I love the fact that Stellantis is letting the Freedom of Choice ring loudly for us again and for the people who are fans of the beloved Hemi V8 engine. With Tim Kuniskis being back and the helm and him bringing back the V8 engines, it has definitely boosted morale among not only the consumers, but also the crew of Stellantis, North America. That is always something to be happy about. I would love to see this race car, along with a Hurricane Cat-X and a "Banshee" race car show the world that all three powertrains can co-exist with one another on and off the track. Hopefully, Dodge will chase performance on the street as well with SRT and Direct Connection offering upgrades for all performance levels with upgrades that customers can add on to their cars regardless of powertrain.
While reading this article and realizing the obvious fact that a V8 fits under the hood of this new car, showing what could be, my thoughts still remain the same when it comes to the balanced future of vehicles under the three remaining effective brands under the Mopar umbrella. In essence, I agree with Bill Burke about expanding the Performance themed lineup throughout the brand but I feel Stellantis really needs to expand in certain directions across the board for the North American Market. I think the V8 should return in a Dodge vehicle, but not as another Challenger Pony car. While Mopar had it's entry in the Pony car market, it's biggest force were it's actual Muscle cars. Right now, Dodge has the Charger in the coupe and sedan configuration but honestly there is something missing in the market and it's not a small uncomfortable coupe, What's really missing is a Wagon. I would love to see Dodge bring back a muscle wagon with the Coronet name, still with the Hurricane-6 powertrains. but then adding the new 8-speed hybrid EVO transmission for the SRT Models. Dropping the Scat Pack name from the entire lineup. The 420hp Charger and Coronet would come in as the Super Bee models, while the R/T models of both would get the 550hp Hurricane HO powertrain. The Charger SRT Daytona and the Coronet SRT Superbird would receive a modified version of the 3.0L H/O backed by a ZF 8HP EVO plug in hybrid transmission as the top performing models of each vehicle. Those two would be joined by the next generation Dodge Durango SUV with a 420hp GT trim, a 550hp R/T trim and a hybrid SRT trim. While those three vehicles take care of the Muscle car aspect of Dodge, the brand also needs volume selling vehicles. Seeing that the STLA Large platform can accommodate a transverse mounted drivetrain, as shown by the Jeep Cherokee, vehicles such as a Dodge Dart Sedan, a Dodge Aspen sport crossover and even the return of the Dodge Grand Caravan are all vehicles that can be placed on the STLA large platform as volume selling vehicles, powered by the 325hp 2.0L Hurricane-4 engine along with smaller 4-cylinder turbo powertrains. Adding additional performance to either the Dart or Aspen or even simply making the minivan AWD would simply mean the addition of a rear EDM with a mechanical differential and two-speed gearbox. The Dart would have trims such as GT, GTS, Sport, Swinger & Demon and Aspen would get trim levels such a SXT, GT and R/T while the minivan would get Citadel, Limited and Tungsten models. Naturally, this same Stellantis STLA Large platform, along with the new 2.0L Hurricane-4 is a serious door opener for the Jeep brand as well. Adding it as a more powerful option to the Jeep Cherokee's lineup in a Transverse orientation would definitely give the new SUV a big boost in performance over the other powertrains. It would also be a serious performance option for the Jeep Recon with a powerful rear electric drive motor set up, making it a more welcome option over a fully electric vehicle. In the misnamed Grand Cherokee (should be Grand Wagoneer and be offered in Long Wheelbase Only), This new Hurricane-4 should be mated to the current 4Xe setup for a bit more power and torque and be the sole powertrain choice for this vehicle. The Cherokee and this vehicle that should be named the Grand Wagoneer should have three trim levels, base, Laredo and Golden Eagle. That's it. The badly misnamed Wagoneer S should be renamed the Jeep Renegade, as the tougher name fits the Sporty Jeep alot better than Wagoneer S. This vehicle should be offered with the Hurricane-4 mounted longitudinally with the ZF 8HP EVO Hybrid plug-in gear box and offered as the Renegade SRT4. Upgrading that powertrain with the addition of a powerful rear EDM with the 400V architecture, a 3-speed gearbox and mechanical differential would give the world the Renegade SRT4 Trackhawk. Returning the SRT4 name back to the world.
I've said before, Stellantis North America only needs two platforms to succeed in this market, STLA Large and STLA Frame. My paragraph above shows what Stellantis can do with the STLA Large platform and we already know that the frame platform is going to support midsize and full size pickup trucks and SUVs. I genuinely want to see a new Ramcharger pickup truck, but not as a competitor to the Expedition or the Tahoe. I would actually prefer to see this SUV return as something like a Chevy Traverse but with a frame. Something bigger, boxier and more rugged than a Durango but not something gargantuan. Something powered with Hurricane 4 & Hurricane-6 powertrains. That's what a Ram Ramcharger SUV should be. Definitely bigger than the Bronco and more powerful but not excessive. The current Grand Wagoneer should be culled being that people don't really buy full size SUVs anymore. Still in the Midsize category, Dodge need to hurry up and bring back the Dakota for the North American market with the Hurricane 4 & Hurricane-6 setups from trim levels including Rebel, RHO, Rumble Bee, R/T and SRT along with the regular Bighorn and Laramie models. Jeep would have it's Wrangler Unlimited 4-door as the only Wrangler body configuration available and an upgraded Gladiator pickup with a deeper bed and revised look that still keeps the Wrangler-like practicality and versatility but takes on a different modern vintage Jeep body styling (horizontal grille slats and the mailshot over the grille), both being powered by a 4Xe system with the Hurricane-4 engine as the only powertrain option would round out the mid-size truck and SUV lineup. As I said above, I would love for the V8 to return to Dodge but not as another pony car. It's time for Ram trucks to come back into the fold under the Dodge umbrella and this is where the V8 comes back to Dodge. The 1500-series trucks are missing are some genuinely cool street trucks. Street trucks with RHO/TRX styling but lowered and design to pound the blacktop with full size pickup performance. A 420hp 3.0L Hurricane S/O powered Ram 1500 Rumble Bee, a 550hp Hurricane H/O Ram 1500 G/T, a 650hp Supercharged 5.7L Hemi Ram 1500 R/T, a 797hp 6.2L Ram 1500 Daytona and an 840hp Ram 1500 SRT8 pickup truck. Keep doing Limited and Tungsten trim levels for luxury and have the Express and Bighorn for the general truck sales, offering these two trim levels with the 5.7L Hemi V8, same as the WT.
One last thing I would love to see is for some of the cool colors to come back to dodge along with a blend of some new one. Colors like Octane Red, Delmonico Red, Velvet red pearl, Hellraisin, toxic orange, Sinnamon stick, Copperhead pearl, Green Machine, F8 Green, black, Roasted, Dope, After Dark Blue, Dark Granite metallic and even destroyer gray. Colors that are more deep than actually loud. Having those along with the bright colors also allows for a wider range of potential buyers. Just my thoughts
moparinsiders.com
