You didn’t think Dodge would just give up on crazy speed, did you?
The 2024 Dodge Charger is here, but you know what’s not? The Hemi V8. It’s been replaced with a twin-turbo 3.0-liter inline-six, and, yes, battery power in the electric Daytona models. That six-cylinder comes in two states of tune—the standard output with 420 horsepower and the high output with 550 hp—which are both respectable, but still a ways off what we know Dodge can do with internal combustion. And what about the 670-hp Daytona Scat Pack? That’s not the promised Daytona SRT Banshee that’s supposed to be mightier than the Hellcat.
Well, the good news is there’s more power coming on each front, both ICE and electric.
Way back in 2022, Dodge introduced us to the HurriCrate engine lineup through its Direct Connection catalog. Three engines were shown then, two of which are present in the 2024 Charger on release. The 420-horsepower S.O. and 550-horsepower H.O. are representative of the Hurricane Cat1 and Cat3 engines shown in the catalog, and the only one missing is the HurriCrate CatX. That lump is advertised as a full-race derivative with an aluminum race block, cylinder head, and internals to match. Direct Connection states this version will produce horsepower in the “mid-1,000s” range and be featured in the next-gen Drag Pak.
Direct Connection
I reached out to Dodge and asked if this is still the plan. The spokesperson’s response… wasn’t that helpful: “In 2024, the Dodge Charger SixPack will be offered with either a 420-hp standard-output or 550-hp high-output 3.0-liter twin-turbo I6 Hurricane engine.” Obviously, that doesn’t confirm or deny anything, but the first two words seem telling. A more potent Hurricane-powered Charger still seems likely, just not this year.
Power in the mid-1000s range is no small claim. That would mean future models of this generation of Charger might actually put its Hemi-powered predecessors to shame. Mind you, the most powerful version of the Challenger in Dodge’s Last Call series was the Demon 170, which produced 1,025 hp. If we’re talking about a 1,500-horsepower Charger (or thereabouts), the Demon’s “shot heard around the world” 8.91-second quarter-mile pass would be but a pop gun in comparison to what’s coming. The most powerful Drag Pak to date already landed at 1,500 horsepower with a 7.50-second quarter mile. Dodge is known not for moderation but full-on performance, so an even crazier model with big boost seems like a shoo-in.
With the Challenger name seemingly put away on the shelf for the foreseeable future, the Charger looks set to carry on the Drag Pak torch.
It sounds like the Daytona SRT Banshee will be the true flagship available to regular people as the Drag Pak is a race-only machine. Either way, it’s awesome to see Dodge poring into both ICE and EV development. The brand could have elevated one at the expense of the other, but it didn’t. The result is the closest thing to having your cake and eating it too.
There’s a lot we still haven’t seen of this new Charger, and even if it feels wrong without a Hemi, Dodge performance is all but dead.
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