You Might Not Be Able to Buy a Dodge Car in 2024 Even if You Want To
I expect you could learn as much from any automaker’s news on plant closings and retoolings as from its press releases on upcoming makes and models. Here’s an example: Dodge has killed the current Charger and Challenger after 2023 and is coy about what is coming next. But it has announced it will close its only plant assembling cars to retool for electric vehicles. This renovation is expected to run at least through 2025. There may be no Dodge car available until the 2026 model year. So will there even be a 2024 Dodge car? Here’s what you may have to buy instead.
What is happening to the Dodge Charger and Challenger?
Dodge has announced that will kill the Charger and Challenger, as we know them, after the 2024 model year. But whatever Stellantis’ future “eMuscle” lineup looks like, it’s unlikely it will retire such recognizable nameplates. In fact, Dodge’s latest EV prototype is named the Charger Daytona.
Both these cars–alongside the Chrysler 300C–have always been assembled at the Brampton Plant outside Toronto, Canada. There’s a rumor on Mopar Insiders that the next generation of these cars will move to the Windsor assembly plant, also in Ontario.
But the truth is a bit more complex. Stellantis will be taking both plants offline to retool them for its “multi-energy vehicle” lineup–so get them ready for mixed ICE, hybrid, and EV production. Windsor’s renovations begin sometime in 2023, while Brampton’s in 2024. But both retoolings could be a multi-year process, so where will the 2024 Dodge Chargers or Challengers be built? If there are any, they will arrive late in the year.
Will there be a 2024 Dodge car for sale?
Both the Dodge Hornet and the next generation of the Dodge Durango should be available in the 2024 model year. We’ll have to wait and see about the Dodge Grand Caravan as it hails from the Windsor plant which is undergoing renovations. But that’s two SUVs and a possible minivan – as far as an actual sedan or coupe go, there’s no sure answer yet.
The Dodge Hornet is a crossover based on the Alfa Romeo Tonale. Like the Jeep Compass and Renegade, it is assembled in Italy and shipped to North America. There’s no reason Dodge dealers won’t be selling the Hornet in 2024. Stellantis may have actually been motivated to offer an Italian-built Dodge so dealers will have something to sell in 2024.
The Dodge Durango is assembled alongside Jeep’s Grand Cherokee at Stellantis’ Detroit plant. Stellantis has already retooled this plant to build its new large crossover chassis, which will be shared across several brands. This chassis will not be engineered for V8s, so the crossovers built there will likely be available with either the turbocharged Hurricane I6 or a hybrid I4 powertrain. Will this be the 2024 Durango? Perhaps, but the Durango nameplate may land on a different segment altogether.
Will Dodge launch any new vehicles in 2024?
Mopar Insiders also reports that Dodge will build some 2024 vehicles at the Warren Truck Assembly Plant. This plant currently makes the Ram 1500 Classic and Jeep’s Wagoneer brand. Could a full-frame Grand Durango be in the works? What about a completely new vehicle? How about the Dodge Aspen resurrected as an SUV?
Dodge has another option. It could move the Durango nameplate up to its new three-row SUV and create a new name for whatever three-row crossover it builds alongside the Grand Cherokee. I’d rather see the Magnum name return than the Caliber or Avenger. But Stellantis has yet to ask me.
The final option for a new Dodge could be a sedan or coupe built on the Alfa Romeo Giulia platform. Going this route would allow for a 2024 Dodge car, even while its North American plants are under renovation. Will this be the next Challenger? Or embrace its European roots as the resurrected Dodge Monaco or Matador? We’ll just have to wait to find out.
What do you think Dodge’s 2024 lineup will look like? Let us know in the comments below.
Next, read how Dodge knows the electric Charger isn’t for everyone, or see Dodge’s official presentation in the video below:
Editor’s Note: As of October 2023, Dodge’s announced 2024 lineup only includes the Hornet and Durango. Will the “2024” Dodge Charger Daytona EV actually arrive on lots late in the model year? We’ll just have to wait and see.
