At the 2022 Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) Show going on in Las Vegas, NV, this week, Dodge is showing performance enthusiasts a bit more detail in the lead-up to the launch of its first electrified muscle car. The Stellantis brand showed the Banshee-powered Charger Daytona SRT battery-electric muscle car concept among more traditional performance cars and crate engines.
“The SEMA Show is one of the great gatherings of the performance culture, and Dodge isn’t going to shy away as we develop the next generation of muscle car—one that just happens to be fully electric,” said Tim Kuniskis, Dodge brand Chief Executive Officer at Stellantis. “Technology moves forward, and the customizers and tuners move right along with it. We’re demonstrating how old-school hot-rodding will thrive in an electrified muscle-car future.”
The SEMA reveal follows the concept’s original showing covered by Futurride during Dodge Speed Week was part of the lead-up to August’s Woodward Dream Cruise in the Detroit suburbs. The SEMA appearance coincides with the release of nine possible powertrain outputs for the all-electric muscle car concept. Three power levels as well as two levels of Dodge Direct Connection performance upgrades for each power level are being shown at SEMA.
However, Dodge revealed numbers for only the two 400-V system output levels of 340 kW and 440 kW, with the factory-delivered, power-level for the 800-V SRT Banshee powertrain package to be announced in the future.
The 340-kW base trim has aftermarket options of eStage 1, with 370 kW, and eStage 2, with 400 kW. The 440-kW base trim can be upgraded to eStage 1, at 470 kW, and eStage 2, at 500 kW. Direct Connection stage 1 and 2 performance upgrades use a “crystal” key that plugs into the dash.
To celebrate the Stage 2 Banshee performance upgrade, the SEMA version of the concept gets a new tri-coat Stryker Red exterior, Stage 2 fender badging, and new 18-in Direct Connection lightweight carbon-fiber concept wheels with 305-mm drag radials.
Using a video display wall, Dodge is showing off a variety of Charger Daytona SRT Concept colors, wheel designs, and performance configurations, illustrating the visual and performance customization that will continue to be a hallmark of Dodge muscle cars in the years to come. The power levels are matched to nine unique paint colors and nine wheel combinations to illustrate the nine performance and Direct Connection upgrade levels envisioned for the concept car.
Dodge will conduct Charger Daytona SRT Concept car consumer clinics at the show, with on-site teams getting impressions regarding the tuning of the patent-pending Fratzonic Chambered Exhaust—the world’s first BEV “exhaust system” to create a sound signature for its upcoming electric Charger muscle car. In August, Dodge said the new electric propulsion system would exceed the SRT Hellcat engine and its exhaust noise could reach 126 dB, making it as loud as a Hellcat-powered Dodge.
Execs believe the concept represents a giant step forward on the performance brand’s road to an electrified future, reimagining what a muscle car can be. They believe it will redefine American muscle by combining the visual, visceral, and emotional experiences “the Brotherhood” (brand enthusiasts) demand.