June 30, 2022 , Auburn Hills, Mich. - Stellantis announced plans for the two facilities that comprise its engine complex in Trenton, Michigan, which will provide maximum flexibility for the operation. The plan includes a $24.7 million investment to retool the south plant to be a flexible engine line, capable of producing the two variations of the 3.6-liter Pentastar V-6 engine. Following retooling, the Pentastar production line at the north plant will be decommissioned by the end of 2022 and all 3.6-liter engine production at the complex will be consolidated at the south facility. First launched in 2011, the Pentastar engine quickly became the workhorse of the Chrysler, Jeep®, Dodge and Ram product lines, streamlining the company’s V-6 engine offerings from seven to one. Upgraded in 2016, the redesigned V-6 delivers improved fuel economy and performance over the original version of the same engine, which will continue to be produced through 2023. Production of the Pentastar upgrade in the south plant is expected to begin by the end of Q1 2023. The north plant is expected to be repurposed for warehousing and other non-manufacturing opportunities. My take, the 3.6L will continue past 2024. The "old" version as used in Challengers currently may go away. If so all 3.6L will then be the PUG, upgraded versions. Whether this means the old one isn't needed because there will be no Challenger/Charger to put them in, or...
So, a flexible engine manufacturing line could, for example, produce a 9.0L 60° DOHC 3000RPM supercharged V12 for use, for example, in a car named after a venomous reptile. or a 72° V10. And Hemi V8's. And 4.5" bore center Hemis that are Gen III designs scaled up. Imagine the rev potential of a 3.23" stroke Hemi with a 4.3" bore for a screaming 6.2L! The sheer valve area you could fit in such a beast would be truly epic. By lowering the included angle even further, you could flatten the combustion chamber even more and enable closer valve placement to each other without risk of overlap interference. Heck, a 120° V6 would be an improvement to the current V6, needing only 3 crank throws with coaxial big ends. Four more exhaust ports would be good, also. A forged-crank 3.6L engine with individual exhaust ports would have so much performance potential. PS I know the existing 3.6L has three crank throws, also, with offset pins, but these could be shorter and stronger. Killing the best product line is what people do when they are trying to kill a company. The Home Depot CEO (we had direct experience with Home Depot) cheaped out on maintenance so his little buddies on the board could prepare him a WHOPPING 210 million dollar exit package. He almost succeeded in ruining Home Depot. https://www.dailynews.com/2007/01/04/home-depot-ceo-resigns-will-get-210-million-payout/ Also, throwing in an Electrobox car with each big ticket purchase would destroy any insane people's narratives against the SRT's and other V8 cars. Instant double CAFE numbers.
