah – or, rather, seven of them, before embarking on the nine levels of Banshee EVs for the upcoming Dodge Charger Daytona SRT concept’s production model. As such, the company revealed – starting last autumn – a series of ‘Last Call’ special editions for the U.S. market.
The end of production will take place at the end of 2023 and before that, fans can choose any of the normal 2023MY Chargers and Challengers alongside the Dodge Challenger Black Ghost, Charger King Daytona, Charger and Challenger Swinger, Charger Super Bee, Challenger Shakedown, plus the flagship Challenger SRT Demon 170. Never mind the latter’s curious name, it’s an absolutely bonkers ICE machine that can level it out with the Tesla Model S Plaid when on E85 because it has 1,025 horsepower on tap.
And here we thought that all the ‘Last Call’ action had just one location – its home in America. Well, we were wrong! In a truly unexpected move – especially considering the region’s drastic pollution requirements – Dodge has recently announced that its special edition series will cross the Atlantic Ocean into Europe, as well! The extension of the final tribute to the Old Continent kicks off with the Dodge Challenger Shakedown, but don’t count on seeing the Demon 170 roar on the Autobahn since the company also said that just five of the seven muscle cars will make the cross-continental journey.
And we already know the exceptions: Charger King Daytona and the Challenger SRT Demon 170. The rest will feature special perks and will be true collectibles since very few examples will make the trip to Europe. For instance, the 2023 Dodge Challenger Shakedown has a total allocation of 1,000 units of which just 55 examples will reach the Old Continent in Shakedown R/T Scat Pack Widebody form, all dressed in Pitch Black. The only options are the Plus Group, Technology Group, Navigation, and Carbon/Suede, by the way.
Aurel has aimed high all his life (literally, at 16 he was flying gliders all by himself) so in 2006 he switched careers and got hired as a writer at his favorite magazine. Since then, his work has been published both by print and online outlets, most recently right here, on autoevolution. Full profile
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