Stellantis is betting big on electrified dual-clutch automatic transmissions (eDCTs) developed by Peugeot and Punch Powertrain. In addition to an American production plant, which will be making the setup for the STLA Medium platform in a few years, Stellantis is retooling the massive Fiat Mirafiori plant in Turin to make the transmissions. The current plan … Read more
Stellantis may be committed to selling only battery-electrics in Europe by 2030, but it is also testing “eFuels” (also known as “electrofuels”) on European vehicles made since 2014. The company said eFuels could potentially be used on up to 28 million of their vehicles, possibly reducing another 400 million tons of carbon dioxide emissions in … Read more
Last week, a few outlets randomly shared articles from last year which addressed the availability of the 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat with the 6-speed manual transmission. That led many readers and prospective buyers (who did not look at the date of publication) to believe that the manual transmission was now available for ordering in … Read more
Analysis. Social media, forums, and comments sections have all seen complaints about Dodge’s future, which many claim will be “all BEV.” In point of fact, there’s never been any indication that this is Stellantis’ plan for Dodge—only for Chrysler.
What we know so far is that Chrysler-the-marque, as opposed to the no-longer-around Chrysler-the-company, is planning to go all-electric by 2030, and at last report was only working on STLA Large—but these are subject to change. FCA US, on the other hand, was looking at being just 50% electric in 2030. That means it’ll still be 50% not-electric.
The last credible installment from our sources claimed that an LB Challenger was indeed on the way, powered by a Hurricane twin-turbo straight six engine…
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When the embargo lifted on the 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 on Monday, we focused on key parts of the new package, including power, performance, and production numbers, but we didn’t get into how this package makes so much more power than the closely-related Redeye. Today, we dive into what makes the Demon 170’s supercharged Hemi so much more powerful—reaching 1,075 horsepower. (See our initial piece about the 1,025-horsepower, 8-second Demon 170).
When Tim Kuniskis introduced the 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 to a small group of media in early March, he held up a camshaft and said that it was the only component that was directly shared between the 6.2-liter Hemi in the Demon 170 and the 6.2-liter Hemi in the Redeye. Everything else was revised in some way, if not replaced altogether. [Read more…]
Automotive News recently ran a Reuters story on the problem of repairing electric cars after a crash that impacts the battery. They found a large variety of manufacturer attitudes towards this issue. Tesla has the least environmentally friendly design, integrating the batteries of its latest models into the unibody, so any damage requires scrapping the … Read more
When it comes to the critics of the federally mandated transformation of the Dodge Charger into an electric vehicle, there are two main groups. The first is comprised of those folks who simply will not accept the idea of driving an electric vehicle, so they have nothing good to say about the electric Dodge Charger … Read more
Stellantis, which includes FCA US, the former Chrysler, has decided to build its electric drive modules (EDM) at Kokomo, Indiana-area plants. The EDM is an all-in-one solution for electric vehicles; making them in Indiana will keep 265 jobs intact at three plants (Indiana Transmission, Kokomo Transmission, and Kokomo Casting). The gearbox cover will be cast … Read more
Last year, Dodge announced that the new Hurricane inline-six would join the Direct Connection crate engine lineup, alongside various Hemi crate engines. Those who can’t get over the possible demise of the Hemi refuse to see any upside to the new Hurricane engine, but for those who are happy to have an internal combustion engine in the future of the brand, this engine presents an opportunity.
If nothing else, the fact that Dodge is discussing this engine is proof that the brand doesn’t plan to go all-electric in the immediate future. The trio of Hurricane crate engines, one of which is slated for the next generation Drag Pak car, shows that these engines will pack a serious punch.
The first production application of the Hurricane inline-six engine family was the Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer. In the big Jeep, the “base” Hurricane pushed out 420 horsepower and 468 lb-ft of torque while the Hurricane 510 in the Grand Wagoneer delivers 510 horsepower and 500 lb-ft of torque. Those engines effectively replace the 5.7-liter Hemi in the Wagoneer and the 6.4-liter Hemi in the Grand Wagoneer, and each of the smaller engines pack more power than the V8s that they are replacing. The 5.7-liter Hemi in the Wagoneer offers 392 horsepower and 404 lb-ft of torque while the 6.4-liter Hemi in the Grand Wagoneer delivers 471 horsepower and 455 lb-ft of torque, so there are significant increases in both horsepower and torque when comparing the Hemi to the Hurricane in the Wagoneer line. [Read more…]
The Ram 1500 REV, a battery-electric full-size pickup, was revealed for the first time today on a Super Bowl ad. At the same time, Ram started a contest to win one of 200 early-reservation codes, normally selling for $100. The contest is running in both the US and Canada, from the Ram web site. The … Read more
Electric motors can get quite hot while operating—and so can batteries when powering those motors. Battery-electric vehicle (BEV) makers have all spent a great deal of time and money on thermal management, as gasoline-vehicle makers did before them. Their solutions work well for most people, but there is likely room for more work by enthusiasts. That … Read more
In battery-electric vehicles, it’s common to have two motors, one for the front wheels and one for the rear wheels; but Stellantis may be the first to have patented a disconnection system for electric cars, to increase range. The idea allows for wheels to continue to generate power from braking, but to only be driven when needed, for the ultimate in electric-vehicle efficiency. [Read more…]
It has been reported by multiple outlets and confirmed by the Jeep brand that the 5.7-liter Hemi V8 is not available in the 2023 Grand Cherokee in its shorter, two-row form. The only engine available in the “Build and Price” feature on the Jeep website for the Grand Cherokee is the 3.6-liter V6, although the … Read more
We have been talking for years about the Hurricane inline-six engine family; with the arrival of the new Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer, those long-rumored engines have finally come to production.
In the huge Jeeps, both the standard and high-performance variants of the 3.0-liter Hurricane engine provide substantial power, making them reasonable alternatives to the Hemi V8 engines which are also available in luxury Jeeps… [Read more…]
Mopar shocked the world a few years back with the introduction of the Hellephant crate engine. Measuring 426 cubic inches and fitted with a 3.0-liter IHI supercharger, this engine offered 1,000 horsepower on pump gas, but only 100 units were sold during the initial run, making them nearly impossible to get. Seeing the popularity of … Read more
A few months back, I attended the Summit Racing Equipment Nationals at Summit Motorsports Park in Ohio, where I got to spend the day in the Tony Stewart Racing garage area. While there, I got to watch the teams of Matt Hagan and Leah Pruett as they prepared for their first track action of the … Read more
