When Dodge introduced the all-electric Charger SRT Daytona EV Concept a few weeks back, the brand stated that the top-of-the-line Banshee model would beat the SRT Hellcat in every performance metric. No real performance numbers were offered and at the time, Stellantis didn’t have any all-electric vehicles to use for reference, but that changed with the introduction of the Jeep Wagoneer S.
Set to go on sale next year, the Wagoneer S will be a battery electric vehicle (BEV) and the brand has stated preliminary performance figures of 600 horsepower and a 0-60 time of 3.5 seconds. Mind you, that is in a full-sized SUV and while we don’t know how much the Wagoneer S will weigh, we know how much the current Wagoneer lineup weighs. The official curb weight of the Wagoneer ranges from 6,069 pounds to 6,704 pounds. We believe that the Wagoneer S will not be based on the same chassis architecture as the current gasoline-powered Wagoneers, instead using the STLA Frame dedicated electric chassis. Since that chassis was developed specifically to carry a large EV battery pack, perhaps it is slightly lighter than the chassis under the gas-powered Wagoneers, which ride on the Ram 1500 chassis. However, it is still a full sized, three row SUV, so we have a hard time seeing the curb weight drop all that much. As a result, we expect a curb weight in the 5,500-pound range.
So for the sake of discussion, let’s say that the Jeep Wagoneer S BEV has a curb weight of 5,500 pounds and with the all-wheel-drive BEV drivetrain, it can sprint from a stop to 60 in 3.5 seconds.
Now let’s say that we take that same drivetrain from the Wagoneer S, scale it down a bit and put it in the new Charger BEV. The Charger SRT Daytona Concept that debuted a few weeks back is slightly smaller than the current Charger four-door sedans and the concept has loads of carbon fiber. Based on those two points, we would expect that the Charger EV – even with the weight of the batteries and the AWD components – will weigh less than the current gas-powered Charger sedans.
The current all-wheel drive Charger models weight around 4,250 pounds with the standard V6 while the heaviest rear-drive models top out around 4,600 pounds (based on the official curb weight figures). For those wondering, the Tesla Model S Plaid, which is unquestionably the leader in EV performance, weights just under 4,800 pounds.
If the smaller, carbon fiber-clad next generation Charger EV can get down into the range of the current V6 AWD models, it would be at least a thousand pounds lighter than the Jeep Wagoneer S. If the AWD BEV Wagoneer can get to 60 from a stop in 3.5 seconds, imagine what a sleeker and lighter Charger with the same basic AWD BEV drivetrain could do. Dodge has said that it will beat the Hellcat cars in every performance metric, and if it is a thousand pounds lighter than the Wagoneer S with a similar drivetrain, a 0-60 time in the 2-second range seems very possible.
Again, this is purely speculation, but with the introduction of the Jeep Wagoneer S, we have our first estimated performance figures for a battery electric vehicle from the American Stellantis brands. It seems very likely that the larger EVs from the Jeep, Ram and Dodge brands would all share drivetrain architecture, so it is very possible that the next generation Charger will have a closely related BEV drivetrain to that in the Wagoneer S. If that proves to be the case, the all-electric Charger will be among the quickest battery-powered vehicles in the world.
Patrick Rall is a professional writer and photographer with a passion for all things automotive. Having grown up in his father’s performance shop, he spent extensive time at the oval track and drag strip – both driving and wrenching on various types of vehicles. In addition to working as a writer, Patrick previously worked as an automotive technician before moving on to a business office position with a chain of dealerships, and this broad spectrum of experience in the industry allows him to offer a unique look on the automotive world. Follow Patrick on Twitter, Facebook and on Youtube.
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