UPDATED: August 2 10:00 PM PST: 

After talking to a few people at the plant, it seems as though customer builds started on July 10th, and production is ramping up, although behind schedule. Right now, they are running about 30 Demon 170s per day, and the target is to get to 50.

The excitement surrounding the release of the 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 appears to have met unexpected hurdles as enthusiasts eagerly await the arrival of this highly anticipated vehicle. According to our sources, recent developments have caused a delay in the production timeline, leading to questions and concerns from those who have eagerly placed orders. In this article, we’ll delve into the details behind the production setback, the reasons for the delay, and the potential implications for customers and the production process.

Late last week, our email inbox started filling up with questions from people that ordered the car, saying that their build status has regressed and the estimated shipping dates have disappeared. Naturally, we reached out to some of our contacts inside the company to see what was happening. According to these sources, the delay in production is attributed to parts-related issues specifically related to the hood of the Demon 170. According to our sources, these challenges have necessitated a significant adjustment to the production schedule, pushing the start of production to December of this year.

The delay in production commencement presents additional complexities. The UAW (U.S.) and Unifor (Canada) union contracts are set to expire in September of this year. The possibility of a strike during this time could further disrupt the production process for the Demon 170. Additionally, the production window for these vehicles is constrained by the requirement to complete all production by January 1, 2024, adding further pressure to an already challenging situation.

I was at the Brampton Assembly Plant in April to watch our (now gone) Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye Widebody Jailbreak get produced. When talking to plant employees, I was told they were producing roughly 760 vehicles per day, running two shifts. This statistic raises the possibility that all 3300 Demon 170s could be produced consecutively within five days. 

Regarding the automotive industry, things are constantly changing – especially nowadays. Hopefully, Dodge can resolve this issue and maybe even pull production back ahead of December. Picture this: the folks over at Dodge are probably feeling the heat and crossing their fingers to churn out as many of these bad boys as they can before the clock runs out on that Union deal. Leaving it all till the eleventh hour adds a lot of pressure to get it done. Time’s ticking!

We have reached out to Dodge for an official comment on the situation, but as of this writing have not heard back. We will, of course, update the article if we do hear back.