Chrysler Canada: Chrysler Group’s 3.0-litre EcoDiesel V-6, 6.2-litre HEMI^® Hellcat V-8 Among Ward’s 10 Best Engines for 2015
 

December 10, 2014 , Windsor, Ontario -  Chrysler’s Group’s new supercharged 6.2-litre HEMI® Hellcat V-8 joins the 3.0-litre EcoDiesel V-6 among Ward’s 10 Best Engines for 2015, WardsAuto.com announced today.

It marks the EcoDiesel’s second year on the prestigious annual list. Judges evaluated the turbodiesel V-6 in the 2015 Ram 1500, making it the only winning engine to be tested in a pickup truck.

Meanwhile, the 707-horsepower HEMI Hellcat is the most powerful engine ever honoured by the auto-industry publication.

“These two distinctly different engines represent the wide range of powertrain-engineering expertise and technology at Chrysler Group,” said Bob Lee, Vice President and Head of Engine, Powertrain and Electrified Propulsion Systems Engineering. “For their considerable might, they also are both highly efficient and refined – key hallmarks of Chrysler Group powertrains. Such attributes have helped power our vehicles to the top of the sales charts.”

WardsAuto judges saw these qualities and more during their testing.

3.0-litre EcoDiesel V-6

“It is as quiet and smooth as the diesels we’ve been testing in luxury cars, delivers an imposing 420 lb.-ft. of torque, and works in perfect harmony with Chrysler’s standard (TorqueFlite) 8-speed transmission to deliver class-leading 28 US miles per gallon on the highway,” said Drew Winter, editor-in-chief of Ward’s Auto World and senior editor of WardsAuto.com.

“It also uses the most-sophisticated emissions-reducing technology available, making it saleable in all 50 states, putting real eco in the EcoDiesel name. Plus, it features a block and bedplate made of ultra-strong compacted graphite iron that trims weight, improves NVH and enables a more space-efficient design.”

The EcoDiesel’s fuel pump is upgraded to accommodate the engine’s 2,000-bar (29,000-psi) high-pressure common-rail injection system. The engine also benefits from Fiat’s MultiJet 2 technology, which enables Injection Rate-Shaping – fuel injection that is modulated to mitigate noise and improve low-speed throttle response, while reducing fuel consumption and emissions.

The system’s high-dispersion nozzles and advanced-technology servovalve can accommodate up to eight fuel-injection events per cylinder cycle.

The EcoDiesel V-6 is available in the 2015 Ram 1500 full-size light-duty pickup and the mid-size 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee, the most-awarded SUV ever. Equipped with the EcoDiesel, the Grand Cherokee’s 3,265 kg (7,200-lb.) tow rating is unsurpassed in its class – matched only by the Grand Cherokee powered by Chrysler Group’s celebrated 5.7-litre HEMI V-8.

6.2-litre HEMI^® Hellcat V-8

“A 707-hp engine in a car starting at less than US$60,000 is an achievement all by itself, but what impressed WardsAuto editors beyond the V-8’s prodigious output, diamond-coated washers, extra-strong alloy pistons and all the other extras that went into engineering this masterpiece, is how civilized the beast is in ordinary driving,” Winter said. “It’s easy to make a street-legal race car, but it is a major accomplishment to make such a powerful engine a pleasure to drive to the grocery store as well as at the track.”

The HEMI Hellcat, with 91 per cent new content compared with the 392 HEMI, is the heart and soul of the Brampton, Ont.-built 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat, which starts at $63,995, and its stablemate, the Charger SRT Hellcat – the quickest, fastest, most-powerful sedan ever, boasting a certified quarter-mile clocking of 11 seconds and a top speed of 328 km/h. Its starting Canadian MSRP is $64,495.

Accordingly, the HEMI Hellcat’s engineering is, in a word, extreme. Consider:
 

• Its forged-steel crankshaft is so well-engineered it can withstand firing pressures of 1,595 psi (110 bar) – the equivalent of five family sedans standing on each piston, every firing event
• Its twin-screw supercharger, which has polymer-coated rotors, boasts a drive ratio of 2.36:1 and a maximum speed of 14,600 rpm
• A low-temperature cooling circuit with two air/coolant heat exchangers integrated into the supercharger housing, keeps charged air temperatures below 60 degrees Celsius (140 degrees Fahrenheit) while enabling air flow of up to 30,000 litres per minute
• Its power is not de-rated due to cooling demands, even after 20 minutes of a hard driving on a road course at an ambient temperature of 37 degrees Celcius (100 degrees Fahrenheit)
• Eight injectors served by half-inch fuel lines, each capable of delivering a flow rate of 600 cc/min; can drain the fuel tank in approximately 13 minutes at full power
• And, of course, its block is HEMI Orange.

In both applications, Challenger and Charger, the HEMI Hellcat – which produces 650 lb.-ft of torque – is rated at 10.7 litres per 100 kilometres (L/100 km) (26 mpg) highway-cycle driving.

This marks the fifth consecutive year Chrysler Group has been represented among Ward’s 10 Best Engines. It also is the second consecutive year the Company has received multiple honours.

“Recognition doesn’t often follow powertrain engineering the way it does other auto-industry disciplines, so we at Chrysler Group join our industry counterparts in thanking the organizers and sponsors of Ward’s 10 Best Engines for shining a spotlight on our work,” said Lee, who is also Head of Powertrain Coordination (Group Executive Council) Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V.

About Chrysler Group Powertrain
Rejuvenated when the Company was established in 2009, Chrysler Group’s powertrain organization has intensified its efforts to develop engines that deliver superior performance, reliability and driving enjoyment. Since model-year 2011, Chrysler Group’s powertrain organization has added 18 new engines to its showrooms around the globe, in addition to the Fiat 500e’s battery-electric drive system listed on the 2014 edition of Ward’s 10 Best Engines. Since 2009, nearly half of Chrysler Group’s total manufacturing outlay has been directed toward powertrain projects.

About WardsAuto
Ward's Automotive Group is a world-leading provider of auto industry news, data, and analysis, having served the industry's information needs for more than 80 years. WardsAuto World is a monthly magazine serving automotive professionals. WardsAuto.com is an online subscription service delivering virtually all the industry news, data, and analysis compiled by WardsAuto. Other products include the weekly industry newsletter Ward's Automotive Reports, the monthly magazine WardsAuto Dealer Business, and a wealth of information services including reference annuals, online databases, and customized data reports.

 
FCA Canada
Founded as the Chrysler Corporation in 1925, FCA Canada Inc. is based in Windsor, Ontario, and celebrates its 97th anniversary in 2022. FCA Canada is a wholly owned subsidiary of FCA, a North American automaker based in Auburn Hills, Michigan and member of the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles N.V. (FCA) family of companies. FCA Canada has approximately 440 dealers that sell Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep®, Ram, FIAT and Alfa Romeo products, as well as SRT performance products. The company also distributes Mopar and Alfa Romeo parts and accessories. In addition to its assembly facilities, which produce the Chrysler Pacifica, Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid, Chrysler Voyager and Chrysler Grand Caravan (Windsor) and Chrysler 300, Dodge Charger and Dodge Challenger (Brampton), FCA Canada operates an aluminum casting plant in Etobicoke, a research and development centre in Windsor, and has sales offices and parts distribution centers throughout the country.