Dodge plans gas-powered Charger but will cut cheaper electric variant

Dodge is pulling the plug, so to speak, on its base model electric Charger Daytona, the R/T, as it deals with slow sales, but don’t expect what appears to be a limited-edition run of vehicles to turn into collector’s items, according to a key industry watcher.

“Rarity does not make a collectible. You need to have demand for it,” said Sam Fiorani, vice president of global vehicle forecasting for AutoForecast Solutions. “You can’t presume that this will be a Charger Daytona of 1970. They couldn’t sell those originally and years later they were collectible.”

Fiorani said it’s risky to bet on a car of today becoming something that brings big dollars in the years to come, even when the numbers of those made and sold are relatively small.

Still, Dodge will continue to offer the more powerful and expensive electric Charger Daytona Scat Pack for the upcoming model year, even as it prepares to launch several gas-powered versions.

While it’s not clear how many Dodge Charger Daytonas will be produced this year, so far the sales picture is showing a fairly light impact. Electric Charger sales — the company did not distinguish between versions — for the first three months of this year were at 1,947. Granted, they were just beginning to arrive in showrooms in January after months of delays.

However, the automaker likely had higher hopes. Fiorani noted that he’d recently driven by a Dodge dealership and saw a row of Chargers waiting to be sold.

In a statement, Dodge CEO Matt McAlear said “production of the Dodge Charger Daytona R/T is postponed for the 2026 model year as we continue to assess the effects of U.S. tariff policies. The Charger’s flexible, multi-energy STLA Large platform allows us to focus on the Charger Daytona Scat Pack’s performance as the world’s quickest and most powerful muscle car, add the new four-door model to the Charger mix for the 2026 model year and lean into the new Charger SIXPACK models that will launch in the second half of the year.”

Sixpack refers to the engine, the inline-six Hurricane, which will come in 550-horsepower or 420-horsepower variants.

The current electric Scat Pack promises a peak power base of 630 horsepower with a limited push-button burst to 670 horsepower called the Power Shot. The Dodge website lists the Scat Pack all-wheel drive with a starting price of $73,985, excluding destination charge.

Adding gas-powered versions to the lineup is not a surprise, as Dodge had previously said that was the plan. However, the decision, reported earlier by MoparInsiders.com, to end the electric R/T’s run so soon does highlight how the market has changed, both in terms of the slower adoption of electric vehicles and President Donald Trump’s embrace of tariffs. The Charger Daytona is assembled at the Windsor Assembly Plant in Ontario, but the batteries initially were to come from South Korea.

Fiorani offered some perspective on the potential tariff impact, however.

“Everybody is leaning on tariffs for every change in production or sales, whether real or not,” he said.

Market realities are, however, what they are.

More: Detroit automakers want Silicon Valley talent, but need Michigan engineering knowledge

“The idea that an internal combustion engine version would hit the market better at the moment is a strong one,” according to Fiorani. “Buyers haven’t warmed up to EVs as a performance vehicle yet, especially since every EV is a performance model now.”

Fiorani noted also that the company’s planned shift in production volume toward the gas-powered Charger would also take the focus off the less expensive EV version — the R/T was listed with a starting price of $59,595, not counting destination.

“(They) kind of want to focus on the vehicle that will make money versus the entry-level models that will sell on price,” Fiorani said.

The moves for Dodge follow news that Ram is also adjusting its electric plans. Crain’s Detroit Business, citing a memo to suppliers, reported this week that the electric Ram 1500 REV would be delayed until summer 2027, a year later than what the automaker told the Free Press in January, and the extended range Ramcharger is being pushed from later this year to early next year.

More: U.S. auto industry wants trade deal with Canada and Mexico to be Trump’s priority

The company, in a statement provided by spokesman Nick Cappa, cited “slowing consumer demand for half-ton” battery electric pickups and noted that “we also are extending the quality validation period for the Range Extended Ram to support a successful launch and the highest build quality.”

Contact Eric D. Lawrence: elawrence@freepress.com. Become a subscriber. Submit a letter to the editor at freep.com/letters.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Dodge pivots on future EV offerings after lackluster sales