Stellantis has good news for Hemi fans who still aren’t convinced that the new Hurricane inline six will make an adequate replacement. A senior exec told reporters that the High Output version of the 3.0-liter gas motor, which already outguns the old naturally-aspirated 6.4 V8, is just the start, and that even more powerful versions are on the way.
So far Stellantis has confirmed two versions of the Hurricane Six: a base version with 420 hp (426 PS) and 468 lb-ft (634 Nm) of torque and a High Output variant making 510 hp (517 PS) and 500 lb-ft. The HO’s numbers give it a decisive edge over the 6.4 Hemi, which is still available in some Jeep and Ram products, and generates 471 hp (478 PS) and 455 lb-ft (617 Nm) while consuming a ton more gas. But the HO is still no match for the old supercharged Hellcat motor with its 700+ hp (710 PS) output, so Stellantis has plans to squeeze more ponies from the inline six.
“We have more power,” Micky Bly, senior vice president and head of global propulsion systems at Stellantis, told reporters this week, including reps from Auto News. “We just haven’t released it yet.”
How much more power? Consumer expectations demand Stellantis produces something with more muscle than the Hellcat, but our take is that topping 700 hp is definitely going to require electrification, even if Bly’s team can squeeze a few more horses out of the non-hybrid version of the Hurricane engine.
Related: Jeep Appears To Have Dropped The V8 From 2024 Wagoneer And Grand Wagoneer
At the other end of the scale, the Hurricane I6 will spawn a 2.0-liter inline four, and Bly confirmed that a three-cylinder engine based on an existing European Stellantis motor will be added to the U.S. lineup soon, as will new big and small diesels fitting either side of the current 3.0 unit. And the 10-year Stellantis veteran and former GM powertrain engineer also said that the ageing Pentastar V6 will live on despite the compact Hurricane potentially being small enough to replace it.
Whether that’s simply because the cost of re-engineering some older vehicles to take the newer six isn’t worth it, or because the uncomplicated Pentastar’s presumably vastly lower build cost helps keep retail prices down, Bly didn’t say. But he did confirm that it would get an update soon, and hinted that the changes would include hybrid (we’re guessing of the mild variety) assistance.
“The Pentastar is a very good, lower-cost, rock-solid, high-quality stalwart of our collection, and we have no plans to replace it,” Bly said. “In fact, shortly, you will hear of an improvement coming, and it will be a bit of an electrification story.”
