QOTD: How Charged Up Are You?

Tim Healey
by Tim Healey

Today's Dodge Charger launch is going to drive a lot of conversations.

Including this question of the day.


The big question is, will Dodge be able to sell muscle-car aficionados, some of whom are probably anti-EV and/or very much in favor of internal-combustion engines, on a pure battery-electric vehicle? Especially since there was no intermediate electrification step involving a hybrid or plug-in hybrid?

I also wonder if the Hurricane-engine Chargers will sell well amongst those who are reluctant to go EV.

Maybe it will go the other way -- maybe old-school folks will be won over by the power on tap, especially since EVs can put their torque down instantly.

Personally, I am not bothered by the idea of an EV muscle car, though it is a bit sad to say goodbye to natural V8 sounds -- I am not sure fake exhaust sounds will be a proper replacement.

I am simply curious how the all-EV version of the new Charger will do. I am also curious as to how the EV/ICE mix will break down.

Some folks here think I am anti-EV -- I am not. That said, I wouldn't own one at present, as my current living situation makes charging a hassle. So whether I would buy an EV Charger is academic for the moment -- and I reserve final judgment on any new vehicle until I drive it, anyway.

With that in mind, I could see, based on the car's specs, a scenario where I'd own one, if I could charge it easily. I am also intrigued by the six-cylinder version -- it may not have a V8's snarl, but the power numbers are strong, the price will probably be less dear, and even if you're not anti-EV, buying a Hurricane-equipped Charger could be the best way to have one in your driveway. Imagine wanting the Daytona but buying the six because it's cheaper and/or you can't charge an EV easily. That's one way to get into a cool-looking new Charger.

What say you? Do you like the car's looks? Would you drive/own the EV Daytona? Is this muscle-car blasphemy or a step into the performance future as the motoring world evolves? Do you prefer the Hurricane, and if so, is that because it's ICE or for some other reason? And so on, and so forth.

Some of these questions will be answered, at least for me, whenever I finally drive the car.

Until then, sound off below.

[Image: Dodge]

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Tim Healey
Tim Healey

Tim Healey grew up around the auto-parts business and has always had a love for cars — his parents joke his first word was “‘Vette”. Despite this, he wanted to pursue a career in sports writing but he ended up falling semi-accidentally into the automotive-journalism industry, first at Consumer Guide Automotive and later at Web2Carz.com. He also worked as an industry analyst at Mintel Group and freelanced for About.com, CarFax, Vehix.com, High Gear Media, Torque News, FutureCar.com, Cars.com, among others, and of course Vertical Scope sites such as AutoGuide.com, Off-Road.com, and HybridCars.com. He’s an urbanite and as such, doesn’t need a daily driver, but if he had one, it would be compact, sporty, and have a manual transmission.

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2 of 65 comments
  • Lou_BC Lou_BC on Mar 06, 2024

    I guess they could mount the hurricane tilted and call it a slant 6.

  • Alex Mackinnon Alex Mackinnon on Mar 07, 2024

    Its 1000 lbs heavier than my Mach E GT. I'm really not sure why. The battery is about the same size, the HP is a little bit higher (but not much), torque is similar. Longer body, but shorter profile.


    Looks cool, and I like the sedan/hatchback profile though. Quite slick. I'm just not sure why it's so heavy.

  • Teddyc73 Even in the front it's still a trunk. Just stop already. If it was on the side would we called it a "srunk"?
  • Statikboy Looks-wise, it could be the next gen Soul.
  • SCE to AUX Here's a crazy thought - what if China decides to fully underwrite the 102.5% tariff?
  • 3-On-The-Tree They are hard to get in and out of. I also like the fact that they are still easy to work on with the old school push rod V8. My son’s 2016 Mustang GT exhaust came loose up in Tuscon so I put a harbor freight floor jack, two jack stands, tool box and two 2x4 in the back of the vette. So agreed it has decent room in the back for a sports car.
  • Kjhkjlhkjhkljh kljhjkhjklhkjh so what?? .. 7.5 billion is not even in the same hemisphere as the utterly stupid waste of money on semiconductor fabs to the tune of more than 100 billion for FABS that CANNOT COMPETE in a global economy and CANNOT MAKE THE US Independent from China or RUSSIA. we REQUIRE China for cpu grade silicon and RUSSIA/Ukraine for manufacturing NEON gas for cpus and gpus and other silicon based processors for cars, tvs, phones, cable boxes ETC... so even if we spend trillion $ .. we STILL have to ask china permission to buy the cpu grade silicon needed and then buy neon gas to process the wafers.. but we keep tossing intel/Taiwan tens of billions at a time like a bunch of idiots.Google > "mining-and-refining-pure-silicon-and-the-incredible-effort-it-takes-to-get-there" Google > "silicon production by country statista" Google > "low-on-gas-ukraine-invasion-chokes-supply-of-neon-needed-for-chipmaking"
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