Dodge's gas-powered Charger Sixpack is now on sale across the Atlantic. Stellantis opened European orders in June with first deliveries from September, and in the UK, importer KWA's retailer Unity Automotive is selling the two-door from $92,400, according to PistonHeads. Every UK car is left-hand drive, and no sales targets have been published.Why Europe Makes SenseDodgeAt home, Dodge is measured against a Charger that sold about 76,000 units in 2023. Gas Charger sales of 8,029 through September are strong growth from a tiny base, but Q2 gas sales of 2,911 compare with 24,004 in the same quarter of 2023. In Britain, a few hundred sales a year would make the Charger a conversation piece. Its twin-turbo inline-six is also the formula that segment already buys: the BMW M2, M4 and Mercedes-AMG CLE 53 all use turbocharged sixes, so buyers there aren't asking where the V8 went.Why Americans Still Get The Better DealThe price gap is the other half of the story. In the U.S., the Sixpack R/T starts at roughly $52,000 and the Scat Pack at $57,000. The UK R/T is about 78% pricier, a gap of more than $40,000, and the Scat Pack runs slightly over $100,000. Mainland Europe starts at €66,000 ($74,800). Some of that is VAT, shipping and duty rather than Dodge margin, and UK owners of cars over £40,000 also pay an extra £440 ($580) a year in road tax for five years. At these prices, buyers can also get a Ford Mustang Dark Horse or a BMW M2 xDrive at about the same prices.FordThe Missing Piece Is The V8Americans are still waiting on the car many of them actually want. The Detroit Free Press, after a Stellantis media preview, reports that a supercharged Hemi Charger with "north of 700 horsepower" is coming, with timing reported anywhere from 2028 to 2030 and no official date. Our view is that the Sixpack is capable but lacks the sound and cultural pull of a V8, and that a Hellcat would bring back dealership traffic. Nobody has said whether that car will head to Europe. If the six works abroad and the V8 is what America needs, Dodge is serving two markets that want different cars.
