The Next Dodge Challenger To Be A Hybrid
I have great respect for Dodge. For years they’ve resisted the eco polar bear warriors and stuck to their guns behind the great V8 engine for their performance cars. The quickest car in the world? The Dodge Demon – able to pull wheelies off the line with no hybrid sorcery or turbocharger. That’s what you call pure American muscle.
But wait. It seems as though Fiat Chrysler CEO Mike Manley has been spreading some love for hybrid systems at the Detroit Motor Show. He professes that at some point, V8 muscle will have to live in peace alongside electrification.
“The reality is those platforms and that technology we used does need to move on,” he said. “They can’t exist as you get into the middle-2020s. New technology is going to drive a load of weight out, so we can think of the powertrains in a different way. And we can use electrification to really supplement those vehicles.”
It looks like the destiny of the Dodge V8 is set, then. But let’s not imagine this to be a bad thing. The world is changing. Dodge has pushed its combustion engines to the limit of power and reliability, and now they’re only choice is to look towards the limitless-torque world of hybridisation. Let’s not forget, everyone, that Dodge wants to relinquish every possible ounce of performance from their cars, and if that means strapping on a pair of motors, then I say go for it.
While this will change maybe the look and feel of the car, the petrol sucking V8 will remain. One of the main advantages to having this V8 is the torque – something it has in common with an electric motor. Food for thought.
