Next Chrysler 300 to go electric

The next-generation Chrysler 300 due by 2026 will switch to electric power, information found by Drive reveals – though a return to Australia is yet to be locked in.

The next-generation Chrysler 300 sedan looks set to go electric, with underpinnings good for 800km of driving range – but there’s no confirmation of whether it would return to Australia.

Insider information uncovered by Drive reveals development of a new Chrysler electric sedan has commenced, twinned with a new four-door model from fellow Stellantis group subsidiary Dodge – with the models rumoured to go on sale in 2026 and 2024 respectively.

While the mystery Chrysler is yet to be confirmed as a replacement for the 300, recent comments from CEO Christine Feuell indicate the brand will continue to compete in the 300’s ‘upper large’ sedan segment, albeit with electric power.

Chrysler has confirmed it will introduce its first electric vehicle by 2025 – speculated by some to be a production version of the Airflow concept – ahead of phasing out petrol power entirely by 2028.

Drive has learned both vehicles will operate at 800 volts – confirming the models will pack Stellantis’ most potent electric motors, developing between 150kW and 330kW, the latter figure just shy of a rear-wheel-drive Chrysler 300 SRT’s 350kW/644Nm petrol ‘Hemi’ V8.

It’s therefore expected the new Chrysler electric sedan will ride on parent Stellantis’ STLA Large platform – twinned with the upcoming Dodge muscle car – capable of up to 800km on a single charge, with battery capacities between 101kWh and 108kWh.

During a media event in July 2021, Stellantis previewed two new electric sedans from Chrysler and Dodge, both underpinned by the STLA Large architecture – likely to be the replacement for the 300, and the aforementioned Dodge electric muscle car.

Compatible with front-, rear- and all-wheel-drive layouts, the future Chrysler and Dodge sedans could theoretically pair two 330kW electric motors for combined 660kW outputs – good for a zero to 100km/h time as low as 2.0 seconds in optimal conditions.

This platform is intended to support vehicles larger than 4725mm long and 1915mm wide, according to Stellantis investor presentations – a good fit for a replacement for the current 300, which measures 5089mm long and 1902mm wide.

While it remains to be seen what the new 800-volt Chrysler sedan will look like, Chrysler CEO Christine Feuell indicated to Automotive News the 300’s replacement would be “redefined” compared to today’s car, and “a vast departure from what’s in market today”.

“Where the Chrysler brand is going in the future will include a number of brand-new products that don’t exist today, but also products that are still playing in segments that we’re in already,” Feuell said.

The silhouettes shown during the 2021 media event (below) pointed to a far more rounded design for the next 300 than today’s car, with what appeared to be a five-door ‘liftback’ body, a rising window line, and a full-width tail-light strip.

The renders at the top of this story by @theottle imagine what the car could look like – albeit using the flagship model from fellow Stellantis subsidiary DS as a base, rather than the new EV platform.

The electric successor to the Chrysler 300 is slated to debut by 2026, given the aforementioned “long-range luxury sedan” teased for Chrysler in July 2021 will launch within “three to five years”.

A launch in 2025 or 2026 looks most likely, given Chrysler’s first EV – possibly a production version of the Airflow concept – is expected to launch in 2024 or 2025.

However, with the Chrysler brand withdrawing from Australia late last year following the end of right-hand-drive 300 production, a local launch for any of Chrysler’s new EVs is unclear.

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