At the end of the day, Dodge is a business, I don't believe they invested the money they did, however much it may have been, for only ~3,300 units.
That engine is showing up somewhere, DC at a minimum.
That's not to say I think MY24 will use it, but that hardware is going to be available.
If it was their "goodwill" towards their customers, they would have thrown in the towel when they blew up motors, not continued with development and cost in the final days of the engine.
.02
The global EV trends are real. Stellantis has repeatedly told us that HP SC V8s are all going the way of the dodo bird. That writing has been all over the wall for awhile now. Afterall, these cars are literally called LAST CALL, lol. IMO, we won't ever see another EPA-approved (or anyone else) in a production vehicle after 2023. (And, no niche OEMs that build 9 cars a year don't count!)
As for DC, yes, clearly that's Dodge's plan post '23. Build up existing motors, with all these kits. Will they have a tune kit for the D170? Yep, I can see that in a few years (though warrantee and street legal could be tough). How about a crate 170 motor with maybe even MORE HP than 1025? Sure, CAFE and EPA won't matter for that offering.
However, passing CAFE won't be getting any EASIER going forward that's for sh*t sure. All the while, Stellantis' own marketing shows they are going the way of the Hornet, etc, and banking on the Millennials and Z'ers.
It's tough accepting we are no longer their target audience, but man it's crystal clear that's exactly what's happening.
Still, sending us off into the night with the D170 is still an INSANE gift to ICE muscleheads and I for one still cannot believe they are actually doing it!
I definitely won't be expecting any new cars of interest from Dodge starting in 10 months. But admittedly, that's just me since I have zero interest in (performance) EV.