So it’s true, the Dart nameplate will be making its way back into the Dodge lineup for 2013, but we’re not quite sure how the new compact car will be received. If it were up to us, we’d bring back the Dart with all of the brutish horsepower of the more performance-oriented models.

Unfortunately that mindset doesn’t seem to resonate with Dodge, with the available engine options being of the four-banger variety for the new compact. We could argue against bringing back an iconic muscle car nameplate like Dart for an Alfa Romeo-based car all day long, but instead we’d rather look at what the classic Dodge Dart was capable of thanks to Hooniverse. That’s right Dodge, we want a classic Mopar like these for the Dart’s resurrection.

Modified, the Dodge Dart was capable of many things. The video above proves just how amazing stuffing a blown 572cui HEMI engine into a Dart can be. We don’t know what the new Dodge Dart will look like or the horsepower that it will bring.

Unfortunately, we will have to wait until the car makes its debut at the Detroit Auto Show next year to find out either. However, we really hope that the new compact hints at the heritage and power of the classic Mopar. If not, what’s the point of bringing back a nameplate as iconic as the Dart?

Image: Moparts.org