It feels like we’ve been waiting ages for the new Dodge Charger to drop, and a set of teaser photos recently published to Dodge’s social media platforms suggest that it’s very nearly here. Straight off the rip, a few things are obvious: It’s a coupe, it’s big, it looks almost exactly like the Dodge Charger Daytona concept, and its power source is rather ambiguous. For the people who’ve been complaining that Chargers only have two doors since 2005, your time has come.
Obviously, Dodge has done some work to partially obfuscate the look of the new Charger in these teaser photos, from choosing a grey car to positioning it behind a fence to shooting from a distance. However, there’s still a ton of cues we can pick out from the generous selection of teaser photos.
The front end looks a bit sad in these photos. Maybe the dreary January weather plays a role, but this front clip just doesn’t look as expressively malevolent as the old Challenger or the 392 and Hellcat Chargers with the stormtrooper front end. We’ve got two blocky headlights set into a horizontal grille-like element with one daytime running light bar connecting the two. Pretty simple. Below that, the outer front bumper grilles recall those of the outgoing Hellcat Challenger, while the main bumper grille is trapezoidal like the first facelifted modern Challenger from 2012. Also up front? The Fratzog logo from Mopar history. Gotta lean into that brand heritage, right?
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Although it’s hard to tell much about the new Charger’s profile, it seems almost identical to that of the Charger SRT Daytona Banshee concept when viewed from afar, with a few minor detail changes. The mirrors are now actually large enough for a road car, while either a fuel door or a charging port appears on the left quarter panel. Dodge seems to have taken great pains to maintain the classic profile scalloping that reappeared on the previous Charger, and it seems to work on this new car.
Based on information Stellantis has released previously, we know for sure that the new Charger will ride on the STLA Large architecture and feature some level of electrification, likely a full-on battery electric powertrain. However, leaks of bodyshells at a Stellantis facility earlier this year show a transmission tunnel, so don’t be surprised if the three-liter Hurricane inline-six from the Jeep Wagoneer makes an appearance.
Another thing we gleaned from those body-in-white photos is that the new Charger is likely a three-door liftback, making it the first three-door liftback Charger since 1987, and the first liftback Charger coupe with a longitudinal architecture ever. The once-popular liftback bodystyle is now sorely missed from the mass-market coupe segment, so this added boost of practicality might be just what people need to consider the new Dodge Charger a practical family car, even if it loses two doors over the last one.
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For a bit of context, here’s the Charger SRT Daytona Banshee concept from 2022. Notice the cutline of the front bumper, the distinct contouring where the fenders meet the hood and A-pillars, the bumper grille silhouette, and the rake of the A-pillars? Yep, all those things carry over from the concept, which suggests the concept may have been built using production data. Considering it’s a running, driving concept, using hardware already in development only makes sense from a cost perspective.
While some might scoff at the Dodge Charger going electric, over the past 58 years, the nameplate’s been positively eclectic. The Charger started life as a midsized fastback for 1966 and 1967, before morphing into the muscle car canonized in the pantheon of greats by productions like “Bullitt” and “The Dukes of Hazzard.” This second-generation Charger was also where the Daytona nameplate was born, with a legendary wing car designed for NASCAR superspeedways.
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For 1971, the styling shifted again, with a sleek nose, a more wedge-like silhouette, and Chrysler’s fuselage surfacing. These 1971 to 1974 Chargers are the last of the OG muscle car crop, with available V8 hero engines like the 426 Hemi, the 440, and the attainable 383. Of course, you could also get a third-generation Charger with more economy-minded engines like the 225-cube slant-six, but that’s part of classic American coupes’ long-lasting appeal — they offered something for everyone.
In 1975, things got weird. The muscle car segment was dead thanks to rising fuel costs and concerns about emissions, to the Dodge Charger pivoted to being a rebranded Chrysler Cordoba. Look, it was the era of Quaaludes and leisure suits, it’s hard to explain but easy to acknowledge. Dodge eventually decided to use the Magnum name for its personal luxury coupe, putting the Charger nameplate on ice after 1978.
That ice melted quickly. In 1981, the Charger was back and unlike any other Charger prior or since. This new car was front-wheel-drive, and started its life as an option package before taking over the Omni 024 range entirely. As with before, this Charger had range from mild to wild, with turbo Shelby power at the top of the range and a humble 1.6-liter Simca Poissy engine at the bottom. It was an unprecedently weird time for the Charger nameplate, but a fun one.
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Oh, and who could forget the iconic LX and LD Chargers, spanning 2005 until 2023. These rear-wheel-drive bruisers were available with as little as 190 horsepower and as much as 807 horsepower, a hilarious spread if I’ve ever seen one. These cars singlehandedly rebuild the Charger’s reputation into what it is today, and David did a phenomenal job with his history of the LX platform if you’re interested in reading more.
Through the nameplate’s long and tumultuous life, the Dodge Charger has been a sporty midsize fastback, a muscle car, a personal luxury coupe, an import-fighting front-wheel-drive hatchback, a full-size sedan, and now likely an EV. How’s that for constant change?
Expect the new Dodge Charger to debut later this year, possibly as either a 2025 model or a 2026 model depending on start-of-production. We wouldn’t be surprised if it offers a choice of electric or Hurricane turbocharged inline-six power, and it also seems reasonable to expect a liftback, given previous production leaks. Depending on where pricing clocks in, this could be one seriously tempting family vehicle if you don’t have much of a need for rear doors. Plus, even with its size, it could still give the Ford Mustang some competition.
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(Photo credits: Dodge)
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