Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis recently confirmed the current Charger and Challenger will be phased out in late 2023 and it appears their deaths will also spell the end of the Chrysler 300.
According to Automotive News Canada, the Premier of Ontario was “blindsided” by reports the Brampton Assembly Plant would be without any products when production of the “Chrysler 300, Dodge Challenger and Dodge Charger end in the third quarter of 2023.”
Doug Ford went on to say he’s been getting “mixed messages” about the plant’s future and just wants “someone to be honest” with him. The Premier added the government is willing to provide support to help keep the plant open, but someone at Stellantis needs to reach out and ask for it.
Also Read: The Devil’s Coming For Dodge As Charger, Challenger And Hellcat Engine To Die In 2023
However, the offer might fall on deaf ears as AutoForecast Solutions believes the next-generation Charger and Challenger – if they retain the names – will be built in the United States at the Belvidere Assembly Plant in Illinois. If that were to happen and Brampton doesn’t get any new products, approximately 3,163 people would be out of a job.
The company is staying tight-lipped, but Chrysler Canada’s Head of Communications, LouAnn Gosselin, told the publication Brampton will have products through the end of 2023. However, she added the automaker has “not made any future product announcements” and said the company considers “many factors” when determining where to build new vehicles.
While Ford is willing to provide support to keep the plant open, he’s also trying to make closing the facility less appealing. As he explained, it was made “very clear to Chrysler and Stellantis, if they think they’re going to sell that property into residential, it’s not going to happen.” Banning residential development on the land occupied by the plant would seriously limit its appeal and Ford added, if “they have dreams of grandeur and that they’re going to make a fortune [on the land], well, it’s just not going to happen.”
