Zac Quinn 
2023 is making itself a bittersweet year for Dodge, as the company is sending off the Hemi V8 from its muscle car lineup in epic fashion. But as it’s the final year for us to see the legendary motor under the hood of equally legendary cars, it’s hard to be too excited about the Last Call special edition lineup. However, during the 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 reveal in Las Vegas, Dodge CEO Tim Kuniskis announced that the V8 wouldn’t entirely disappear from the brand’s lineup as it will remain in the Durango for the time being.
Dodge Durango To Offer Hemi V8
According to Motor Authority, Kuniskis stated that the Hemi V8 wouldn’t be killed off from the Dodge Durango, which means that the SUV will have a V8 option for the 2024 model year and possibly longer, though the executive wouldn’t comment on future products. But that does mean the 5.7L Eagle 345 Hemi V8 and 6.4L Apache 392 Hemi V8 in the SRT-badged Durango will continue into the near future. As for the 2023 Dodge Durango Hellcat, which came back from the dead after mechanical changes were made to meet emissions, the super SUV will once again end production after the 2023 model year.
Further ahead, reports indicate that the next-generation Dodge Durango will turn into a full-size body-on-frame SUV that stands to be a rowdier answer to the Ford Expedition and Chevrolet Tahoe. This means that it would share an architecture with the large Jeep Wagoneer, instead of the new WL Jeep Grand Cherokee.
Kuniskis once again confirmed that the Hellcat Dodge muscle cars would die at the end of 2023, and the Charger and Challenger replacement won’t have a Hemi V8 under the hood. However, as Dodge is keeping the world in the dark about what it has planned in terms of the future, the company did reveal that the new electric muscle car’s STLA Large platform will be able to accommodate a gas engine.
To that end, forecasters have been tracking the replacements of the Dodge Charger and Challenger to feature the GME-T6 Hurricane engine. Adding evidence to that is Dodge’s Roadkill Nights 2023 announcement, which focuses on influencers building a race-winning car with a Hurricane crate engine. This is likely as an intention to build hype around the motor.
Dodge is otherwise expected to debut more products this year and next, with Kuniskis previously telling MC&T that there will be “more (Dodge products) than you see today.”
