AUBURN HILLS, Mich., July 10, 2026 /PRNewswire/ --
- Dodge honors six decades of an American cultural icon by bringing the Dodge Charger's legacy directly to enthusiasts with a nationwide series of events
- Dodge Charger 60th summer road trip rumbles from coast to coast, including the following stops:
- Carlisle Chrysler Nationals in Carlisle, Pennsylvania
- A pair of west coast events in conjunction with the Petersen Automotive Museum: Route 66 Centennial Parade and All-American Cruise-In featuring the Charger
- MotorTrend Presents Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge returns with Charger 60th anniversary-themed car show and street-legal drag racing with the current era SIXPACK-powered Charger Scat Pack on iconic Woodward Avenue
- Charger vehicles showcased in Dodge display at the famed Woodward Cruise
- Cruise featuring Dodge Charger vehicles from Auburn Hills to Dodge NHRA Great Lakes Nationals drag race in Martin, Michigan
- After making its debut in 1966, Charger has evolved over six decades and eight vehicle generations by staying true its muscle-car performance roots
- Current eighth-generation Charger multi-energy lineup, led by gas engine SIXPACK-powered 550-horsepower Dodge Charger Scat Pack and 420-horsepower Charger R/T, features heritage-inspired muscle-car design and performance features, including a rear-wheel-drive mode that sends 100% of torque to the rear wheels for traditional muscle-car dynamics
- Dodge set to unveil the most powerful SIXPACK-powered Charger yet at 11th annual Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge
For six decades, the Dodge Charger has carried the pulse of American muscle in its veins, serving as an enduring symbol of performance, attitude and innovation. This summer, Dodge honors that legacy with a nationwide series of events, bringing the spirit of one of the most storied nameplates in automotive history directly to enthusiasts across the country.
From the original Dodge Charger debut on New Year's Day 1966 to the current eighth-generation, heritage-inspired Charger lineup led by the gas engine SIXPACK-powered Dodge Charger Scat Pack and Charger R/T, Charger has stayed true its muscle-car performance roots. 60 years and counting, the Charger continues to roar on streets and tracks across America with muscle-car styling, engineering and performance.
"From its debut in 1966, Dodge Charger has stood as a symbol of bold design, unapologetic performance and unmistakable American attitude," said Matt McAlear, Dodge CEO. "As we mark 60 years, we're bringing that legacy to life nationwide and connecting generations of enthusiasts. Today's Charger continues as a modern muscle car led by the 550-horsepower Scat Pack with its gasoline-burning, twin-turbo, SIXPACK engine, proving performance remains at its core."
The Charger 60th anniversary summer road trip heads first to America's east coast, roars across the country for two West Coast stops, hits Metro Detroit for two of the biggest car-culture enthusiast events in the nation, and wraps up with a cruise to watch 12,000-horsepower professional drag racers at the first National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) National event stop in Michigan in 66 years:
- Carlisle Chrysler Nationals (July 10-12): One of the biggest Dodge car shows on the planet, drawing nearly 3,000 vehicles from the Stellantis family and tens of thousands of enthusiasts, Dodge will host a deep-dive walk-around on the new SIXPACK-powered Charger and also showcase the new Purple Haze color on the Charger, making its public debut at the Carlisle event. The Pennsylvania show is also hosting a special area honoring 60 years of the Charger on its show field
- Route 66 Centennial Parade (July 12): Current and classic Dodge Charger models will lead the Petersen Automotive Museum's escorted parade to the Santa Monica Pier, a celebration of 100 years of Route 66 and a living timeline of the American automobile. The parade will feature a fleet of vehicles representing key moments in automotive history, including additional Stellantis historical rides
- All-American Cruise-In (July 26): Iconic versions from all eight generations of the Charger will be part of the Petersen Automotive Museum's All-American Cruise-In, a high-octane celebration of American automotive culture marking 250 years of America that includes a stop at the Petersen Automotive Museum in Los Angeles and a "fireside" chat with a Dodge representative
- MotorTrend Presents Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge (August 8): Back for its 11th year, the Roadkill Nights Dodge horsepower festival in Metro Detroit will feature the debut of the most powerful SIXPACK-powered Charger yet, a Dodge Charger 60th celebration as part of the event's massive car show and competitors drag racing on iconic Woodward Avenue in current-era 550-horsepower SIXPACK-powered Dodge Charger Scat Pack muscle cars
- Woodward Cruise (August 15): Dodge will be back at the big cruise on Woodward Avenue in Metro Detroit, including with SIXPACK-powered Charger R/T and Scat Pack muscle cars on display, celebrating the nameplate's 60th
- Dodge NHRA Great Lakes Nationals Presented by Mopar (September 18-20): Wrapping up the summer, Dodge and Mopar will serve as title and presenting sponsors of the first NHRA event at U.S. 131 Motorsports Park in Martin, Michigan, highlighted by a pre-race cruise, including Charger vehicles, departing from Auburn Hills
60 Years, Eight Generations of a Cultural Icon
Almost immediately after its debut, the Dodge Charger cemented itself in American pop culture, becoming a fixture on the big screen, television and music for generations. The Charger made its film debut in 1968 in "Bullitt" with a black Charger R/T equipped with a 440 Magnum V-8, four-speed manual transmission and black vinyl roof in one of cinema's most legendary chase scenes. Decades later, the Charger continued to shine in Hollywood in the "Fast & Furious" franchise, beginning with an iconic 1970 Charger R/T in the original 2001 film and evolving through multiple appearances by the Charger, including a supercharged Charger SRT Hellcat, throughout the franchise's ongoing run.
Since the "low-slung, fast-back sporty car" entered the world in 1966, the Charger has evolved over six decades, innovating advancements in performance, engineering and technology while never losing sight of its muscle-car heritage. The generations include:
- Birth of an icon: Gen I (1966-1967)
- Muscle redefined: Gen II (1968-1970)
- Twilight of muscle: Gen III (1971-1974)
- Shift toward luxury: Gen IV (1975-1978)
- New-era of reinvention: Gen V (1981-1987)
- Modern muscle reborn: Gen VI (2006-2010)
- Hellbent performance: Gen VII (2011-2023)
- SIXPACK-powered, multi-energy rebirth: Gen VIII: (2024-current)
Over eight generations of Charger, it's challenging to pick the best of the best, but the lineup below should make many short lists of the coolest Chargers ever.
- 1966 Dodge Charger: Introduced January 1, 1966, the Charger that started it all was the brand's first production fastback, high-speed street racer, launching a storied nameplate. The Charger engine lineup ranged from a standard 318 V-8 (230 horsepower) up to the legendary 426 Street HEMI® V-8 engine that provided 425 horsepower and 490 lb.-ft. of torque, helping forever define Dodge Charger as a performance car
- 1968 Charger R/T: Gen II delivered an iconic redesign with "scalloped" styling, hidden headlights, aggressive grille, flying buttress roof and race-ready presence - a look that would inspire heritage design cues in the current-era Charger
- 1969 Dodge Charger 500: Debuted a more aerodynamic rear window design for the Charger; while around 400 were produced, just a portion were built with a 426 HEMI under the hood
- 1969 Charger Daytona: A NASCAR-bred icon, the Charger Daytona's aerodynamic design featured a sleek front nose cone and outrageous towering rear wing that delivered dominant race wins and historic speed as the first stock car to break 200 mph on a closed-course; just over 500 were built
- 1969 Charger SE: Elevated style and comfort with leather/vinyl seating, woodgrain trim and premium details, expanding Charger's appeal beyond pure performance
- 1970 Charger R/T: Evolution of the Gen II generation with refined styling, bold graphics and continued HEMI-powered performance at 425 horsepower; the model would be featured years later in fast-and-furious Hollywood action on the big screen
- 1971 Charger Super Bee: The most powerful Charger at that time, the debut of a Super Bee model in the Charger lineup marked one of the final true high-performance Chargers during the original muscle-car era of the 1960s and 1970s; these Gen III models included aggressive styling cues and Super Bee badging and graphics
- 1971 Charger SE: A volume leader that signaled the shift toward comfort, blending luxury features with V-8 performance options
- 1975 Charger SE: The Gen IV Charger debuted a complete redesign based on the Chrysler Cordoba with formal styling, vinyl roof and upscale interior that defined a new luxury-first direction
- 1976 Charger Daytona: Revival of an iconic nameplate, reimagined as a two-tone appearance package
- 1977 Midnight Charger Special: Distinctive special edition with body-color fascia, T-top roof and premium interior accents
- 1978 Charger Magnum XE: Final evolution of the Gen IV platform, adding sportier cues like flared bodywork and flip-up quad headlamps before the end of rear-wheel-drive (RWD) Chargers
- 1981 Charger 2.2: Gen V Charger introduces a radical shift to a front-wheel-drive (FWD) hatchback, with compact packaging and four-cylinder power
- 1982 Shelby Charger: Performance returns with Carroll Shelby tuning, upgraded suspension and distinctive styling enhancements
- 1985 Shelby Turbo Charger: Turbocharged performance boosts power and reinforces Charger's sporty identity in the FWD era
- 2006 Charger R/T: The Charger muscle car is reborn for a new century: the Gen VI Charger marks a return to RWD with 5.7-liter HEMI V-8 power at 340 horsepower in the Charger R/T, reestablishing Charger as a modern muscle sedan with bold four-door design
- 2006 Charger Daytona R/T: Revival of the Daytona name with heritage graphics, high-impact colors and performance-tuned HEMI power
- 2007 Charger SRT8: Full SRT treatment with a 6.1-liter, 425-horsepower HEMI, delivering true high-performance capability and 0-60 in the low 5-second range
- 2007-2009 Charger Super Bee: Returning for the first time since the 1971 model, the limited-edition muscle icon brought back classic Super Bee attitude with bold colors, graphics and SRT8 performance
- 2011 Charger R/T: Gen VII Charger reimagined the modern muscle sedan with a callback to the scalloped-styling of vintage Chargers, 370-horsepower HEMI V-8 power for the R/T, RWD dynamics and iconic racetrack LED taillamp design inspired by classic Chargers
- 2012 Charger SRT8: Performance pinnacle at the time with a 6.4-liter, 470-horsepower HEMI, adaptive suspension and track-ready capability, marking a major leap in modern Charger performance
- 2015 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat: Raining hellfire on the horsepower wars, Dodge changed the game with the introduction of the supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI Hellcat engine to the Charger, with 707 horsepower and 650 lb.-ft. of torque and a top speed of 204 mph, along with an aggressive redesign to the exterior and interior, establishing a new benchmark for four-door muscle performance and redefining the limits of modern American muscle
- 2021 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye: Not satisfied with 707 horses, the "demon-possessed" Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye took performance to a new pinnacle with 797 horsepower from the supercharged Hellcat HEMI high-output engine, along with stunning widebody styling
- 2022 Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye Jailbreak: Apex of Charger performance unleashed 807 horsepower with an enhanced calibration and introduced the first Dodge Jailbreak model to unlock ordering restrictions for colors, badges, stripes and more
- 2023 Dodge Charger "Last Call" models: "Last Call" special-edition vehicles, marking the last of the Gen VII Charger line, included the 2023 Dodge Charger Super Bee, the highest performance Charger Super Bee model ever with 485 horsepower, and the Charger King Daytona, ramping up to 807 horsepower in a widebody Hellcat Redeye
- 2024 Dodge Charger Daytona Scat Pack: Debuting the eighth-generation Dodge Charger with 670 horsepower and heritage-inspired styling, the Charger Daytona kicked off the new Charger multi-energy lineup
- 2026 Dodge Charger Scat Pack: Bringing turbo power back to the Charger for the first time since the 1980s, the SIXPACK high-output Charger Scat Pack delivers 550 horsepower, with the SIXPACK-powered Charger R/T producing 420 horsepower; standard all-wheel drive and two- or four-door options featured across the entire Charger roster
Dodge
For 112 years, the Dodge brand has carried on the spirit of brothers John and Horace Dodge. Today, that legacy roars louder than ever in the lineup of Dodge, America's performance brand.
The Dodge Charger multi-energy lineup features:
- SIXPACK-powered 420-horsepower Dodge Charger R/T with the most standard horsepower of any muscle car
- 550-horsepower Dodge Charger Scat Pack, powered by the 3.0L twin-turbo SIXPACK high-output (H.O.) engine - the most powerful Hurricane engine in production
- Quickest and most powerful AWD muscle car in the all-electric 670-horsepower Dodge Charger Daytona Scat Pack
Every Charger comes standard with all-wheel drive and offers two-door coupe or four-door sedan configurations - because with performance comes choice.
The Dodge lineup is also fueled by the most powerful gas SUV ever, the 710-horsepower Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat, powered by the legendary supercharged HEMI V-8 engine. The Durango SRT Hellcat Jailbreak breaks free from convention with the three-row SUV, unlocking more than 14 million potential customization combinations. The Dodge Durango R/T 392 delivers the most horsepower per dollar for a gas SUV, and the 360-horsepower 5.7-liter Durango GT HEMI AWD remains the most affordable AWD V-8 in the industry.
The purchase of a SIXPACK-powered Charger Scat Pack, Charger Daytona Scat Pack or Durango SRT Hellcat model includes one day of performance driving instruction at Radford Racing School, the official Dodge//SRT high-performance driving school.
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Direct Connection: DCPerformance.com
Facebook: facebook.com/dodge
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X: @dodge and @StellantisNA
YouTube: youtube.com/dodge, youtube.com/StellantisNA
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SOURCE Stellantis
