Ask anyone within the Jalopnik Slack channel, I’ve long been saying that Stellantis should give the keys to Ram CEO Tim Kuniskis and let him go buck wild. Well, it looks as if some folks a the Transatlantic automaker — including newly appointed CEO Antonio Filosa — agree with my considering, because Kuniskis was just made the top of American brands and North American marketing and retail strategy. His first order of business? Bringing back SRT.
That is right, baby. Street and Racing Technology is making a comeback under the stewardship of Kuniskis after it was quietly and unofficially disbanded after FCA and PSA merged. In an announcement, the corporate said that the move will mark “a daring step in unifying high-performance engineering across Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram under a single, dedicated identity.” Immediately, the one SRT model on offer across Stellantis’ entire lineup is the Durango SRT Hellcat, and that simply is not enough. I’m assuming we’re capable of see so much more big ol’ V8 motors being crammed under the hoods of cars across the corporate’s fleet, and I’m sure plenty of that go-fast know-how will come in useful once SRT gets its hands on the electrical Charger Daytona.
In any case, Kuniskis is the guy who spearheaded putting Hemi V8s back in Ram pickup trucks. You would possibly query this man’s messaging, but you’ll be able to’t doubt that he loves a giant, dumb V8, and that is exactly what Stellantis should get behind in North America. It tried its hand at making sensible, four-cylinder commuter crossovers, and we will all see how that turned out.
What this implies for Stellantis
“We’re getting the band back together. SRT is one other box we wanted to envision as we head right into a product launch cadence, enabling more performance than we have ever seen before,” Kuniskis said in an announcement. “We’re working with our product development and technology organization to pick one of the best engineers in powertrain and vehicle dynamics to construct a team worthy of the SRT name.”
Principally, he’ll hand-pick one of the best powertrain and vehicle dynamics engineers he can find at Stellantis and put them under one roof. In theory, this appears like a terrific idea.
Along with this latest position, Kuniskis will still be the CEO of Ram, and Dodge, Jeep and Chrysler will keep their current CEOs. The newly reestablished SRT performance division will oversee Direct Connection and North American motorsports programs under Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Ram. That features the corporate’s activities in NHRA drag racing andRam’s plans to return to the NASCAR Truck Series next 12 months.
This Article First Appeared At www.jalopnik.com
