Dodge Challenger to be built in Canada

Update: Chrysler has announced that it will reveal the production-ready version of the 2009 Dodge Challenger 365 days from today on February 15th next year at the Chicago Auto Show.

DaimlerChrysler has confirmed that the upcoming Dodge Challenger will be manufactured at its Brampton plant located west of Toronto. Production of the new Challenger is scheduled to start in the first half of next year, joining the Chrysler 300, Dodge Charger and Dodge Magnum wagon, which are already sourced from the Canadian plant.

The Chrysler Group is in the midst of a restructuring program that could potentially see up to 10,000 jobs in the US and 2,000 jobs in Canada slashed. The confirmation of the Challenger’s production at Brampton will ensure the plant’s viability into the near future, however, no extra jobs are expected to be created. In a similar move, the Challenger’s main rival, the revived Chevrolet Camaro, will also be constructed in Canada at General Motor’s plant in Oshawa.

GM announced today its own plans to build hybrid versions of its Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup trucks at the Oshawa truck assembly plant east of Toronto. The same Oshawa site is being converted to accommodate GM’s new Zeta architecture. The Camaro has been confirmed, but we may also see production of the Pontiac G8, or a possible Chevrolet Impala replacement, eventuate in Canada as well.