I have my issues with EVs but I guess at this point I'm not total for nor against them. I don't think it's ever a great idea to put all your eggs in one basket but I do see electrification as the future, but not quite in the way it's being presented. It wouldn't be so bad if the powers that be said something like "Okay, all auto manufactures have to have several full EV's in their line up, several hybrids, an a small percentage can be full ICE vehicles and everyone has to be under the carbon footprint limit or whatever." Hybrid vehicles are great at reducing carbon emissions because vehicles can run on full electric mode and when it comes to power, they can add what is lost in cubic inch displacement. The problem is, us on the outside are only seeing a part of what's actually happening and not getting the full picture or the full story of what's going on behind the scenes. Truth is, most of these auto manufacturers are already aware that the current infrastructure can not handle the entire industry going full EV. Stellantis knows it and so does everyone else. For the Mopar brand to move into the electrification age isn't a bad thing. It will keep them relevant in what's coming. For them to bring out the 4Xe technology to make a 2.0L have the horsepower of a 5.7L Hemi and the Torque of a 6.4L Hemi with a hybrid powertrain speaks volumes and really shows that if the brand can do that with a 2.0L Turbo, what can it do with a pair of 3.0L inline-6 Turbo engines that produce numbers that are currently better than the 5.7L & 6.4L V8 cars that we have today? For manufacturers to say they want the majority of their lineups to be electrified in the next 10 years meaning that they want the majority of their lineup to have hybrid technology with some vehicles and trim levels being full BEV actually makes sense. I fully believe that these new EV "muscle cars" as the call them, will sell pretty well but I have to agree with Bill Burke that the Hurricane family will be what saves the brand and moves it into the future. The Hurricane family of engines consist of not only the 3.0L Inline-6 twin turbo engines, but also the 2.0L Hurricane-4, which are all hybrid compatible. 48V systems and 400V systems are already being utilized with the 2.0L with amazing success so when these finally get mated to the 3.0L Hurricane engines, they should come with some very amazing results. Let's think of it this way, as it stands, Jeep is pretty much the biggest part of Stellantis North America with volume selling vehicles like the Cherokee and all of the other "little" jeeps. For Dodge to get in that market with the Hornet makes them very relevant since that's where their mainstream money is made. Spicing it up with some Dodge attitude and putting hybrid tech in it puts the brand right in the center of the action. If they can do that with a Tonale-based vehicle, imagine what they can do with a vehicle based off of a Guilia Quadrifoglio GTA-M, Stelvio Quadrifoglio, Maserati Quattroporte or even Levante Trofeo. Imagine STLA: Medium platform vehicles with Abarth-like handling that can go after the Civic Type R and other Hot-hatch cars with hybrid turbo-4 powertrains sitting below the muscular STLA: Large platform vehicles. That means they can go after mainstream giants of the sedan, SUV and crossover world with way more muscle and still be compliant. Stellantis is making power moves by beating the system at its own game. They are taking the small displacement/hybrid model that they've been given and using everything they can to continue to make big power and even trying to make EVs something worthwhile. Given what the SRT engineers have accomplished since 2003 till now, I can only imagine the possibilities of what they are going to do with these new inline-4 and inline-6 twin turbo engines that can make 500hp+ without SRT even touching them and what kind of magic will happen when they are hybridized. 2G AWD launches with instant torque and emissions compliant. I dont think the CD170 is the last we're going to see of factory crazy. Not by a long shot! The current gen cars are going away and so are Hemis and yes we are moving to an era of electrification where hybridization and BEVs are going to be more mainstream but we aren't going to loose ICE completely. It's going to be more ICE-E, which isn't bad actually. Also, think about this, if SRT can figure out a way to put the CD170 Tech into the Hurricane engines where it can run on E85 and do all of the AFR changes and everything else on the fly, plus have hybrid performance, We could be looking at some seriously powerful vehicles after 2024. Now I know this article was about the E-Muscle cars, which, I think, will have alot of bits and pieces from the current vehicles as well when it comes to tuning but the thing that really struck me was when he said that they haven't fully lifted the curtain on these cars yet. that takes me back to the red car under the cover during their EV day presentation. We know that the next gen car will take alot from the banshee concept but it will be different. T.K also said about wanting to do a '68 Charger. I think the Banshee Concept was more an idea and a litmus test to see how we would all respond and to get a bit of feedback, all while testing new technology. We heard during the presentation of the CD170 that they'd been working on this car for a few years and we didn't know about it. That makes me wonder, what else are they working on in those dark underground lairs that exist behind the walls at Dodge? What new monsters do they have in store for us for 2024? What "compliant" insanity are they still cooking up in there? I have faith that we are going to be pleasantly surprised with what is coming, in spite of the fact that our beloved big block Hemi V8s are going to be leaving us this year. I think we're going to see some SRT/GLH/Direct Connection vehicles that will carry on what the brand has been doing since 2003 till now. I think we're going to see a majorly improved Jeep brand and a broaden Chrysler Brand that can not only compete with Tesla and Lucid in the EV realm but also some of the AMG & BMW M vehicles and maybe even Range Rover and some of the other British brands as well. I think it will also make the Ram trucks better as well.
moparinsiders.com
