One of Dodge’s missions was to blend its attributes and temperament into the Hornet’s design. Now, it’s doing the same thing with advertising.
The crossover’s ad campaign launched earlier in the month with a commercial saying the Hornet is “taking the country by swarm.” Dodge said it used TikTok and Instagram influencers, some of whom appear in the spot, to build “buzz” ahead of the ad’s debut.
A gang of Hornets zips through the streets in the commercial, which captures the spirit of typical Dodge promotions even without the rumbling V-8 engines it is known for.
“We always like to say we build superheroes; we’re not just building cars,” Matt McAlear, head of Dodge sales and operations, told Automotive News during a Hornet media drive. “We build personalities, and whether it’s Demons or Scat Packs or Hellcats … this cult following is bigger than just a vehicle. It’s this whole villainesque- type thing. And, you know, Hornet was natural.”
Next year, McAlear said the goal is for the electrified R/T to account for half of the Hornet’s sales.
The Hornet R/T achieves 288 hp while generating 383 pound-feet of torque. It will have a PowerShot feature that supplies an extra 30-hp burst on demand at 15-second intervals. Dodge is billing the Hornet GT as the industry’s “quickest, fastest, most powerful utility vehicle under $30,000.”
