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Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ plans to move the next-generation Chrysler 300 sedan to the Alfa Romeo Giulia platform have reportedly been scrapped. However, rumor is that the Chrysler flagship may add a more fuel-efficient four-cylinder engine to the lineup and that, on the other end of the scale, the 707-hp supercharged 6.2-liter V-8 from the Dodge Challenger and Charger SRT Hellcats could show up in the 300 at the end of 2018.
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According to Automotive News, the 300 will undergo an extensive refresh for the 2019 model year. The updated 300 will continue to use FCA’s aging LX platform as a base. The company, though, is expected to integrate additional weight-saving technologies to help fuel efficiency. Meanwhile, a rumored four-cylinder 300 would probably use the same turbocharged unit that is slated for the all-new 2018 Jeep Wrangler. (The LX-platform-based Dodge Charger and Challenger will also see the 2019 updates before being replaced in 2021, according to the report, with new models based on the Maserati Ghibli platform.)
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An FCA spokesperson contradicted that report, telling Car and Driver that the company currently has no plans to produce a 300 variant featuring the Hellcat supercharged V-8. Still, we’ve been misled by FCA before, and we’ve even published spy photos of what looked like a 300 Hellcat test mule. We wouldn’t put money on Chrysler offering a 707-hp 300, but we can’t rule out the possibility. Remember, though, that the SRT version of the 300 still exists only for export markets and is not sold in North America.
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- Spied: Chrysler 300 Hellcat!
- 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon: An 840-HP Monster!
- Chrysler 300: Full News, Reviews, Pricing, Photos, and More
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Automotive News also reported that the Chrysler brand is expected to add a pair of crossover SUVs to its portfolio by the beginning of the next decade. The industry trade paper reported that a mid-size model based on the Jeep Cherokee platform will arrive for the 2019 model year and that a full-size crossover, due in 2021, will be based on the Pacifica minivan, which is itself due for a refresh in 2020. The larger crossover may revive the Aspen name, which was once used on a Dodge-brand K-car but more recently was the name of a full-size Chrysler SUV that shared its architecture with the Dodge Durango.
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