Under the Hood of a Dodge Charger
There’s a lot to look at under the hood of a Dodge Charger. Most of it is wires and compartments for certain fluids, etc, but the “meat” is in the engine. There’s quite a couple of other components that help with not only performance but fuel economy too, so we’re going to cover a few of them.
The Engines and Performance
The base Dodge Charger trims have a 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 engine. Designed with variable valve timing (VVT), it has processes implemented into it to control the air intake of the engine’s combustion chamber and ultimately increase its performance. This is the standard engine for the Charger SE and SXT, and it packs 292-horsepower and 260 lb-ft of torque. The estimated EPA for both is an average highway fuel economy of 31 mpg.
Next up is the 5.7-liter V8 HEMI MDS engine, also built with VVT technology. You may also notice the “MDS,” which stands for “multi-displacement” system. The easiest way to explain it? At closed or steady speeds, four of the eight cylinders on the V8 will deactivate to conserve fuel by about 10-20 percent. This is the standard engine for the Charger R/T and R/T Road and Track trims, and puts out 370-horsepower with 395 lb-ft of torque. It has an average highway fuel economy of 25 mpg.
At first glance, one would think a 6.4-liter HEMI V8 engine would be the toughest engine in the lineup, generating 485-horsepower, 475 lb-ft of torque, and of course the larger engine displacement. Designed with Street and Racing Technology (SRT) and MDS, its performance allows the Dodge Charger R/T Scat Pack and SRT 392 to accelerate from 0-60 mph in the four second range.
However, it’s the SRT Hellcat engine that reigns supreme in the Charger lineup. A supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI SRT Hellcat V8 engine puts this engine at the top of the mechanical food chain. This engine is only available on the world’s fastest sedan, the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat. An engine that is supercharged means it has an air compressor that increases how much air is supplied into its connected internal combustion engine at once. In turn, this increases the amount of oxygen the engine intakes, allowing for more fuel to be burned and more work to be done. It’s the long way of saying the engine can generate a lot more power. That supercharger is a big factor in making it possible for the SRT Hellcat engine to rev up to 707-horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque, accelerate from 0-60 mph in 3.4 seconds, and able to cover a quarter mile in 11 seconds-flat!
Transmission
The transmission in all Dodge Chargers, which is the component that transfers the power from the engine to the wheels, is a TorqueFlite 8-speed automatic transmission. The Dodge Charger’s automatic transmission means that switching the engine’s gears is done automatically by the transmission and doesn’t rely on the manual input of the driver. Instead, an automatic transmission relies on a component called a “torque converter” to transmit power to the transmission when switching gears.
In the Dodge Charger is an electronic shifter that allows a smooth transfer between gears; it is also known as an Autostick, a driver-interactive transaxle shifter that allows gear shifting without a clutch (used in manual shifting). Available on select trims, the transmission can come with die-cast metal paddle shifters to allow drivers to shift gears while their hands are on the wheel – for those that like to be in control of the gear shift, even if it is automatic.
Fuel Efficiency Features
Although a sedan, the Charger is one of the fastest out there. So how does it manage to still get 31 mpg on the highway, the best in a V6 engine class? The TorqueFlite 8-speed automatic transmission, aluminum axles, electric power steering, and an advanced driveline all contribute.
The TorqueFlite 8-speed automatic transmission provides world-class shift quality with close gear ratios and a lower cruising rpm in top gear. Simply put, the Dodge Charger has a mechanical advantage over other vehicles that don’t have TorqueFlite transmission. The aluminum axles helps reduce the friction and weight of the car, which increases its fuel efficiency. Rear-wheel drive (RWD), the standard drivetrain for the Dodge Charger, provides improved traction and distribute 50/50 front and rear weight, delivering higher performance to the vehicle.
Now that you know what’s under the hood of a Dodge Charger, would you like to see what we have in our inventory? Or you can stop by for a test drive and experience everything discussed here today.