Sorry, Mopar Fans: FCA Says 'No' to a 2019 Chrysler 300 Hellcat

Timothy Cain
by Timothy Cain

If you’ve got it, flaunt it. Go ahead and shake your money maker.

Or not.

After reports surfaced at Automotive News earlier this week that the 707-horsepower supercharged 6.2-liter V8 from the Dodge Charger Hellcat, Dodge Challenger Hellcat, and Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk would appear in a Chrysler 300 next year, Motor Authority has heard from Fiat Chrysler Automobiles on the subject.

It’s not going to happen.

As the lone passenger car remaining in Chrysler’s lineup, the insertion of a Hellcat engine into the Chrysler 300 would certainly drum up some attention for a brand that has received most of its recent press from a minivan introduction and the 200’s demise. Yet FCA hasn’t felt it necessary to offer even a regular performance iteration of the 300 since the 2014 model year.

Whether that 300 SRT8 was not in keeping with the Chrysler brand’s image, or unprofitable, or simply an unnecessary competitor for the SRTified Dodge Charger, or all three, it would be a major leap from the comfort-oriented Chrysler 300C to a 707-horsepower 300 that would require a host of performance upgrades.

The Chrysler 300 has taken a turn for the value-oriented corner of the full-size sedan market in the 2018 model year, however. There’s a new Chrysler 300 Touring trim that drops the car’s base price from $33,435 in 2017 to $30,090 in 2018.

Meanwhile, Automotive News suggests there will be no major Chrysler 300 overhaul in the near future, though a “major freshening” in 2019 should result in a weight loss program. Expect FCA to hop on the 2.0T bandwagon at some point, as well. Automotive News also reports that the Chrysler lineup will see vital expansion with an Illinois-built Jeep Cherokee-related crossover in 2019 and a reborn Chrysler Aspen built off the Pacifica’s platform in 2021.

But a 300 Hellcat? According to an FCA spokesperson, Motor Authority says “the automaker has no plans for a supercharged V-8 Hemi Hellcat engine in the Chrysler 300.”

[Image: Fiat Chrysler Automobiles]

Timothy Cain is a contributing analyst at The Truth About Cars and Autofocus.ca and the founder and former editor of GoodCarBadCar.net. Follow on Twitter @timcaincars and Instagram.

Timothy Cain
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  • Donnyindelaware Donnyindelaware on Sep 20, 2017

    They sell SRT 300's outside of the US but wont sell them here? Sergio is a turd.

  • Flipper35 Flipper35 on Sep 21, 2017

    The pictures were of a widebody 300. The spokesperson only said they were not putting the supercharged engine in. So, it could be they are developing a widebody 300 with the 6.4 (or rumored 450hp forced induction V6) or one of the Cryco engineers was having some fun with his own car.

  • FreedMike Off topic, but folks, this site is not working well for me from a technical standpoint, and it doesn't matter if I'm using my phone, or my computer (on two different browsers). It locks up and makes it impossible to type anything in after a certain point. Anyone else having these issues?
  • Syke Kinda liked the '57, hated the '58. Then again, I hated the entire '58 GM line except for the Chevrolet. Which I liked better than the '57's. Still remember dad's '58 Impala hardtop, in the silver blue that was used as the main advertising color.
  • Dartdude The bottom line is that in the new America coming the elites don't want you and me to own cars. They are going to make building cars so expensive that the will only be for the very rich and connected. You will eat bugs and ride the bus and live in a 500sq-ft. apartment and like it. HUD wants to quit giving federal for any development for single family homes and don't be surprised that FHA aren't going to give loans for single family homes in the very near future.
  • Ravenuer The rear view of the Eldo coupe makes it look fat!
  • FreedMike This is before Cadillac styling went full scale nutty...and not particularly attractive, in my opinion.
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