Challenger

Make
Dodge
Segment
Coupe

Dodge has not been shy regarding its upcoming all-electric muscle car. Due in 2024, this unnamed vehicle is expected to be the successor for the Dodge Challenger and, perhaps, the Charger, too. Dodge isn't giving everything away yet but at least we know a new muscle car era is coming fairly soon. But there's another critical component to muscle cars aside from raw power and performance: sound. EVs, however, are mostly silent though this has been remedied by artificial sounds.

And that's exactly what Dodge intends to do, only with its own unique twist. Per Automotive News, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said the upcoming vehicle, which will debut in concept form later this year, will have a "shocking" sound.

"We are creating a sound that you cannot imagine," Tavares said. "It's something that is shocking. After they create the sound, they are thinking about how they make the sound louder and more powerful in function of the way you are using the car."

The CEO of the world's fourth-largest automaker reiterated his belief America is ready for an EV muscle car by citing market research studies that indicate car buyers, specifically those in their 30s, are open to the idea of a fully electrified muscle car. Dodge aims to be the first to bring such a vehicle to market. The next-generation Ford Mustang, internally referred to as S650, will debut next year though it won't be a pure EV, at least not yet.

Instead, it's expected to retain the V8 though it'll be coupled to a plug-in hybrid system. The Chevy Camaro, meanwhile, will stick around for a few more years before its retirement. Instead of a direct successor, the Bow Tie brand is reportedly working on an EV muscle sedan.

The stakes for Dodge are incredibly high, all the more so because it intends to retire the 6.2-liter supercharged Hellcat V8 engine in 2023. This adapt or die approach carries plenty of risks but there's really no choice in the matter. And like always, fortune favors the bold.