Included in the Chrysler Group’s 5 year plan that was released last week was a simple chart that showed the future of the Dodge brand and the most significant piece of news for the short term is the dates of arrival for the next generation SRT Challenger and Charger. This chart (as shown above) indicates that the refreshed 2015 Dodge Challenger will arrive in dealerships in July followed by the new Challenger SRT with the Hellcat Hemi in August while the 2015 Dodge Charger will arrive in October with the Charger SRT arriving in January.
Considering that the Chrysler Group plans to launch the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT in dealerships around the country in August, we will almost certainly see the new Hellcat powered Hemi in the next few months unless the automaker plans to introduce the car with an immediate dealership debut shortly after. Figure that the Woodward Dream Cruise in Detroit falls in August so the company could use their huge WDC display to introduce the Hellcat Hemi SRT Challenger with the first units arriving in dealerships less than a few weeks later.
The Dodge Charger, which debuted last month at the New York International Auto Show, is expected to arrive in dealerships in October of this year in V6 and Hemi V8 R/T form with the striking new exterior design. The Hellcat Hemi powered Charger SRT will arrive in January 2015 – presumably as a 2016 model year vehicle unless the company plans to run a short model year for the 2015 SRT Charger (which I would consider to be pretty unlikely).
Finally, the 2014 Chrysler Group 5-year product plan for the Dodge brand indicated that there will be all-new versions of the Challenger and Charger in 2018. The “normal” Charger and Challenger will arrive in July 2018 as 2019 model year vehicles with the SRT version of both cars hitting the market in December of that same year, likely also as 2019 model year vehicles. Of course, that is a very long way off and things are likely to change between now and then so this information is far less important than the timing of the new Hellcat Hemi arrival.
In any case, the new SRT Challenger powered by the supercharged Hellcat Hemi should be revealed to the world and rolling into dealerships around the country before the end of the summer with the Hellcat Charger arriving shortly after Christmas – possibly around the time of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
