A car is only as good as what it packs under the hood. It is the heartbeat of the ride, and most gearheads care more about the engine than anything else when buying a car. Whether seeking performance, reliability, or efficiency, the buck always ends with the engine. We have previously covered the best and worst engines from Ford and Chevy, and it is only right we complete the Big Three with engines from the various brands under the Chrysler umbrella.
Chrysler and its subsidiaries have cranked out sick Hemi-powered muscle cars with powerful Mopar souls over the years. But they aren’t perfect, seeing they have produced an equal share of low-powered and problematic engines that have failed to impress. Read on as we dive into the best and worst of the Mopar engine world.
10/10 Belongs In A Junkyard: Chrysler 2.4L Tigershark
Chrysler introduced the 2.4 Tigershark in 2013 as part of the World Gasoline Engine lineup. It has been one of the worst Mopar engines of all time, yet they continue using it in their cars. First used in the R/T trim of the Caliber, it hasn’t built an admirable CV since it comes with many problems.
There are several reports of continued oil consumption, oil leaks, and issues with the engine’s MultiAir System, which is expensive to fix once it fails. And it is a bustling, arrogant engine that keeps revving without going anywhere fast.
9/10 Will annihilate Anything: 426ci Hemi V8
Chrysler introduced the mighty 426 HEMI as a race-only motor in 1964, and the engine powered Richard Petty to the 1964 win at Daytona. And the engine went on to scoop a 1-2-3 finish. It was so dominant that NASCAR changed the rules to ensure all entries were homologation production cars.
It is arguably the greatest engine of the muscle car era as it set the standards and earned respect from its Chevy and Ford rivals.
8/10 Belongs In A Junkyard: 3.0L EcoDiesel
The Chrysler 3.0L EcoDiesel V6 first showed in 2014 in the Dodge Rm 1500 and Jeep Grand Cherokee. It had no rivals offering incredible towing capability in an economical package. But the 12,560 lbs it could tow was the beginning of the problems as the added stress of extreme towing made the engine heat up and many components fail.
The EcoDiesel has reported issues from oil cooler failure, EGR cooler failure, leaking exhaust couplers, and slipping camshaft gear. While they fixed most of these issues in later models and came covered by warranty or recalls, earlier engine iterations belong in a junkyard.
7/10 Will annihilate Anything: 8L Viper V10
The Dodge Viper’s V10 engine began life in 1992, pushing 400hp, and it has evolved through five generations to hit a heart-pumping 640hp. But this is what you expected of an 8-liter mammoth.
It makes the lightweight Dodge Viper a brutally fast and notoriously powerful American supercar. By the time the Viper bowed out in 2017, Dodge had bored out the all-aluminum engine to 8.4-liters alongside numerous improvements to make it go head-to-head with the best in the business.
6/10 Belongs In A Junkyard: Chrysler 2.2L & 2.5 Inline 4
The 2.2 and 2.5 Chrysler K-Series engines are some of the few that can fit the bill as being crap and great simultaneously. The 2.2L had humble beginnings as an 84hp SOHC 8V carburetor motor in 1981, but by 1991 it was a turbocharged beast pushing 224hp, which was a lot at the time.
The turbocharged versions were quite entertaining in their capabilities. Still, the low-tech naturally aspirated versions produced at most 100hp from the 2.5L and had many potential failure modes, including a crappy stock carburetor.
5/10 Will annihilate Anything: 6.7 Cummins Turbo Diesel
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Diesel engines don’t provide the fastest top speeds, but they have superior torque outputs and are more powerful. The 6.7 Cummins Turbo Diesel is the king of the Diesel engine food chain and can annihilate any competition.
It is the most powerful engine powering the RAM 2500 and 3500 heavy-duty trucks. It pushes 400hp and 1,000 pounds of torque, enabling the truck to tow more than 31,000 pounds.
4/10 Belongs In A Junkyard: Powertech 4.7L V8
The 4.7-liter Powertech V8 engine found first on the 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee and later in other Dodge, Chrysler, and Jeep siblings were criminally underpowered with only 235hp. This wasn’t a massive upgrade from the smaller 3.7L Powertech V6 engine.
On top of that, most came with cooling system problems, valve cover leaks, valve seat failure, and head gasket failure.
3/10 Will annihilate Anything: 6.2 Hemi Hellcat V8
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Fiat Chrysler released the 376ci or 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V8 in 2015 to much fanfare. It helped unlock new levels of muscle car performance, unleashing 707hp and 650lb-ft of torque in the Dodge Hellcat, Hellcat Redeye Challengers, Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, and more.
There was even a hotter version of the engine found on the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon, pushing a ludicrous 840hp and 770lb-ft of torque on 100+ octane race fuel thanks to a larger 2.7-liter supercharger, among other mods.
2/10 Belongs In A Junkyard: Chrysler 2.7L V6
Few engines have succeeded in failure than Chrysler’s 2.7-liter V6 once deployed in the Dodge Chargers, Avengers, and Chrysler Subrings, among other cars. Chrysler did an amazing job fitting six cylinders into such a small displacement making for a compact package complete with aluminum cylinder heads, forged steel crankshaft, and chain-driven dual overhead camshafts.
But the engine proved too weak for the cars it powered, and they had a knack for failing with low mileage on the odometer. Issues ranged from oil sludge problems where water pump gasket leakage allowed the coolant to mix with the engine oil turning it into sludge.
1/10 Will annihilate Anything: 426 Hellephant A170 V8
While Dodge plans to go electric soon, we aren’t close to the end of powerful Mopar piston-powered engines yet. At SEMA 2018, FCA unveiled a new Mopar crate 426 Hemi Hellephant engine producing 1,000hp for custom builds. That has grown to 1,1000 hp with the A170 version of the engine.
The 7-liter supercharged V8 engine conjures the spirit of the famous 426 Hemi of the 60s and 70s. It has proven very popular for high-end restoration builds and can annihilate anything you throw at it.