Are Electric Cars Allowed in NASCAR? Why Is Chrysler Dodge Not in NASCAR?

There have been rumors surrounding the introduction of electric cars entering the tracks of NASCAR. Apparently, there were even plans for a debut all-electric exhibition race underway in 2023. Unfortunately, it got canceled. While NASCAR fans were probed to find the reasons behind the cancellation, speculations and rumors suggest that NASCAR was out to get a fourth OEM. Who would that be? Would they compete in the cup series or the speculated electric series?

Earlier this year, a website by the name of Kickin’ the Tires leaked the news of NASCAR’s plans to exhibit an all-electric race at the LA Memorial Coliseum. As per their findings, the race was initially scheduled to take place in the month of February at the 2023 Busch Clash. Even though the fans will be currently deprived of the electric racing experience, let’s quickly summarize the expectations from the first NASCAR electric racing feat.

The all-electric racing exhibition did not go as planned

It was said that the all-new electric cars would be running on a 900-volt architecture. Moreover, the cars would produce upwards of 1,000 horsepower in pure power. Which is a lot more than the current generation of vehicles. The cars were supposed to feature a tri-motor layout and would probably be an all-wheel drive mechanism.

The plan further illustrated the implementation of holding two 30 min long races split into separate legs. Further, while allowing a total of 12 cars to participate in the event, they would not permit cars to perform mid-race battery charges or swaps. Even though the event would not replace any of the existing series, the same was planned to be featured parallel to the Cup Series.

However, a few months later, the news arrived that the planned event would not be taking place. One would wonder, why would NASCAR push the event out of nowhere. Well, as it turns out, they were in talks with a former NASCAR OEM, Chrysler Dodge. But somehow the talks stalled. But wait, Dodge used to be in NASCAR at one point in time. Why did they leave though?

Why is Chrysler Dodge not in NASCAR?

There was a multitude of factors that led to Dodge eventually bailing from NASCAR after the 2012 season. One of them stemmed from a business perspective when Chrysler Dodge failed to sign a new deal with Penske Racing. In fact, the latter later moved on to Ford, leaving the former to take the brunt of their inability to entice any new teams to take them on.

During their last year with Penske, Dodge even managed to bag the title, with Brad Keselowski at the wheel. After failing to find another top-tier team who would be willing to partner up with Dodge, the company decided to leave the sport altogether. Even though Dodge tried to keep their business afloat by trying their luck at the prospect of partnering with several other teams in the field, Autoweek‘s Coleman blames it on NASCAR’s downsizing affinities to hash out a stable business angle for a company like Dodge.

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However, at the end of the day, everything looked like a gamble on the business side of things. Moreover, starting a fresh engine program for just a few Dodges would have cost a lot for the team. So, instead of staying in the field with a few cars and facing reputation damage by scoring a mediocre 2013 season, they decided to leave the sport entirely to save themselves from an otherwise impending downfall and the humiliation that comes along with it.

Will Dodge make a return if NASCAR goes electric?

Not all hope is lost for the manufacturer though. There is still a ray of hope for the manufacturer. In fact, Dodge was one of the companies that NASCAR was in talks with to bring in the electric series.

Many car manufacturers are going electric with their vehicle lineups in the consumer market. As per the Sports Business Journal, even Dodge plans to make the jump onto the electric/hybrid bandwagon. What better way to start off than entering an all-electric racing series? As per NASCAR, there are plans to transform the cup series cars into hybrid power in 2024. And Dodge would be very much interested in the prospect of joining, given their interest in the electric/sustainable market segment.

However, at this time of writing, the talks between NASCAR and Dodge have seemingly stalled. There is no guarantee that the manufacturer would make inroads back into the sport. There is a possibility for their return, but probably not before the 2024 season. For a team with a such rich history in the sport, it would only sense for them to join NASCAR back as soon as possible. Be it in the electric or regular cup series, their presence would definitely create good opportunities for potential teams as well as themselves as the manufacturer.