- The base version of the electric Dodge Charger Daytona will be dropped for 2026, a new report claims.
- The shake-up comes after a rocky start for the Charger Daytona, with middling reviews and heavy incentives out of the gate.
- It’s also built in Canada, so the new 25% tariff on imported vehicles may have something to do with its demise.
Dodge is killing the base version of its electric Charger Daytona muscle car, a new report from Mopar Insider claims. This comes after the model debuted to middling reviews and a lukewarm reaction to enthusiasts.
That’s led to quite a bit of excess inventory—3,500 R/Ts on dealer lots nationwide, according to Mopar Insider. That inventory has built despite Dodge offering quite a bit of cash on the hood, with aggressive lease offers to boot. But combined with new 25% tariffs for the made-in-Canada Charger, aggressive incentives likely made this a money-loser for Dodge.
Dodge did not immediately respond to our request for comment.
The rocky start is a shame, because Dodge had high hopes for the Charger Daytona. It’s a muscle car for a new era, an attempt to capture the raucous feeling of a V8 tire-shredder without the tailpipe emissions. That dream remains alive: The 670-hp Scat Pack is here to stay, and will get a four-door version for 2026, Mopar Insider Claims. But the 496-hp R/T didn’t quite hit its mark. Blame the high starting price, the average Dodge Charger customer’s preference for gasoline, or 25% tariffs on imported cars.
Regardless, it’s a troubling sign from Dodge. The company always had its work cut out for it on electrification. Dodge has always been a major purveyor of V8 engines, and has in recent years leaned into hyper-aggressive, chest-beating marketing. Ads usually feature tire smoke and a smooth voice talking about how some folks don’t play by the rules. Combined with political anti-EV sentiment, that may make any electric option a tough sell for the Charger audience. Adding fake V8 “Fratzonic” noises didn’t seem to move the needle too much.
The higher-horsepower Scat Pack variant of the Charger EV.
Photo by: Patrick George
Worse, the core product just isn’t that compelling as an EV. It has middling range; software that’s a step behind most competitors, and two steps behind others; bad low-speed throttle tuning and so much weight to lug around. With a 0-60 time of 4.7 seconds, the R/T wasn’t even that quick by EV standards; It’d get dusted by a Tesla Model Y Dual Motor Long Range, hardly a muscle car. The R/T also started around $62,000, which is a helluva lot more than a V8 Mustang costs.
I don’t think Dodge is doomed here, and I think focusing on the high-horsepower model makes sense. Right now, an EV muscle car is unlikely to undercut its internal-combustion counterparts on cost, but it can deliver more power, more torque and use multiple motors to pull of clever tricks than an ICE car couldn’t. Dodge hasn’t quite leveraged those advantages into an ultra-compelling product yet, but sticking it out in the segment may teach it a lot of valuable lessons.
Unfortunately, the news is worse for Stellantis as a whole. The company has two long-range EVs on sale in the U.S.: The Dodge Charger Daytona and The Jeep Wagoneer S. In my view, both have tuning issues, and neither does enough to convince EV skeptics or traditional Dodge and Jeep buyers. Both are built outside of the U.S.—the Dodge in Canada, the Jeep in Mexico—so they’re now subject to tariffs on their already-high prices. Its city EV, the Fiat 500e, is in an equally tough position, with Kevin Williams proclaiming that he “doesn’t know who this car is for.”
The company still has a chance to turn things around. An all-electric Jeep Recon is coming this year. The Ram 1500 Ramcharger extended-range electric vehicle (EREV) and Ram 1500 REV EV—both already delayed a number of times—have been postponed yet again, with the Ramcharger arriving early in 2026 and the REV coming sometime in 2027. I think the Ramcharger is the most compelling electrified truck design we’ve seen from the Big Three so far, and if Ram can get the price and reliability where they need to be, it could be a much-needed hit.
But the company first needs to take a hard look at its existing electric products to learn some key lessons. Hopefully killing the Charger Daytona R/T is just the start of a process that’ll lead to a stronger, more refined group of electric options. Because Dodge can’t afford to retreat from its electric ambitions. The brand needs to define its future, even if it takes a couple of tries.
Contact the author: Mack.Hogan@insideevs.com.