This Brilliant Dodge Charger Daytona Feature Should Be On Every EV

So far, my time with the electric Dodge Charger Daytona has been a mixed bag. Fun? Absolutely. Efficient? Not really. Dramatic? Always. A great electric vehicle? The jury's out on that one, but I don't think it's going to keep any BYD executives awake at night. But there is one feature I noticed that I find so useful, I wish it existed on every EV.

When you turn the Charger off, a screen appears on the main driver-facing dashboard that not only tells you how much charge you have left, but how long it would take to charge to 100%—if that's where your charging limit is set. Not only that, it tells you approximately how long that would take on each plug type.

Is it as groundbreaking as, say, five-minute fast-charging? Not exactly. But it's an extremely functional and practical feature that helps you plan out your next move.

Let's say you're out running errands somewhere and you don't have a plug in sight—or you do, and you just need to have a better idea of what your day is going to look like. This way, you can game out what to expect, when you can take your next trip, or even how quickly you'd be ready to go with Level 2 home charging.

Photo by: Patrick George

2024 Dodge Charger Daytona EV Scat Pack Track Package

You can see from the photo up top that I parked the Charger at 72%. That's a relatively full battery, so adding the remaining 28% to get to 100% would be slower than if I did it at lower charge levels. In theory, the Charger Daytona can go from 20% to 80% in a little over 24 minutes on a 350 kW fast charger, itself maxing out at speeds of 183 kW. Getting to 100% on one of those from 72% would take a while.

That's something that an EV newcomer may not know—indeed, I've talked to friends who've gone electric and wondered why it takes so long to "fill up" at a fast charger when their battery is full. What the Charger offers is a newcomer-friendly feature, something that demystifies the whole experience. And the EV space needs a lot more of that in general.

Photo by: Patrick George

2024 Dodge Charger Daytona EV Scat Pack Track Package

I'd also add that those calculations depend on how fast the plug you're using to charge the Charger (pun very intended) actually is. If your home Level 2 charger or a public DC fast charger don't deliver as much energy as anticipated, then you will be disappointed. At least for me, it all seemed accurate; my latest reading for a Level 2 charge to 100% was about four hours and 46 minutes. When I plugged the car into my home ChargePoint plug, the estimate to get there was pretty much the same. Not bad at all.

It turns out the Charger isn't the only Stellantis EV to do this. The Jeep Wagoneer S, which shares the STLA Large platform with this car, apparently does the same thing when it's parked.

I'm all for features that make life a little easier for those new to the world of electric driving. It's always better to know what to expect than to be surprised.

Contact the author: patrick.george@insideevs.com