EV Charger set to scream like a banshee

DODGE says it is taking a giant step forward on its performance brand’s road to an electrified future, revealing the Charger Daytona SRT this week – a fully-electric concept model the US car-maker says will “shatter conceptions” of what a battery-electric vehicle can be.

The two-door lift back coupe was revealed as part of the group’s Dodge Speed Week event in Detroit alongside the Hornet PHEV and Last Call V8-powered Charger and Challenge models.

Dodge said the model will offer an electric vehicle experience unlike any other, and promises an industry-first ‘EV exhaust’ system to deliver sound it says is equal in volume to its Hellcat powered models – that’s 126dB!

Utilising what Dodge calls a “fratzonic chambered exhaust”, the Charger Daytona SRT Concept voices a generated sound that is expelled via an amplifier and tuning chamber located at the rear of the vehicle. Dodge says the sound represents a “tactile, bone-shaking, muscle attitude, creating a visceral ‘Dark Matter’ sound profile experience in concert with the eRupt transmission”.

The eRupt transmission is a multi-speed unit with electro-mechanical shifting that promises to deliver “distinctive shift points” that will “throw the drivers shoulders into the seatbacks in true Dodge style”.

The concept also boasts a PowerShot push-to-pass feature which is activated by the push of a button on the steering wheel.

Dodge has yet to release specifications on the concept model’s powertrain, but promises the “Banshee” unit will offer comparable power to its high-horsepower HEMI V8s, but with an 800-volt electrical system and standard all-wheel drive that will make its first electric vehicle “faster than a Hellcat in all key performance measures”.

Stylistically, the Charger Daytona SRT Concept is indeed reminiscent of its predecessor. It brings an extensive number of Dodge heritage cues to the fore while also “exceeding aerodynamic targets,” said Dodge.

The car’s patented R-Wing redefines the typical Dodge front-end, maintaining the characteristically blunt nose while achieving the necessary aerodynamic properties needed to extend the model’s highway cruising range.

Dodge says the R-Wing is an homage to the original Charger Daytona and is incorporated as part of the concept model’s aerodynamically functional bonnet. Along with carbon-fibre intakes tucked into the sides of the front and rear lower fascias, the design helps the car to create an “air curtain” that bolsters its aerodynamic performance.

The grille is illuminated with cross-car lighting centred with a white illuminated Fratzog badge – which originally featured on Dodge muscle cars from 1962 through to 1976. Dodge says the return of the Fratzog motif will signify its electrified performance future.

With elements of the ’68 Charger in its grille slats and “Greys of Thunder” paint scheme, the concept model is about as NASCAR as it gets. The model’s headlights almost hide beneath the R-wing while the flush door handles continue a minimalist design Dodge said is all about “avoiding excess decoration”.

Brushed aluminium “screaming” Banshee fender badges announce the new propulsion system that drives the concept while painted-pocket 21-inch wheels with diamond cut faces that “contribute to aerodynamic efficiencies,” grace the SRT. Grey six-pot calipers provide the car with ample stopping power.

Inside, the Dodge Charger Daytona SRT Concept is “modern, lightweight and athletic”, says Dodge with a driver-centric cockpit, 12.3-inch centre screen, 16.0-inch curved instrument cluster and an eight- by three-inch colour head-up display. The car also features Attitude Adjustment Lighting to “enhance shadows and highlights”.

There’s more ’68 Charger inspiration in the grille detail on the dashboard, the pistol-grip gearshift and in the parametric texture that features throughout the cabin. The patterned feature “adds fluidity” to the door appliques, beneath the console and across the armrests and rear console, Dodge says.

Circuit-like graphics that originate on the carbon-fibre floor are strategically placed to surround occupants, flowing under the seats, moving to the centre console and IP, and coming back to the driver, in a subtle detail Dodge says acts as a circuit board, connecting one to another.

And in a final nod to the model’s BEV driveline, the Dodge Charger Daytona SRT Concept features a lightning bolt throttle pedal.

“The Dodge Charger Daytona SRT Concept exists because performance made us do it,” said Mr Kuniskis.

“Dodge is about muscle, attitude and performance, and the brand carries that chip on its shoulder and into the BEV segment through a concept loaded with patents, innovations, and performance features that embody the electrified muscle of tomorrow.

“The Charger Daytona SRT Concept can do more than run the car show circuit; it can run a blazing quarter mile; and when it comes to product cycles, it outruns Darwin. Charger Daytona does more than define where Dodge is headed, it will redefine American muscle in the process.

“One day ago, the brand’s first-ever electrified performance vehicle was unveiled, the all-new 2023 Dodge Hornet. Today, we revealed a peek at our eMuscle future with the Dodge Charger Daytona SRT Concept. When we said it was going to be an electric summer for Dodge, we meant it.”