Official: The Dodge Hemi V8 Engine Will Live Into 2025
The Hemi V8 isn’t giving up without a fight.
Dodge initially planned to discontinue its V8 engines by the end of 2023, but they hung around in the Durango SUV even as the Challenger and Charger muscle cars went out of production.
Several “Last Call” Durango special edition trims were announced and the 6.4-liter V8 was discontinued when the 2024 model year ended, but the 5.7-liter V8 and supercharged 6.2-liter Hellcat V8 were extended into the 2025 model year.
However, Dodge hadn’t confirmed that production would continue past the end of 2024, but that’s no longer the case. Dodge has confirmed that V8 Durangos will continue to be built into next year.
“The Dodge Durango and the HEMI engine form a powerful pair, and Dodge will continue to produce the most powerful gas engine SUV on the planet into the 2025 calendar year,” Dodge CEO Matt McAlear said in a news release. “It’s the perfect capstone for our celebration of 20 years of HEMI-powered Durango models.”
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The 5.7-liter Durango is rated at 360 hp and 390 lb-ft of torque while the Hellcat cranks out 710 hp and 645 lb-ft. The 295 hp 3.6-liter V6 Pentastar engine will continue to serve as the Durango’s entry-level motor. Prices for the Durango start at approximately $41,995 with a V6, els, $54,495 with a 5.7-liter V8 and $97,590 with the Hellcat V8.
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Dodge is in the process of launching the all-electric Charger Daytona which will be followed by the turbocharged inline-six-cylinder-powered Charger in the second half of 2025. Reports have surfaced claiming that Dodge would launch the Charger earlier than expected due to demand, but the company has made no formal announcement to that effect and the Durango press release says that the launch will still happen in the second half of the year.
Of course, the Durango isn’t the only light duty model from a Stellantis brand that’s still available with a V8. Jeep also reversed course from a plan to eliminate all v8s and decided to continue offering the 6.4-liter V8-powered Wrangler Rubicon 392 into 2025.
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