Hemi not the future??

[vetterss]

Have waited for this Challenger to come back for a long time. Watched this as many of us have since the first leaks of what Chrysler was doing got out. Now the new Cafe standards appear to have hit the motor city where it counts and I truly believe the V-8 is marked for death this time. Also Chrysler says the Hemi is not the future for Chrysler. What are the opinions out there on the longevitiy of the Challenger being built? I plan on trading my Vette in on a new Challenger once the pricing becomes normal. Even the new ZR-1 Vette is already been marked for death. What is the world coming to.......

[Cuda340]

It depends how well the Challenger sells in 2009 and 2010 after all of the initial hype wears off.

If sales are not strong (remember it must appeal to the general public and not just us hardcore MOPAR gearheads), it could be gone in 3-4 years, or it could survive as a high-end limited production ($$$) model, like the Viper.

[Ted@MPSC]

Even with the Hybrid attemps on the hemi, Chrysler is going to have to find more fuel savings in order to save this engine. The R&D on trying to improve the Hemi may not justify the outcome, so I imagine that we will be seeing new higher efficient, smaller displacement engines coming down the pipleine fairly soon. I expect that we will be seeing more and more of the forced induction systems becoming a common place with manufacturers as new "Green Fuel" technologies erupt. Sadly, I do believe the Hemi has a short future based on the CAFE standards at this time, and those will only get worse as time progresses.

[s420merc]

The Challenger wont go away just might change engines As long as The HEMI can keep meeting EMISSIONS Standards not CAFE standards they will make it.
Its cheap to make and as long as People are willing to pay the GAS Guzzler tax they dont care they just pass it on to the consumer. THE gas guzzler tax will go up so they will prob produce less Hemi cars but they will still make them prob to order and the price will go up.
expect to pay prob $4-5k more for ur SRT8 Hemi.

[Rallye72]

I think this car is going to be the last opportunity anyone will have for a conventional type muscle car so get one while you can. Even if they could meet emmission standards the price of fuel will continue to rise and consumers will demand better engine options or shop elsewhere.

I hate to sound negative but I think this car will have a short run, current economics simply don't support a long life. From a purely business standpoint I think Chrysler made a mistake with a very short term view. Besides that, history is against it vis a vis its competitors. The original Challengers sales were low compared to the Camaro and Mustang and I see no reason for this to change. The original only ran for 4 1/2 years. Pricing may also hurt it, it's a neat car but from what I currently know I think it'll have a tough time competing against the Stang GT and six bangers. At the BJ auction I picked up a Ford flyer for the V6 version of the Stang. They are now offering handling and performance packages for it to include true dual exhaust and much beefed up handling packages. This will appeal to a lot of people looking for the handling and a better level of "go" but not wanting a GT price tag. Ma Dodge would be wise to follow suit in 09/10.
Will have to see how the Chevy is priced.

I really want an R/T but I also know this will be my last fling with American muscle. After this it will be econo cars as I'm tired of supporting the Arabs and the oil companies.

[RoostKing]

I also believe the Hemi as we know it will go by by. I have two points to bring up.
1. Do you really care if its a Hemi, or that ithe motor that replaces it makes the same power? Remember 440+6 packs made almost identical power, but command less in the market place. If the 6.1 liter hemi is replaced by a 4.2 liter supercharged v-6, would it really matter if it made the same power? Yes the sound would be different, but would it be HEMI car or no car in your opinion? Would in not be a Challenger musclecar without the hemi?

2. If the Hemi does go by by in say 2010 or 2011, will it go out with a bang, say more than 500 HP? What if Dodge just said Eff it, the ICONIC Hemi will never be again, lets stuff as many challengers, Chargers, and possibly 'Cudas (gasp!) with the meanest, nastiest in your face Hemis the world has seen until we cant sell em? Kinda like making lemonade outta lemons??

[RRHemi]

Hopefully this time around instead of dumping performance cars they will just scale things back. Maybe lose the SRT, quit this stupid horsepower war. 380hp is certainly enough to get in trouble with! Instead of squeezing more power out of they should shoot for more economy. Perhaps use internal parts that are blower friendly, let boy racer gat all the power he wants with bolt ons.

[Rallye72]

Originally Posted by RoostKing

I also believe the Hemi as we know it will go by by. I have two points to bring up.
1. Do you really care if its a Hemi, or that ithe motor that replaces it makes the same power? Remember 440+6 packs made almost identical power, but command less in the market place. If the 6.1 liter hemi is replaced by a 4.2 liter supercharged v-6, would it really matter if it made the same power? Yes the sound would be different, but would it be HEMI car or no car in your opinion? Would in not be a Challenger musclecar without the hemi?

2. If the Hemi does go by by in say 2010 or 2011, will it go out with a bang, say more than 500 HP? What if Dodge just said Eff it, the ICONIC Hemi will never be again, lets stuff as many challengers, Chargers, and possibly 'Cudas (gasp!) with the meanest, nastiest in your face Hemis the world has seen until we cant sell em? Kinda like making lemonade outta lemons??

to answer your question: I couldn't care less about the "Hemi". If they were to come out tomorrow with an electric power plant that had the sme range or better and made 350 or so HP I'd be a happy camper. For me, and I know I will deffer from many of you, it's not a pure horsepower thing. I want a visually attractive car that is fun to drive, and is as econmical as possible. The SRT is not my cup of tea, it's way too expensive and is overkill for my desires.

As for #2, no they won't go out with a bang. Business economics will simply have them tell the factory to cease production of "whatever" on such and such a date. They didn't go out with a bang in 71 and they won't in 10 or 11, you'll simply read about it somewhere and then all the crying and handwringing will start. But, if there's a market, the aftermarket guys will kick in just like they have for the current crop of muscle cars. In a few years as gas hits 6+ bucks a gallon you'll simply have to decide how much your fun is worth to you. It's all economics at the end of the day.

[Ragamuffin]

Originally Posted by Ted@MPSC

Even with the Hybrid attemps on the hemi, Chrysler is going to have to find more fuel savings in order to save this engine. The R&D on trying to improve the Hemi may not justify the outcome, so I imagine that we will be seeing new higher efficient, smaller displacement engines coming down the pipleine fairly soon. I expect that we will be seeing more and more of the forced induction systems becoming a common place with manufacturers as new "Green Fuel" technologies erupt. Sadly, I do believe the Hemi has a short future based on the CAFE standards at this time, and those will only get worse as time progresses.

Gentlemen, Gentlemen [Ladies ;too of course ] I'm just wondering if Jim Press' statement is 'valid' and/or truthful: maybe a bit of me is wondering if Press is a "loyal Moparian" ; having recently worked at Toyota. How does anyone know how long he or anyone might stay at their position or the company ? Ok, to counteract the CAFE stipend, could Chrysler for example make a 45 MPG vehicle ,even in say the 700 vehicle range just to even out the HEMI MPG ratio ? Another idea,one that The Chrysler Boys could learn quite a bit[ if big oil and others won't get in the way: which I'm sure most of you know what I'm talking about !!!] from this 'engineer' , whom I've briefly mentioned here previously, who to me anyway seems like a Supreme Genious.Anyone that can attain 700mpg even though it was a "competition" car needs to be seriously 'listened' to and/or guarded like a pot full of gold/a secret,massive oil pit !! Here's just a part of "Rob's" resume :The wing that he created for a top alcohol dragster allowed that vehicle to go from a regional contender to second place in the U.S. Nationals. He helped create weapon carriage methods and flight profiles that increased the range of the F-15E by over 40%. Rob designed a ducted prop drive for a competition car that achieved over 700 miles per gallon. While the leader of McDonnell Douglas' National AeroSpace Plane (NASP) vehicle performance team, he led analytic investigations in sonic boom noise abatement, chaired multi-disciplinary trouble-shooting teams, and directed the group that developed the unique configuration of that aircraft .....

[Rallye72]

If you want revolutionary fuel efficiency just start a project similar to the 10 million X prize for space travel. Enough money will motivate some genius to overcome the hurdles and develop something unique. Gasoline is very inefficient as a fuel as we currently use it, only a very small percentage is converted to energy, the rest is simply wasted.