Dodge reveals Durango Hellcat as ‘most effective SUV ever’

Fiat Chrysler is cleansing its Dodge efficiency brand name by increasing the offerings of its muscle cars and trucks and Durango SUV, while terminating a minivan and crossover for the 2021 design year.

The car manufacturer revealed Thursday a brand-new “Hellcat SRT” design of the 2021 Durango SUV, which it is calling “the most powerful SUV ever.” The high-performance alternative functions a supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi Hellcat V8 engine that will provide 710 horse power and 645 pound-feet of torque.

“We are a full, distilled performance brand,” Tim Kuniskis, head of Fiat Chrysler’s automobile department in North America, informed CNBC. “To do that, it was the perfect time to bring the most powerful versions of all of them. It just kind of made sense to do them all at the same time” with the discontinuation of the other designs.

Production of the Dodge Journey crossover and Dodge Grand Caravan minivan will end later on this year. The cars were anticipated to be stopped years earlier. The car manufacturer kept producing them as sales stayed fairly stable mainly since of their lower expenses compared to other rivals and comparable cars provided by other Fiat Chrysler brand names.

The car manufacturer, according to Kuniskis, is anticipated to produce less than 2,000 of the 2021 Durango Hellcat designs, which will enter into production early next year. The high-performance SUV will just be provided one design year due to emissions guidelines that start the list below year, he stated.

The car manufacturer presently provides Hellcat designs for its Dodge Challenger and Charger cars and trucks. While such designs represent a percentage of sales for the brand name, they are considered as “halo,” or “hype,” items that draw in purchasers to the general brand name. They have actually helped Dodge in keeping fairly steady sales amidst more recent rivals and as customer choice relocates to crossovers.

 “Our vision was very clear,” Kuniskis stated relating to the brand-new SUV. “Our goal was to deliver a Dodge: Big, bold and aggressive. A three-row, supercharged Hemi muscle car.”

Fiat Chrysler has actually offered more than 40,000 Hellcat cars because the nameplate debuted for the 2015 design year.

The brand-new Hellcat design belongs to an upgraded lineup for the 2021 Durango, which will start showing up in display rooms this fall. Changes consist of outside styling tweaks and substantial upgrades to the interior, consisting of a revamped motorist cockpit and readily available next-generation infotainment system with a 10.1-inch touch screen.

Fiat Chrysler likewise presented Thursday brand-new efficiency designs of the Charger and Challenger for the 2021 design year, consisting of a “Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye” design efficient in almost 800 horse power and 0 to 60 miles per hour in around 3.5 seconds.

“We’re giving our patient, engaged and very vocal performance enthusiasts exactly what they want: more performance,” Kuniskis informed press reporters throughout a media rundown.