Although rumors regarding Chrysler's supercharged "Hellcat" engine have been trickling out for about a year now, the company has yet to officially confirm the engine exists, let alone issue any details. Earmarked for duty in the next-gen Dodge Challenger SRT, early speculation pegged the 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V-8's output to be in the 580–640-hp range, but remarks made by SRT chief Ralph Gilles in an interview with Hot Rod magazine indicate its output may top even that of the maker's 640-hp V-10–powered performance halo car, the Viper.
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When Hot Rod suggested that Chrysler was currently running a distant third in the pony-car horsepower war, Gilles responded thusly: "Horsepower wars have always been part of the battle. It used to be a Big Three thing, but now I think it's a Big Five, Big Six thing with these other OEs . . . Nissan, even Ferrari, which is already on its own planet, in a way. But usable horsepower is the next big discussion. I like to talk power-to-weight. We have the Viper TA that's in the top three on horsepower-to-weight ratio, and that's what you feel every day. We have a situation where, you know—we may have a situation—where the flagship car is not the most powerful car in our arsenal; how do we explain that to ourselves? So we have an internal horsepower race as well as an external one."
The current Challenger SRT's 6.4-liter Hemi V-8 is rated at 470 horsepower, and it makes sense that easiest route to gain entry in the 640-plus-horsepower-on-pump-gas club is forced induction. When Hot Rod pointed out Gilles inadvertent near-admission that the new Challenger SRT would likely be supercharged, Gilles responded, "Ha . . . yeah." How, or if, the recent Viper production slowdown might play into this is unclear, but Gilles remarks indicate the idea of its halo-car packing less power than a more pedestrian Challenger is definitely a concern. Might we be so bold to suggest a supercharged V-10 for the Viper?
from Car and Driver Blog http://ift.tt/nSHy27
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