As the automotive world continues its slow turn towards electric vehicles, the future prospects for large, powerful combustion engines have shrunk. But instead of mourning the loss of one of the company’s most successful marketing measures, Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis doesn’t sound at all concerned that the Hellcat V8 is a dying breed.
“The days of a 6.2-liter V-8 with a supercharged iron block are numbered,” Kuniskis said. CNBC during a recent video interview. “They are absolutely numbered for all compliance costs. But the performance that those vehicles generate is not numbered. “
It’s that last part that’s most fascinating: the days of the Hellcat are numbered, not because consumers don’t want them, but the bottom line is that those engines no longer exist.
Kuniskis even notes that the Hellcat has gone beyond expectations.
“What Hellcat has done goes well beyond our initial expectations, as it goes far beyond what a traditional, very high-quality trim does,” said Kuniskis. “In the past five years, we have sold more than 50,000 Hellcats. That’s a lot of Hellcats in five years when you think about knowing the price of that car. “
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Kuniskis compares this situation to the late 1970s, when The Powers That Be started regulating muscle cars, but he hopes it won’t take more decades to recover this time.
Part of that comes down to reinventing what the Hellcat name means, largely by starting a transition from combustion engines in particular and emphasizing overall performance instead. It’s a bold concept as most car enthusiasts will have a hard time separating “Hellcat” from “big, sturdy engine”. But I have to admit that emphasizing performance in some cases and not just economy will be a major factor in getting those same enthusiasts on board with electric vehicles.
There’s no hard timeline yet, but if the Hellcat name lands on an EV, don’t say Kuniskis hasn’t told you.