2024 Dodge Charger Daytona vs 2023 Dodge Challenger

In celebration of their final year turning perfectly good 305/35ZR20 Pirelli P Zeros into black stripes and circles on pavement, the Hemi V8-powered 2023 Challengers come in several “Last Call” special-edition models. Based on the R/T Scat Pack, the Challenger Shakedown and Swinger versions are limited to 1,000 examples each. Dodge will build 3,000 SRT Demon 170 models for the North American market, each making 1,025 horsepower. The rarest “Last Call” 2023 Challenger is the Black Ghost, limited to 300 units.

Verdict: For better and for worse, the 2023 Dodge Challenger is a time capsule, sending drivers back to an era where horsepower was the ultimate goal and fuel economy was a merely trivial anecdote. As it enters its final year, the Challenger offers more power than ever before, giving a dose of muscle-car performance heavy enough to match its irresistibly cool looks.

The new Dodge Charger roars into showrooms in coupe and four-door sedan configuration, not to mention with an available all-electric powertrain lurking beneath its sleek retro-themed exterior. Dodge has made a concerted effort to drag the Charger into the 21st century, without alienating a loyal fanbase that loved the previous Charger’s penchant for tire-smoking antics thanks to its rumbling Hemi V8 engines.

The bad news for some is the Hemis are gone (though their return has been strongly rumoured). Stricter emissions requirements and the need to modernize the Charger’s solid, yet undoubtedly dated, underpinnings meant a fresh automotive blueprint was required.

The good news is the design of the Charger is classically handsome, and straight-line speed is a match for any of the outgoing Charger’s brag-worthy zero to 96 km/h and quarter-mile times (3.3 seconds and 11.5 seconds respectively).

Verdict: Simply put, many muscle car purists will decry the current lack of a growling V8 engine under the hood. Trust us, they don’t know what they’re missing. The 2024 Dodge Charger pairs practicality with boisterous excess, successfully reinventing the brand’s approach to crafting a head-turning muscle car. The biggest caveat we discovered is price — the Charger Daytona is many things, but a bargain isn’t one of them.