There’s a massive aftermarket scene supporting Dodge’s current model portfolio but this is probably going to change in the near future, at least when it comes to performance tuning. With the upcoming electric vehicles from the brand, third-party companies will reportedly be blocked from the possibility to tune the output of the cars.
In November last year, Dodge unveiled the updated Charger Daytona SRT Concept at the 2022 SEMA where it became clear that there will be nine power stages for the production version of this vehicle. Six outputs will be available for the regular 400-volt version and a further three will be available for the more powerful 800-volt models. It turns out, however, that only the automaker will be authorized to tune the car. Will aftermarket companies be allowed to make tweaks?
Gallery: Dodge Charger Daytona SRT Stryker Red Concept
“No, I’m sure somebody will try and hack it, but that will be exclusive to Direct Connection and, quite frankly, that’s one of the reasons that we feel very strongly about what I call the ‘Crystals,'” Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis told Muscle Cars and Trucks in a recent interview. “The crystals are tied to the car, tied to the VIN, tied to the ECM of that car. It’s specific for that tune, for that car. Because we want to funnel this all through our control, and we want to funnel it through our Direct Connection and Power Broker program to support that body of people, to make sure that we’re controlling everything that happens in these cars.”
Dodge reportedly wants to keep full control of the modifications in order to be sure “it’s done right.” According to the Kuniskis, the automaker doesn’t simply want to lock the cars and never let their owners modify them, but instead wants to guarantee there will be no unwanted, uncontrolled, and potentially harmful hacks. The good news is that any factory power upgrade will stick with the car for the next owners since it is basically specific to that car’s VIN and is not tied to its original owner.
As a reminder, the regular Daytona SRT Concept with a 400-volt architecture can be tweaked to deliver 455 hp (340 kW), 495 hp (370 kW), 535 hp (400 kW), 590 hp (440 kW), 630 hp (470 kW), and 670 hp (500 kW). The upgraded 800-volt model has three additional power options with the range-topper SRT Banshee promising more than 800 hp (588 kW). All potential power upgrades will be accessible through what Dodge calls Crystals.
