August 14, 2002

New 5.7 litre Hemi V8 gives Ram pickups most horsepower

Auburn Hills, Michigan - Chrysler Group's new 5.7 litre Hemi V8, standard equipment in 2003 Dodge Ram 2500 and 3500 pickups, develops 345 horsepower with 375 lb.-ft of torque, giving it best-in-class power and towing capacity, says DaimlerChrysler. The company also stated that the new Hemi offers best-in-class acceleration and improved fuel efficiency over the 5.9 litre Magnum V8 it replaces.

"The 5.7 litre Hemi is the finest engine of its kind in the world," said Richard Schaum, Executive Vice President - Product Development and Quality, Chrysler Group. "Not only does it make the heavy-duty Ram the best in its class for power and performance, it has flexibility that will allow us to further enhance efficiency and performance as we design powertrains for future products."

Production of the engine began in June at Chrysler's new state-of-the- art Saltillo Engine Plant II in Saltillo, Mexico. The new facility can produce 440,000 engines a year.

The engine's unique two-valve hemispherical combustion chamber (which gives the engine its "Hemi" name) within an aluminum head provides impressive air flow, torque and power, and gives the engine its throaty rumble. Fifty-six pounds lighter than the 5.9 litre V8, the 5.7 litre Hemi produces 41 percent more power and a 12 percent increase in peak torque.

"The Hemi architecture produces power that is comparable to an overhead cam engine, but is more cost-effective," said Floyd Allen, Vice President - Powertrain Product Team for the Chrysler Group.

An electronic throttle control system, Chrysler's first drive-by-wire gasoline engine, moves the throttle in response to accelerator pedal position. The throttle system is based on engine torque control, and compensates for changes in the engine load needed by the air conditioning system, compressor, alternator, power steering pump and automatic speed control.

The 5.7 litre Hemi is the first Chrysler Group engine with dual ignition - two spark plugs per cylinder. Dual ignition ensures consistent, complete and rapid combustion, without knock, that increases peak power and torque, reduces exhaust emissions and increases fuel efficiency. It even smoothes the engine's idle. The 5.7 litre Hemi also meets all federal emissions standards and delivers an 8- 10 percent improvement in fuel efficiency under typical driving conditions compared with the engine it replaces.

While currently available on heavy-duty Ram pickups, the 5.7 litre Hemi's smaller size and simple design make it adaptable to other vehicles within Chrysler Group. It also was built with the flexibility to allow the 5.7 litre Hemi to remain competitive for years to come.

"This is an elegantly simple, powerful and efficient design," said Robert Lee, Director of Rear Wheel Drive Engine Engineering for Chrysler Group's Powertrain Product Team. "It will allow us to fine tune and even enhance the engine's performance and capabilities well into the future according to customer and market demand."

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