Cuda340

Ralph Gilles was recently asked about the future of performance cars, particularly the SRT. Here is his reply:

"Anytime we've gone through a bit of an oil crisis, technology always bounces back. Everyone probably said the muscle car was dead 30 years ago, but it's actually in full force even stronger. So this year we start with the SRT8, with the first time it's had cylinder deactivation. I keep seeing technologies enabling performance, not being hindered by it. I see that happening... probably more radical swings in the ability to have, let's say, a 400-hp engine that gets 40 mpg as well. We're finding that multispeed transmissions are also a phenomenal thing that's just now starting, almost like the 20-speed bicycle back in the day, that's just now becoming more commonplace. That's a huge advantage -- having an engine that sleeps when it needs to, that performs. On top of that I see Porsche has already started to dabble in this space where you're using hybrid technology as a performance enhancer, not just for fuel economy. So I see the future being all about duality, having your cake and eating it too. Because everyone's going to need that intellectual alibi when they buy their next performance car in 10 years.

There will still be a handful of V-8s out there, but we're going to invest in fours and sixes. With the SRT, we've had turbo fours in the past. We're looking at active dampening, which we actually have today in the SRT8 Charger. So it's taking all these technologies that people associate with relatively exotic cars, and bringing it down to the Dodge customer, making it much more affordable." -Ralph Gilles, SRT Brand President/CEO; Chrysler Group Product Design Senior Vice President