Automotive News Canada - June 2024 - 8

8
* JUNE 2024
HURRICANE POWER
IN THE RAM 1500
3.0-litre twinturbocharged
inline
six-cylinder
Standard: 400 hp/450 pound-feet
High output: 540 hp/521 pound-feet
HEMI POWER
IN THE RAM 1500
5.7-litre V-8
395 hp/410 pound-feet
6.2-litre V-8
702 hp/650 pound-feet
Can a six-cylinder replace the Hemi?
By GREG LAYSON
DIGITAL AND MOBILE EDITOR
" HEY! THAT THING GOT A HEMI? "
Back in 2004, when one of the most iconic
automotive ad campaigns began to air,
that answer was, " Yeah! "
The pickup driver in that commercial
was talking about his Dodge Ram and not
about the classic Charger he was towing.
Dodge, having killed off its Hemi V-8 from
the 1970s, had introduced a modern version
and fans went wild for it..
But moving forward - 20 years later -
the answer is going to be " no. " The Ram
1500 will no longer be
equipped with the engine
popular with farmers and
muscle-car fans alike.
The Ram's famed
V-8 Hemi engines have
been dropped for 2025,
replaced with a 3.0litre
inline-six-cylinder
dubbed the Hurricane.
Standard output is 400
horsepower and 450
pound-feet of torque,
while the high-output
version delivers 540/521.
The base 5.7-litre Hemi is
rated at less: 395/410.
A Stellantis Canada
spokesperson said the
new engine delivers
" enhanced fuel economy
and fewer emissions
while generating more horsepower and
torque than competitive engines in the
light-duty segment. "
CAN A SIX-CYLINDER REPLACE A V-8?
But will loyal Hemi owners like
the change and be persuaded to give
the new engine a try? Sam Fiorani,
vice-president of global vehicle forecasting
at AutoForecast Solutions based in
Pennsylvania, thinks so.
" While an inline-six offers a unique
lure all its own, the Hemi definitely had
a following among Ram buyers, " he said.
" With the benefits of the new engine, it's
unlikely that Ram fans will leave simply
because the Hemi has been laid to rest. "
But there are still plenty of Hemi lovA
full-size Ram pickup without a V-8 seems like
a gamble, but Stellantis thinks the new Hurricane
six-cylinder can take the market by storm
ers scrambling to get their hands on the
last few available 2023 Ram 1500 Classic
(DS) and 2024 Ram 1500 (DT) pickups still
on lots.
Fiorani: In
the era of
tougher
emissions
standards,
saving the
Hemi wasn't
worth the
investment
for Stellantis.
FILE PHOTO
" We definitely have
customers reaching out
attempting to get the last
Hemis sold, and I've been
told this was the main
motivator for a bunch
of [recent] purchases, "
said Scott Pollock, general
manager of Peel
Chrysler-Jeep-DodgeRam-Fiat
in Mississauga,
Ont. " We have about 130
Rams in inventory with
V-8s. Only a handful are
Classics; most are 2024
DTs. "
Pollock: The
Stellantis Canada
declined to disclose take
rates of its variety of
engines available in Ram
pickups but said " a very
high percentage " sold in
2023 were equipped with the Hemi.
" That's why it was so important to
develop an engine with greater power and
fuel efficiency, and the straight-six turbo
Hurricane delivers, " the company spokesperson
said.
MAJORITY OF 2023 RAMS HAD A HEMI
Fiorani said that in 2023, 75.5 per cent
of Ram 1500s made for the Canadian market
were equipped with 5.7-litre Hemi V-8
engines, 1.2 per cent came with the 6.2-litre
V-8 and 23.3 per cent with a V-6.
Production for the United States had a
higher share of V-6 engines at 29.3 per cent,
reducing output of the 5.7-litre Hemi V-8
to 65.8 per cent, with 3.6 per cent being 6.2litre
V-8s.
Diesels accounted for less than two per
cent of sales in both countries.
Improving the Hemi during a time of
strict emissions standards wasn't worth it
for the automaker, Fiorani said.
move away
from the
Hemi was
perplexing
before getting
behind the
wheel of a
Hurricanepowered
pickup.
FILE
PHOTO
" Investing in the Hemi would just inch
it along year by year, while the Hurricane
engine ups the performance ante and
moves the powertrain
onto a different level for
emissions, " he said. " The
ultimate ceiling for the
[inline] six is much higher
than it was on the
Hemi, giving Stellantis
more bang for its buck
and keeping the gas-powered
engine around for
another decade or more. "
Dealer Pollock supports
the new engine.
" The Hemi was a
sought-after engine
because people like
what works, " he said.
" Originally, I was a little
perplexed, but then
I drove the new engine.
You feel the additional
horsepower and torque.
" I mean ultimately,
what truck buyer doesn't
want more performance?
I would just encourage
customers to drive it;
they'll be happy. "
Karwel:
Ford's 2009
introduction
of the
EcoBoost
V-6 to the
F-150 lineup
provides
a guide to
how Ram
can convert
Hemi lovers
to the new
Hurricane
engine.
FILE PHOTO
Performance - not the name of the
engine - is precisely what Stellantis will
focus on moving forward, Fiorani said.
" Marketing in recent years has slowly
moved the focus away from Hemi and
toward the overall capabilities of the
truck, " he said. " For 2025, it's a quiet transition
without focusing on the specifics of
the engine but highlighting the horsepower
numbers.
" So far, the advertising has focused on
capability and technology. "
Robert Karwel, senior manager of the
Canadian automotive practice at J.D.
Power, thinks it's going to take some work
to win over die-hard Hemi fans, but there's
precedent. Karwel cited the 2011 modelyear
introduction of the EcoBoost turboAfter
two decades, the Ram 1500 will
be missing the rumble of a Hemi V-8.
However, the replacement six-cylinder
produces more power with lower fuel
consumption, according to Stellantis.
PHOTO: STELLANTIS
charged V-6 engines to the Ford F-150 lineup.
" We
can learn from that, " Karwel said.
Ford spent a lot of time extolling two
aspects: more torque and high durability.
The automaker went right to the heart of
what matters to buyers by explaining that
they are not sacrificing pulling power, he
said.
SELLING CAPABILITY
" I think Ram's challenges are slightly
greater than Ford's, just because Ram
and Hemi have been linked together for
so long, " Karwel said. " But it's certainly
not insurmountable, and I think Ram will
likely have a similar marketing strategy,
and that is how they are going to approach
their loyal base of Hemi owners. "
A new ad campaign will launch this
summer, said Stellantis, and highlighting
the history of the Hurricane name might
help, Karwel added.
" Undoubtedly, there will be a marketing
push because this type of change takes
explaining to the consumer base, " he said.
" I think Stellantis is fortunate in the fact
that within Jeep's history, the Hurricane
moniker is already linked to them and
fondly remembered by Jeep fans. "
The Willys F4-134 Hurricane
inline-four-cylinder powered military
Jeeps in 1952 and became available to the
masses after that.
" There is already meat on the bone here
to create a new legacy with Hurricane in
the Ram portfolio in addition to Jeep, "
Karwel said. - ANC
Automotive News Canada - June 2024

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