SRT Brand To Get Mystery Third Model

Unlike GM and Ford, Chrysler took a different route through bankruptcy. After a government-blessed alliance with Fiat, Chrysler spun off its trucks into the Ram brand, and did the same thing with the new Viper, creating the SRT brand. And while the Viper is the first SRT-badged vehicle from Chrysler, it won’t be the last.

Motor Trend reports that in addition to the Viper and the Challenger replacement (which everyone and their mother assumes will be called the Barracuda), the SRT brand will also an as-yet undecided third model. Motor Trend believes the third SRT vehicle will either be a pickup or two-seat sports car, though both present different issues.

A successor to the SRT-10 Ram could build on the success Dodge has had with its truck brand, as well as capitalize on Ford’s success with the SVT-Raptor. But the Raptor is still a Ford, while SRT is a different brand from Ram. That could get confusing for buyers, and fuel economy standards will make selling a high-horsepower sports truck difficult in coming years.

The other, more likely option was the much-discussed Dodge Demon, which would compete against the Mazda Miata. The problem here is that Fiat signed a deal with Mazda to share the Miata platform for a new Alfa Romeo. While a cheaper two-seat SRT roadster would be a welcome addition to the lineup, the likelihood of this happening is pretty far fetched. The Miata has a stranglehold on the two-seat roadster market, and unless Chrysler can do something to really set its roadster apart, it would likely suffer the same, slow death as the ill-fated Chrysler Crossfire SRT6.

Yet there are other options for the SRT brand. A smaller sport truck could provide an excellent base-level entry into the SRT brand, as could a hot hatchback based on an existing Fiat platform. What we’d really like to see is a return of the Dodge Magnum, but with better visibility and less truck-like proportions. What direction do you think Chrysler should take the SRT brand?