If you’re like me, early signs of the Stellantis redemption arc have been something to marvel at. New leadership, a refocus on vehicles Americans actually want, starting to make V8s and electrification an either/or choice instead of an ultimatum. While things are still in early stages since product development takes ages, we’ll have to see how things continue to play out, but a big nugget of news just dropped:Â SRT is back, and Mopar legend Tim Kuniskis is behind the wheel.
If you aren’t familiar with SRT, think of it to Dodge as AMG is to Mercedes-Benz, or at least as AMG used to be. It’s a subsidiary building hardcore, muscled-up street machines that don’t normally pay lip service to subtlety. Fitting, considering it started life with a mission rather than a name—to build a modern-day Shelby Cobra. Yep, the Viper marked the unofficial start of SRT, but things didn’t really get cooking until the team behind the flagship merged with the team behind the unusual Plymouth Prowler to create Specialty Vehicle Engineering, which then changed its name to Performance Vehicle Operations and unleashed its first two vehicles that weren’t two-seat sports cars: the Dodge Neon SRT-4 and the Dodge Ram SRT-10.
It’s easy to forget that the SRT name didn’t come on anything with a V8 until the mid-aughts, but the Neon SRT-4 and Ram SRT-10 were both magnificent in their own ways. The Neon was a scrambling, frantic example of pumping 10 pounds of speed into a five-pound car. From the very real boost gauge to the almost cartoonishly over-the-top BFGoodrich tires on later models, to the fact that this 2003 debut could go toe-to-toe with the Mustang GT of the time in a straight line, the Neon SRT-4 brought tuner car attitude to a whole new crowd.
One year later, the Ram SRT-10 dropped in from above to settle the street truck debate by shoving an 8.3-liter Viper V10 engine and a Tremec six-speed manual transmission into a single cab half-ton pickup. Drop the hammer and this brick of rolling insanity won’t let up until 154 mph, making it still the fastest series production pickup truck ever.
By 2004, it was clear this SRT name would be a thing, so Performance Vehicle Operations became SRT, an initialism for Street and Racing Technology. One year later, Chrysler launched the LX-platform rear-wheel-drive Chrysler 300 and Dodge Magnum, and we all know what happened next. The 300C, Magnum, Dodge Charger, Dodge Challenger, and even the Jeep Grand Cherokee got a 6.1-liter naturally aspirated V8 and SRT-8 badging, a formula that stepped things up to a 6.4-liter naturally aspirated V8 in the early half of the 2010s. The Viper got more insane too, even with a brief hiatus. The coupe returned, displacement increased, power increased, and winged variants appeared for the most serious trackday warriors. Slide the oft-forgotten Dodge Caliber SRT-4 and the AMG-retread Chrysler Crossfire SRT-6 in the mix for good measure, and you get a picture of where SRT stood in the few years before it essentially became a household name.
Yeah, in 2014, SRT went berserk. It took its V8, dropped displacement to 6.2 liters, added a supercharger, and stuffed it into the Dodge Challenger and Charger. The result was the SRT Hellcat, 707 horsepower in package that wasn’t just for rich lunatics, but for almost all lunatics. It was a fast freakin’ car that was instantly dubbed a blue collar hero, and it turned the aging Challenger and Charger around. The halo effect helped the Challenger eventually outsell the Ford Mustang, and SRT didn’t stop there. The 2018 model year saw the launch of the 840-horsepower Challenger SRT Demon, that technology trickled down into the Charger and Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeyes, the Hellcat motor made it into the Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat, Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk and the Ram 1500 TRX, and for the curtain call, SRT made the Challenger Demon 170, a corn juice-fed 1,025-horsepower monster of a factory muscle car.
Wait, curtain call? Ah, yeah. See, the early 2020s would see a shift in leadership. Chrysler as we know it merged with PSA to create Stellantis, with Carlos Tavares heading up the group. In 2021, Mopar Insider reported that Stellantis would be dissolving the SRT team, with the engineers scattering across Stellantis. This was generally regarded as a bad move, and probably should’ve been seen as the canary in the coal mine for Stellantis’ mismanagement of its American divisions. Over the next few years, Jeep would try to become a luxury brand, the Hemi V8 would die off in passenger cars and half-ton pickup trucks, the Chrysler brand still wouldn’t get any new product, and the Dodge Charger and Challenger would be replaced with an EV. Dodge boss Tim Kuniskis decided it was time for retirement, and while nobody knew what was next, it didn’t look good.
Then, things changed. Tavares exited, and Kuniskis came out of a seven-month retirement to lead Ram. Over a few short months, his leadership has brought the 5.7-liter V8 back to the half-ton Ram 1500, launched a ton of new reasonably priced heavy duty variants, and made plans to bring the brand back to NASCAR. The resulting buzz has been so successful, it’s not surprising to hear Stellantis announce that Kuniskis is going to be leading all of the company’s North American brands going forward. Oh, and in the process, he’s bringing back the SRT crew, stating “We’re getting the band back together.”
So, what can we expect from the new, rejuvenated SRT? Well, we know that team will manage motorsport programs and Direct Connection performance parts in North America, but Kuniskis did mention that product development engineers would be on this new team, so hold onto your butts. Things are heating up again in Auburn Hills, and while the chances of a Viper revival or something similar are slim, the SRT cars of the past indicate we should get excited about the SRT cars of the future.
Top graphic images: Stellantis
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Kuniskis and his ideas are stale as hell. All the money spent on Hemis and Hellcats meant the utter lack of product now. Kuniskis and Hemis wont save Dodge.
American car industry today is like a British Leyland of its days. They will be owned by Chinese or Indian it’s just a matter of time. Stellantis Ship will either dump them or will sink together