Stellantis Canada Confirms That the Dodge Hornet Has Been Discontinued in North America

After just three years on the market, Dodge has decided to end production of its plug-in hybrid subcompact crossover, the Hornet. Although the model failed to set the sales charts alight, its ultimate undoing appears to have been the fact that it was made in Italy.

“Production of the Dodge Hornet, built in Italy, has ended due to shifts in the policy environment,” a Stellantis Canada spokesperson told AutoTrader in an email.

Indeed, reports of the model's demise first emerged from the U.S., whose government has threatened Italy with steep tariffs. As with other jurisdictions, the trade situation remains fluid, but a baseline 15 per cent levy against products entering our neighbour to the south has been threatened.

Although products entering Canada are not subject to the same tariffs, the relatively small size of our market likely made continued production the model untenable from a business perspective. Whereas the automaker sold nearly 10,000 examples of the Hornet in the U.S. last year, it managed to sell just under 1,700 of them here.

It is also possible that changes in environmental policy contributed to the Hornet's demise. A significant portion of the crossover's sales were of the plug-in hybrid version, which, until recently, was eligible to significant discounts through zero emissions vehicle (ZEV) incentives that have now ended in both Canada and the United States. Significantly, penalties for polluting brands have also ended in the U.S., prompting Stellantis to end production of other plug-in hybrid vehicles, the Jeep Wrangler 4xe, the Grand Cherokee 4xe, and the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid. 

In a statement, Dodge said it was committed to supporting existing Hornet customers in Canada, which will be welcome news, since a recall revolving a brake pedal that could potentially fail was announced in December. The crossover’s 3-year/60,000 km warranty and its five-year/100,000 km powertrain warranty remain in place. As does the Hornet R/T PHEV’s eight-year/160,000 km battery warranty.

Interestingly, despite the Hornet’s departure from the market, production of the closely related Alfa Romeo Tonale will continue on. The more premium model just received a mid-cycle refresh, and its higher MSRP might hide more of the cost of importing the vehicle. Moreover, it is also sold in Europe, which helps buoy its sales.