It’s after Halloween, so you know what that means: Christmas ads. And Dodge is getting a head start thanks to a Challenger Redeye converted into Santa’s Sleigh.
Actually, this is technically a Black Friday ad, but since everyone knows you go out Black Friday shopping to get stuff for Christmas, the imagery has found its way earlier and earlier in the year. Now, as soon as the pumpkins are gone the Christmas trees go up, and Dodge is wasting no time rolling out the holiday ads.
The 30-second ad also sports an unusual take on St Nick, who’s typically the round and jolly sort. Instead, we have a Santa Claus played by Bill Golderberg--y’know, the former (and once again current) WWE wrestler? Not exactly your typical fat Santa. Maybe he still hasn’t put on his Christmas weight.
After spending a hot second staring at his old sleigh, “Santa” turns to the camera and announces: “Ho ho go. I think my ride is due for an upgrade.” And then cue the heavy metal music and a brief garage montage.
For some reason it starts with Goldberg--er, that is, Santa, painting a 6.2-L HEMI V8 engine. As though the elves needed to be provided a diagram and as though Dodge doesn’t actually sell it as a crate engine. But that’s beside the point.
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First we get a good look at the Dodge Challenger, which the ad notes as the fastest muscle car in the world. Second, the Dodge Charger noted as the fastest sedan in the world. This claim is vastly more suspect given the existence of such sedans like the BMW M4 and the Tesla Model S. We’d give them most horsepower, but "fastest" is a bit of a stretch.
We also get to see the Dodge Durango, the fastest 3-row SUV. This is only because the Jeep Trackhawk doesn’t have a third row.
But finally, we come to Santa’s sleigh, which is a highly modified Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye. To start, most of the roof is gone and there’s only a vestigial windshield remaining. The front wheel fenders are also gone and in their place is a side-exit exhaust and a mount for the sleigh rails. Curiously, the rear fender flares remain, as does the gas-cap.
We’re not sure how this sleigh locomotes, but hopefully the reindeer aren’t out of a job.
There’s $500 in cashback to be had on certain Durango models, so that’s a big plus. And expect to see more Goldberg as Santa as we get over Black Friday.