(As of April 5, 2024) • See car/truck rumors)
Stellantis is not done yet with internal combustion, as Micky Bly, head of global propulsion, told Automotive News that they were working on one small and one large diesel, as well as a more-powerful Hurricane Six, and a possibly new 2.0 four-cylinder based on the 2.0. The Pentastar V6 will stay on for a few years, due to its high quality and low cost.
Cummins’ B-engine family, used by the Ram 2500-5500, will work with various fuels, including natural gas, gasoline, and hydrogen, by adapting the entire top of the engine; each variant will work with one fuel. Cummins’ new variants will likely be in the 2025 Ram 2500-5500. Ram has hydrogen as a solution for heavy duty pickups in their long-term plans but could use fuel cells rather than (or as well as) the Cummins internal-combustion solution. A fuel cell Ram 1500 seems more likely for the time being.
Peugeot has a good deal of hydrogen fuel cell technology to share, as well.
Indiana will be making more Hurricane parts. The straight six has more power than any Hemi V8s but the Hellcat, with 10% better economy; and a more powerful variant is still planned. STLA can’t really return to V8s for cars and crossovers, given their desire to avoid subsidizing Tesla—especially since they compete head to head now. Also, Stellpower reported that the Hemi V8 lines have been adapted to build Hurricane six-cylinders. This apparently was an overstatement—a small set of machines were kept for the truck 6.4 V8.
Stellpower suggested a hybrid using the Hurricane Six. Regardless, the work put into the E85 Hellcat Demon 170 suggests that new technologies for the Hurricane engine; the Demon 170 is a 1,025 horsepower monster with production up to 3,300.
The Ram 1500 will have Pentastar V6 engines or Hurricane twin-turbo straight-sixes, and will be available in the first quarter of 2024. Dodge Durango will continue as a police car; Hurricane engines replace Hemi V8s in the 2025s. Any V8s (other than truck 6.4) were reportedly stockpiled during the last year of Hemi production.
The Hellcat-powered Ram TRX is having its final run, but spy videos and photos show a Hurricane-powered Ram TRX to replace it.
Top range battery-electric cars will have automatic transmissions. The company has a faux automatic and engine-noise technology and might be able to license Toyota’s reportedly impressive faux manual transmissions.
Stellantis targeted a top 0-60 mph acceleration of under 2.0 seconds for its large battery powered cars, with up to a 500 mile range; so far they haven’t reached this level, but not all the motors are in yet. Range may require a single-motor RWD model top acceleration will likely take three motors and AWD. The Dodge Charger Daytona Banshee will have a multi-speed transmission. Solid state batteries may improve range and weight figures in the 2027 or 2028 Dodges and Rams.
So far only the 400V Charger specs are available. These have the Daytona R/T with a 317 mile range, 0-60 in 4.7 seconds, and 13.1 quarter mile. The Charger Daytona Scat Pack runs 0-60 in 3.3 seconds, quarter mile of 11.5 seconds. Range with the most power is 260 miles. Charging time is around 7 hours from 5% to 80% power, using the standard onboard charging; a DC setup can cut that time to half an hour. The Charger is on STLA Large, likely the longest model on that platform; the shortest might be the Alfa Romeo Giulia.
The Ram 1500 REV is the battery-electric (BEV) version of the popular pickup—we have the full story on this 14,000-pound-towing serious work truck, with interior and exterior pics. A range-extended version with 690 mile capacity is to be sold in late 2024/early 2025 as the Ramcharger. This powertrain will also be adapted for the Wagoneer around 2025.
ProMaster gets a BEV in 2023. In Europe, all three van series are being refreshed, and second-generation battery-electric technology is being adopted by the end of 2023. There's an open question on ProMaster City (dropped in 2023) and a new platform ProMaster. There may be a hydrogen fuel cell version of the ProMaster eventually, using Peugeot’s swap-power technology.
The Wagoneer S and Recon, again, will both be sold entirely as BEVs. The Wagoneer S target range is 400 miles, with target power of 600 hp, and a 0-60 time of 3.5 seconds. Production versions of both vehicles will be shown next year and production will start in 2024, probably in Canada.
STLA Medium covers compact and midsize cars and crossovers (C and D), with sizes that would include the Renegade, Cherokee, and even the original Plymouth Duster. It is based on Peugeot e-VMP and has FWD or AWD forms, the latter using a second electric drive unit in the rear. STLA Medium Mopars will be made in Brampton.
Output ranges from 215 to 382 hp. Range runs from around 310 miles with (435 with the Performance Pack), using the optimistic EU test procedure. Batteries will be 87 kWh or 98 kWh (the latter optional), with a 400V power system. Efficiency may be better than 14 kWh/100 km; charging can go from 20% to 80% in 27 minutes.
The single-layer battery pack maximizes interior space, ride, and handling (low center of gravity); standard and performance packs share dimensions and cooling designs. Secondary systems such as HVAC were engineered to reduce energy use. There will be just three drive modules shared by all the various forms of vehicles. STLA Medium has provisions for future battery chemistries, as well as the one it will use at launch; like all serious automakers, Stellantis has invested in several different battery chemistry technologies.
From an excellent French-publication (Largus) article: Medium may only be BEV or “Prince” 1.6 liter turbo four-cylinder PHEV in the United States. Battery power is to range from 218 to 388 hp. In Europe a 1.2 engine will also be used. It’s possible other engines will be optional e.g. the 2.0.
The future engine list: 1.3T GSE; 2.0 GME; 2.0 Hurricane 4; 3.6 Pentastar; Hurricane Six; Peugeot 1.6. Already gone: Tigershark 2.4 and 3.2. Dropping soon: Hellcat, other Hemis but not necessarily all at once. Dodge Fleet confirmed that the Hurricane Six was engineered to work with hybrid systems. An extra Hurricane Six line is likely to end up at Trenton Engine.
A 1.6 liter turbocharged engine for hybrid powerplants was announced in August 2022; it will be based on the Peugeot EP6 series. The current EP6CDTX has 201 hp and 203 lb-ft with a twin-scroll turbo and direct injection; a hybrid version pumps out 296 hp. A new version, likely to have even more letters in the name, will include an updated hybrid-electric system and transmission.
The 2.0 4xe system is a fine replacement for the 5.7 Hemi V8, while the plain 2.0T can replace the Pentastar. (2.0H and 1.3H are hybrids, but both are also turbocharged.) A new 2.0 engine is slated to enter production at the Dundee plant, which is also to make the new Peugeot 1.6. The 2.0 has nothing in common with the Peugeot engine, and apparently shares very few parts with the GME 2.0 series. One major difference might be the use of plasma cylinder coating rather than iron sleeve liners.
| Old | HP | Torque | New | HP | Torque |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2.4 | 184 | 177 | 1.3T | 177 | 200 |
| 3.6 | 292 | 269 | 3.6 | ? | ? |
| 3.6 | various | 269 | 2.0T | 268-270 | 295 |
| 2.4+3.6 | ↑ | ↑ | 1.6T | 180-300? | ? |
| 5.7 | 395 | 410 | 2.0H | 375 | 470 |
| 3.0T | 420 | 468 | |||
| 3.0D | 240 | 420 | 2.0H | 375 | 470 |
| 6.4 | 485 | 475 | 3.0T | 510-550 | 500-? |
| 6.2S | 797 | 707 | 3.0TH | >520 | >520 |
The chart above shows the best power from each outgoing engine (the 3.6, 3.0 diesel, and 5.7 Hemi are all taken from the Ram 1500; the Hemi was rated at 375 hp and 410 lb-ft of torque in the Challenger with manual transmission and 372/400 in the Challenger automatic). The Hellcat (6.2S) comes in 707 and 797 horsepower flavors, but an extra-high-power final version with electric motor assistance is expected to beat even the Demon. There’s nothing yet on the new 2.0, and the Pentastar will be continuing for a while.
This chart shows our speculation of where each engine is going.
| Engine | Medium | Large | Frame |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1.3T | X | ||
| 1.3T/H | X | ||
| 1.6 PSA | X | ||
| 2.0 “4xe” | X | X | X |
| 2.0 “H4” | X | ||
| 3.6 | X | X | |
| 3.0 TT | X | X |
The peak torque range of the new engines is higher than in the models they replace. As an example, replacing the Pentastar with the 2.0T looks foolish on paper, but the usable torque of the 2.0T is stronger, and the engine is much quicker, in the same vehicle, than the V6 was.
Both the 4xe plug-in hybrid and Hurricane I-6 clobber the old Hemi in torque; with the 4xe, electric assist is strongest where gasoline engines are weakest. The 4xe is more responsive, and in the Wrangler, it comes close to the 6.4 Hemi in acceleration.
The Hellcat is the toughest act to beat. The Hurricane tops out at 550 hp. Topping or matching the Hellcat might require electric motors as well, along with and lighter car bodies. The electric Dodge Charger Daytona currently goes up to 650 hp including a Mopar add-on pack which brings torque to 627 lb-ft.
Hemi engines were supposed to be phased out by the end of 2024, but whether this happens or not is a good question. They remain a selling point for Ram but are almost certainly gone from Dodge.
All of the newer engines increase the gas mileage of the vehicles they are in by a good margin, saving money for both the driver and for Stellantis, which has to pay hefty sums for fuel-economy credits each year.
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