Yahoo Autos 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona vs. 2023 Charger: How They Compare
The storied history of the Dodge Charger, a muscle car icon, made Dodge's recent retirement of the Hemi V-8 all the more emotional for Mopar enthusiasts. The final 2023 Dodge Charger and Challenger were built at the Stellantis Brampton Assembly Plant in Ontario, Canada, late last year. But now, the Charger is coming back reborn, swapping its Hemi V-8s and superchargers for electric motors and all-wheel-drive performance.
When the 2024 Charger shows up, it will be built on Stellantis's modular STLA Large platform and come in R/T and Scat Pack trims. For its first model year, the Charger will be powered exclusively by an electric powertrain. Going forward, the electric versions of the Charger will be referred to under the name Charger Daytona, and starting in 2025, Dodge will begin production of gas-powered Sixpack variants using Stellantis's Hurricane twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six.
Since the Hurricane models won't be out for a while, we figured now would be a good time to compare the new 2024 Charger Daytona to the previous-generation 2023 Charger.
Powertrain Options
We're in muscle-car territory, so let's start by talking about power figures. Last year's Charger R/T featured a 370-hp Hemi 5.7-liter V-8, while the Scat Pack was propelled by a Hemi 6.4-liter V-8 producing 485 horsepower. On the new models, in place of the monstrous V-8s, both the R/T and Scat Pack Charger Daytonas feature a 400-volt electrical architecture and a battery with 93.9 kWh of usable capacity.
With an electric motor at both the front and rear axles, the new Chargers feature standard all-wheel drive. The R/T will debut with up to 496 horsepower and 404 pound-feet of torque, and the Scat Pack will arrive with up to 670 horses and 627 pound-feet. Those maximum figures come thanks to a 15-second "Power Shot" function. The "Power Shot" enables a 40-hp boost for up to 15 seconds at a time, which can be used to your heart's content until the battery is drained, though Dodge says you have to wait 30 seconds between uses.
Thanks to the increased power and instantaneous torque that are baked into the electric powertrain, the EVs should be considerably quicker than the outgoing gas models. Dodge claims the R/T will hit 60 mph in 4.7 seconds and the Scat Pack will do it in just 3.3 seconds. The previous-gen Scat Pack made the same acceleration sprint in 3.9 seconds. Dodge estimates the battery will deliver EPA-rated ranges of 317 miles for the R/T and 260 miles for the Scat Pack.
Dimensions and Design
The Charger Daytona has never missed a meal, and it shows. The wheelbase is stretched slightly, now measuring 121 inches compared to 120.2 inches before. At 206.6 inches from nose to tail, the new car is much longer than the last version, which was 198.4 inches long. It's wide, too. At 79.8 inches wide, the new Charger is 4.4 inches wider than before and only 0.1 inch narrower than a Ford F-150.
Fortunately, the increase in dimensions does result in improved practicality. The cargo area now has a massive 23 cubic feet of storage, compared to just 17 cubic feet before. Now that there's no engine up front, there's a new front storage compartment that offers an additional 2 cubic feet of storage.
As for styling, the new car looks almost identical to the Charger Daytona concept we've been seeing for the past two years. The illuminated Fratzog logo sits proudly between the redesigned headlights. Without a V-8 stuffed under the hood, there's no engine bulge, but the hood does feature large rakes, presumably to distribute the air passing through the front R-Wing situated in the front bumper.
Interior
The interior of the new model looks immediately familiar. The large, flat-bottomed steering wheel frames a digital dash, while a central infotainment screen juts skyward from the dashboard. Unlike the last generation, the new car's instrument cluster size changes based on the model, with a 10.3-inch screen in the R/T and a 16.0-inch screen in the Scat Pack. We also spotted what look to be climate-control buttons arranged below the infotainment screen, a welcome sight given our fears that the physical buttons would be replaced by touch controls.
The large gear selector from the last generation is gone, and there's a new pistol-grip selector in its place. There's also new ambient lighting for the cabin, which Dodge describes as "Attitude Adjustment" lighting.
Expected Price
Unfortunately, the transition to electrification will likely lead to a considerable increase in price. While the 2023 Charger R/T and Scat Pack started at $46,660 and $53,520, respectively, the EV versions are likely to be considerably more expensive. We think Dodge will price the 2024 R/T closer to $60,000 and the 2024 Scat Pack closer to $70,000. For fans of the model who aren't quite ready to give up an engine or fork over that kind of cash, we also expect that the Hurricane-powered six-cylinder gasoline models coming next year will remain more budget-friendly.
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