The Car Connection Expert Review
Likes
- Gobs of power
- Refined ride
- Decent handling
- Good infotainment
- So much swagger
Dislikes
- Too much swagger?
- So-so safety ratings
- Active safety tech should be standard
- Really should be more spacious inside
- Definitely shows its age
Buying tip
features & specs
The 2022 Dodge Charger has emerged as the anti-EV, and these muscle sedans may be the last to wave the gasoline flag.
What kind of vehicle is the 2022 Dodge Charger? What does it compare to?
The Dodge Charger is the last of its breed, a mid-priced, rear-wheel-drive Detroit-bred (if Canadian-built) full-size sedan. As the final holdout, it doesn’t have any real rivals, though the Chrysler 300 offers similar size with a little more luxury, and you could also find yourself shopping the Nissan Maxima.
Is the 2022 Dodge Charger a good car/SUV?
Though distinctly dated, the 2022 Charger is a good value and can be had with borderline obscene power. It’s good fun, and we give it a TCC Rating of 6.0 out of 10. (Read more about how we rate cars.)
What's new for the 2022 Dodge Charger?
The Charger charges into 2022 essentially unchanged, aside from wider availability of a security alarm.
This big sedan comes in V-6 and various V-8 configurations. Six-cylinder models are called SXT or GT, and they offer all-wheel drive. A 5.7-liter V-8 comes on R/T models—the value leaders of the group—while 6.4-liter and 6.2-liter V-8s in SRT versions are not for the faint of heart.
Fuel economy drops precipitously when engine power rises, though 6-cylinder versions are actually fairly frugal thanks to long legs provided by a spectacular 8-speed automatic transmission.
Regardless of engine, all Chargers look pretty quick thanks to muscular styling that has aged well. Inside, these sedans aren’t as spacious as their big dimensions suggest, but they have decent space for five and good overall materials and features for the money. Active safety tech costs extra, which is a shame, but infotainment is top notch.
Crash-test results are just OK, a reminder that these sedans have been on the road for a decade now.
How much does the 2022 Dodge Charger cost?
The Charger starts around $33,000 but can nearly triple with more power, more fenders, more tire, and more features. Our money would be on either an R/T or a Scat Pack, both of which offer serious grunt in the $40,000-$45,000 range.
Where is the 2022 Dodge Charger made?
In Ontario, Canada.
2022 Dodge Charger Styling
The 2022 Dodge Charger looks back to another era without relying on kitsch.
Is the Dodge Charger a good-looking car?
The 2022 Charger has muscular lines that have aged well. It’s not a direct descendent of the 1960s Chargers, but it has all the right cues. We rate it at 7 out of 10, with points above average for its exterior.
Base cars look sporty enough in their own right, but the widebody kit available on Scat Pack and SRT Hellcat models is something right out of the Hot Wheels catalog. Their blistered fender flares wrap around impossibly wide wheels and tires to good effect.
The Charger is somewhat anticlimactic inside, though what’s there is laid out nicely and trimmed in decent enough materials.
2022 Dodge Charger Performance
What you really want is a 2022 Dodge Charger with plenty of V-8 muscle, but you don’t necessarily need to go all out.
Is the Dodge Charger 4WD?
It can be. V-6 models offer an all-wheel-drive option that makes them into decent winter cruisers.
How fast is the Dodge Charger?
Ha! SRT Hellcat Redeye models send 797 hp to the rear wheels. If you’re not great with math, that’s just three horsies short of 800 hp, which is absolutely bonkers. Even as heavy as the Charger is, that power is enough to melt tires and hit 60 mph in just 3.4 seconds.
Still, we rate the Charger lineup based on versions more palatable for a wider market. It’s a 7 out of 10 from us.
Base V-6 models put out 300 hp, and while they’re not rocket-fast, they’re just fine even with the added heft of all-wheel drive.
More fun underhood comes from either the 5.7-liter V-8 in R/Ts (370 hp) or the 6.4-liter V-8 in 392 Scat Packs (485 hp). The bigger V-8 offers a more flexible power band that gives these cars serious acceleration from any speed.
The supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 in SRT Hellcat (717 hp) or Hellcat Redeye (that’s the 797-hp version) is an immense engine, both in its power trickery and its power delivery. If this is the swan song for gasoline engines, we’ll take it.
Chargers are big sedans, though they don’t corner like boulevardiers. Dodge has done a good job masking the portliness. That heft helps these big four-doors ride well enough in any configuration, though the big wheels and tires on widebody versions are tuned to deliver a firm ride not at all suited to daily driving. Stick with the midline editions for poised road manners with enough body lean to soak up interstates, if you must.
2022 Dodge Charger Comfort & Quality
The Dodge Charger has a comfortable interior, though it’s not quite as spacious as you might expect.
We rate the 2022 Charger at 7 out of 10 for its utility and quality. It’s comfy up front and its trunk will swallow your luggage, but rear-seat riders have a surprising lack of space.
Most versions wear leather upholstery in varying grades; the nappa hides on fancy models are downright plush. Materials inside are good, but don’t match up to $80,000 price tags—you’re paying for an engine here, not a Mercedes-Benz-grade interior.
Front-seat riders have the best thrones, but rear-seat riders will find OK leg room paired with so-so knee space and a flat, less-than-supportive bench.
Trunk space is 16.5 cubic feet, a decent figure for a sedan.
2022 Dodge Charger Safety
The 2022 Dodge Charger shows its age when it comes to safety scores and tech.
How safe is the Dodge Charger?
Big doesn’t always mean better. The 2022 Dodge Charger rates just 4 out of 10 for safety on the TCC scale, splitting points on crash-test scores and dropping one for its lack of competitive standard safety features.
The IIHS gives it a “Marginal” score for driver-side front-impact protection. That point lost is recouped by a five-star overall rating from the NHTSA—though that score includes four-star protection in frontal impacts.
The Charger loses a point because Dodge charges extra for crash-avoidance tech that is standard on nearly every other new car. The extra-cost Technology package on SXT, GT, R/T, and Scat Pack models includes automatic emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, and automatic high-beam headlights. Curiously, SRT Hellcat versions don’t offer these features.
2022 Dodge Charger Features
On a power-to-dollar ratio, the 2022 Dodge Charger is a decent value.
The 2022 Dodge Charger offers a good value for the money when it comes to underhood muscle, and offers good infotainment. It lacks standard crash-avoidance tech, however, which drops our rating to just 7 out of 10.
The lineup starts at $32,945 for an SXT, or $2,000 more for the stylish GT. All-wheel drive costs $3,000 more on those V-6 models. The base model includes cloth upholstery, 17-inch wheels, a 7.0-inch touchscreen, and Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Which Dodge Charger should I buy?
Our money would be on a Charger with a V-8. R/Ts are reasonably well-equipped for just shy of $40,000, while the $44,000 or so Dodge asks for the Scat Pack seems like money well-spent.
Add nappa leather, safety tech, an 8.4-inch touchscreen, and adaptive dampers and you’ll be looking at a bill for around $50,000. That’s a deal.
How much is a fully loaded Dodge Charger?
SRT Hellcat models come in at around $75,000, or another $8,000 for the Redeye’s extra power. Tasteful may not be the way to describe a loaded-up Redeye, which can cost just shy of $100,000.
2022 Dodge Charger Fuel Economy
The 2022 Dodge Challenger laughs in the face of fuel economy.
Is the Dodge Charger good on gas?
Of course not—but that’s not the point here.
V-6 versions are fairly frugal, however. The EPA rates base versions of the 2022 Dodge Charger at 19 mpg city, 30 highway, 23 combined. Swapping in all-wheel drive drops those numbers to 18/27/21 mpg.
Charger R/T models use mid-grade fuel and slip to 16/25/19 mpg, while the premium fuel-fed Scat Pack slides to 15/24/18 mpg.
Hellcats come in at just 16 mpg combined. For what feels like a Boeing 737-level of power, that’s not actually all that bad. But it’s still a lot of fuel.
