• by Tanya Gazdik , Staff Writer, 7 hours ago

There’s a reason the Dodge Charger has won so many awards.  

The Dodge Charger (spanning both the electric Daytona and gas-powered SIXPACK models) was named the 2026 North American Car of the Year by the NACTOY jury. The multi-energy muscle car took top honors, beating out finalists like the Honda Prelude and Nissan Sentra. 

It also was chosen by MotorWeek as Drivers' Choice Best of Year from winners in 12 vehicle categories and was named TopGear's U.S. Car of the Year.

I recently spent a week behind the wheel of a souped-up gas version (the Scat Pack Plus) and was genuinely sad when I had to give it back. That’s the sign of a good vehicle. I always manage to find both good and not-so-good about every vehicle, but not all of them impress as much as this one did. 

The Scat Pack Plus, with a base MSRP of $54,995, combines the brand's muscle heritage with cutting-edge tech. This Charger features a 550-hp twin-turbo inline-six engine and standard all-wheel drive, and it launches from 0 to 60 mph in 3.9 seconds.

My test vehicle retailed for $69,850, including the $1,995 detonation charge. That included $695 for the “Bludicrous” exterior paint with a red racing stripe that matched the $495 “Demonic Red” seats (these are Stellantis’ words, not mine, but they are great descriptions.)

Customer Preferred Package 22B for $4,995 includes ventilated front seats, heated second row seats and a wireless charging pad that works really well (many of them don’t.) It also features a head-up display — something that used to be reserved for luxury vehicles but is making its way downward into non-luxury vehicles like this one. You could argue that just shy of $70k is luxury, but vehicle prices continue to edge upward with full-size luxury vehicles nearing $100k in many cases.  The Charger is classified as a full-size performance sedan or an American muscle car.

I was pleasantly surprised how comfortable those seats were, and how easy ingress and egress was. So many sports cars look great, but aren’t the most comfortable or easy to get in and out of. Dodge has this figured out. 

One small pain point: The Dodge Charger an increasingly rare two-door. While that has a sportier look, if you need to use the backseat for anything, it's a little challenging. Not a huge deal, but a consideration.