- Dodge is preparing its next-gen cop car
- Dodge teased what appears to be a police-spec Charger Daytona EV
- The old gas-powered Charger was popular with police fleets
The outgoing gasoline Dodge Charger sedan has become a staple of police fleets, but will that also be the case for the all-electric 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona?
An Instagram post on Dodge Law, the official account for the Stellantis brand's law enforcement business, shows the new Charger in police garb. The vehicle is labeled as a concept, and the post notes that more details are soon to come.
Dodge Law Instagram post from Aug. 2024
While the post doesn't specify whether the car pictured is a Charger Daytona EV or the companion gasoline model, which uses a turbocharged inline-6 engine, the way the police decal on the hood dips down indicates that the police concept has the R-Wing front blade that is specific to the electric version.
The Charger Daytona will be offered as a three-door or five-door hatchback, with the latter offering space in back for detainees. A 100.5-kwh (93.5-kwh usable) battery pack provides up to 317 miles of range in civilian models, and a peak DC fast-charge rate of 183 kw allows for a 20-80% charge in about 28 minutes. Less relevant to law enforcement is the Fratzonic exhaust system that simulates the noise and vibration of the now-defunct V-8 engine.
2024 Dodge Charger Daytona
This would be the first all-electric police car offered by Stellantis in the U.S., but other EVs such as the Ford F-150 Lightning and Chevrolet Blazer EV have already been converted for law enforcement work. The City of South Pasadena, California, has even claimed to have the nation's first all-electric police fleet, although it's an outlier. U.S. police departments have been slow to adopt EVs, in part due to a lack of suitable options.
Considering the popularity of the old Charger with police fleets, perhaps the Charger Daytona will provide an all-electric platform better suited to their needs and help spur wider adoption of EVs among law enforcement. In the meantime, the civilian Charger Daytona is scheduled to reach dealerships later this year with a base price of $61,590.
