Yahoo Autos Dodge Hornet Morphs into a 1072-HP Electric Rally Car
Dodge is entering Nitrocross with the Hornet nameplate for the 2024–2025 season.
The Hornet R/T FC1-X features the same 1072-hp electric underpinnings as the other competitors.
Dodge is distinguishing the Hornet race car by applying the roadgoing crossover's headlights and grille to the front end.
Dodge has fielded some pretty cool race cars over its 124-year history, from the Dodge Charger Daytona with its towering rear wing to the Dodge Viper GTS-R that took class victories at Le Mans. Now Dodge is bringing a new nameplate into the motorsports realm, the Hornet. Don't worry, though, as the race car shares little with the middling road-going crossover. Dodge will run four Hornet R/T FC1-X electric rally cars in the 2024-2025 season of Nitrocross in Group E, the highest class.
The Hornet race car has nothing in common with the compact crossover save for the name and a graphics package that attempts to ape the Hornet's face. Instead of a turbocharged four-cylinder or a plug-in hybrid, the R/T FC1-X features an all-wheel-drive electric powertrain pumping out 1072 horsepower.
The oomph from the axial flux motors propels the FC1-X from zero to 60 mph in just 1.4 seconds, says Dodge, and it produces almost 2 g's under acceleration. The sporty bodywork is fashioned around a tubular chassis and a carbon-fiber tub. A double-wishbone suspension is fitted at all four corners and the Hornet also has adjustable front and rear anti-roll bars. Dodge claims that the rally car's setup allows for 12 inches of wheel travel.
The Nitrocross Series, founded by daredevil extraordinaire Travis Pastrana, started in 2020 and features wheel-to-wheel racing on dirt tracks, with the cars kicking up plumes of dust in never-ending drifts and launching off jumps. All teams in Group E run identical FC1-Xs, so the Dodge's only distinguishing feature will be the Hornet's headlights and grille plastered onto its front end. According to Dodge's CEO Matt McAlear, "nearly 75 percent of Nitrocross race fans are between the ages of 18 and 34," making it the prime spot for Dodge to aim to expand the Hornet's reach.
The cars are being operated by Dreyer & Reinbold Racing, and Lia Block is at the helm of one of the Hornets. Block, age 17, is the daughter of the late Ken Block and an emerging motorsports star herself, becoming a member of the Williams Driver Academy in 2023. Block will become the youngest-ever driver in Group E and also the first woman to compete in the class. The other Dodge cars will be driven by Group E race winners Fraser McConnell and Andres Bakkerud, along with two-time Group E champion Robin Larsson. The season kicked off at Richmond Raceway on September 7, where Larsson claimed victory for Dodge and Dreyer & Reinbold in the first race.
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