Dodge Charger Reveals Fastest-Ever Super Bee – But a Bigger Sting May be in the Works

Who needs a Hemi? Dodge is ready to rumble with the 2027 Dodge Charger Super Bee punching out a blistering 600 hp, making it the quickest, most powerful Sixpack version of the muscle car yet – but don’t think Dodge is satisfied yet – and a V-8 may yet be in the cards. More from Headlight.News.

One thing you can say about the folks at Dodge: they’re never completely satisfied. And that means they’re continuing to roll out ever more powerful versions of the eighth-generation Charger.

The latest package, the 2027 Dodge Charger Super Bee, is a case in point. At 600 horsepower, it carries quite a sting, brand boss Matt McAlear calling it “the most power-dense muscle car ever,” at an impressive 200 ponies per liter.

That puts it in Hemi-powered territory.  But don’t rule out a return for the classic Dodge V-8, Headlight.News was advised.

What’s new

Few products offer buyers more options than the latest-generation Dodge Charger. It’s offered in two- and four-door configurations, and buyers can opt for electric or gas powertrains. There are a number of different trim packages, starting with the 420-hp R/T.

For 2027, however, Dodge is pushing things to the extreme with the new Super Bee. It boasts an upgraded version of the high-output Hurricane six-cylinder engine boasting 600 hp and 531 pound-feet of torque. That’s enough to launch the new Bee from 0-60 in 3.6 seconds, a full tenth faster than the Hemi-powered 2015 Dodge Charger Hellcat.

But, as McAlear stressed during the new model’s debut, “performance is more than just straight-line acceleration.” Dodge engineers have taken a number of steps to improve handling on track – as well as on public roads, while beefing up Super Bee’s cooling and braking systems. They’ve also added a new performance-recording feature so you can share your thrills – while going back to find ways to improve your next lap.

Powertrain upgrades

At 200 hp per liter, the 3.0-liter high-output Hurricane-Six can get a serious workout, especially on track. Among upgrades, Super Bee opts for twin 56mm Garrett turbochargers, revised engine tuning and a 50% larger cooling system.

That helps it deliver 3.6-second launches, while blasting through the quarter-mile traps in 11.8 seconds. By comparison, the last-generation 2023 Hemi Super Bee managed 4.5-second 0-60 times, and 12.4-second quarter-mile runs.

Along with the upgraded turbos and cooling system, the 2027 Super Bee gets huge 16-inch Brembo brakes – a first on a Sixpack Charger. It also gets 20-by-11-inch gloss black wheels with 305 summer tires, functional aerodynamics and an adaptive damping suspension.

Add new track and drive modes and the ability to put the Charger Super Bee in full rear-wheel-drive mode with little more than a touch of a button.

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Does that thing have a Hemi?

If you’re insisting on a V-8, the answer is, “no.” Right now, at least, if you want a Dodge Charger you have a choice of an all-electric drivetrain or low and high-output versions of the Hurricane-Six engine. But there’s always tomorrow.

As parent Stellantis saw with slow initial sales when the Ram 1500 dropped its Hemi in favor of the Hurricane, sales cratered. But McAlear cautioned that “We’re just getting started” with the Hurricane. And, indeed, at the Roadkill Nights event last week, the automaker showed off custom versions of the Charger, two making more than 1,000 hp out of the Hurricane.

But don’t rule out a Hemi. “We have three V-8s available on the Durango and we’re always working on something in the background. Right now I want to focus on the Super Bee but we’ll push that boundary (at some point) and see what it takes. We wouldn’t be doing our job if we weren’t looking.

What about the Charger EV?

The all-electric Charger Daytona barely merited a mention during Super Bee’s rollout. That likely shouldn’t be a surprise considering the all-electric model currently accounts for about 5% of total Charger sales. If anything, demand for the gas model continues to grow almost every month and Dodge expects the Super Bee to add to that momentum.

McAlear stressed that the Daytona will remain in production. But he also suggested “We’re always looking at new technology. That’s something people expect from us,” when it comes to other electrification options.

While the Dodge boss declined to go into detail, SRT chief Tom Sacoman told me that there are a variety of alternatives that could make their way into a Dodge Charger in the coming years. That could include a hybrid drivetrain – albeit one where the added torque of an electric motor would be as much the focus as the added fuel economy a hybrid system could add.

Another possibility? The eBoost Air system that SRT showed off during a media even last week. The eBoost technology uses an electrically driven compressor to overcome dreaded turbo lag at low RPMs. Still in the early days of development, there  are no plans for production – yet, Sacoman cautioned. But it could give Dodge a very literal performance boost in the not-too-distant future.