Kyle D 
The Stellantis EV Day from earlier this month was a sobering wake-up call that not even the muscle car segment is immune to electrification. Dodge, for example, has been proudly and loudly championed the roar of a V8 before FCA and PSA announced their corporate merger earlier this year (and while Sergio Marchionne was alive). But it’s become clear that something’s changed, and whatever was in the works for the next-generation Dodge Charger and Dodge Challenger has been discarded in favor of battery electric vehicles riding on what’s called the STLA Large platform.
The transition could also mean a new place to call home for the Dodge Charger and Challenger, as new reports suggest that Stellantis would end their production at the Brampton, Ontario, Canada facility. The plant is just northwest of Toronto. The Charger hasn’t been built in America since 1987. The Challenger, not since 1974.
In an interview with Automotive News Canada, Joe McCabe, the CEO of consulting firm AutoForecast Solutions theorizes that production will be moved back to the States as early as next year, and as late as 2023 as the next-generation Dodge Charger is expected to hit the market. On top of it all, the Chrysler 300 could be facing the axe in this timeline also.
Brampton Plant Sees A Small Investment
Stellantis signed a 2020 collective bargaining agreement with Canadian Union Organization Unifor, agreeing to $50 million into three new variants of the popular muscle car, as well as continued production of the 300. This agreement is set to be re-negotiated by 2023, lining up with when the Dodge Charger EV will reach production. Before that, however, three new variants of the Charger and Challenger are reportedly expected.
Unifor leaders describe the Bramption plant as one that is “paying the bills” for Stellantis, as it builds all-three LX platform variants. From an architectural level, these vehicles have seen little evolution over the past decade, but Dodge has continued to make the Charger and Challenger more and more appealing with each passing year by listening to the demands of their current customer base. Whether that customer base sticks around for an EV portfolio is a big question that remains unanswered.
Future Dodge Charger And Dodge Challenger Production
Stellantis has yet to announce where the 2024 Dodge Charger EV will be built, or any other possible STLA Large platform vehicles representing the Dodge brand, such as the speculated Hornet electric SUV.
As it stands, Stellantis has five vehicle manufacturing facilities in the United States; four in Michigan (Jefferson, Mack, Sterling Heights, Warren), and one in Illinois (Belvidere). Considering the modularity of the upcoming STLA architecture, the conglomerate automaker could churn out multiple vehicles from multiple brands under one roof, very soon.
