Pity the poor folks who worship at the HEMI alter. With no HEMI powered Challengers or Chargers in the pipeline, late-model Mopar fanatics feel a hole in their hemispherical hearts. But is the Gen-III HEMI returning as a production muscle car engine?

Well, the truth is the Gen-III HEMI, the latest version of the fabled powerplant, never really went away.

Will the Gen-III HEMI find its way back into the Charger? That is a question in need of an answer.

But with no new HEMI-powered Challengers or Chargers in the pipeline, you have to forgive the faithful for thinking it had.

Realistically, there is a HEMI-powered Durango still available in 2025; the Ram Heavy-Duty pickup still sports a 6.4L HEMI, but rumors are ripe that with Carlos Tavares gone from Stellantis, HEMI powered Chargers will return.

Oh, about the Charger. We’ve all shed tears that the 2025 Charger is to this point an electric vehicle. Not since the four-door Charger was introduced in 2006 has there been such an outcry from the muscle car faithful.

It does not matter that a twin-turbo Hurricane I6 has been confirmed for production and its introduction is being fast-tracked. Those four letters — H – E – M – I — have been the cornerstone of Dodge’s marketing for over a decade. No other engine will do, even if it makes more horsepower and has a pair of hair dryers.

When Moparinsiders.com claimed today that the HEMI was back, it was a reference to production of new 5.7s, 6.4s and Hellcat V8s scheduled for production in Dundee, Michigan.

This has led to all kinds of speculation that the HEMI will return at some point in the new Charger. The question remains if Dodge would switch gears so quickly after spending tens of millions of dollars on both all-electric and I6 Hurricane development.

When it was still in its embryonic stage, rumors swirled that Charger bodies-in-white would be available for racers to purchase at some point, and that, yes, a HEMI would fit.

The 2025 Charger is sexy from any angle, but without a big, honkin’ HEMI, enthusiasts may never embrace it.

Of course, I’ve literally seen a Smart4Two with a big-block Chevy in it. Racers can fit New York in New Jersey if they had to. Could a HEMI fit in a new Charger body and clear the factor hood. I’m guessing it will, even if it needs a bulge in the hood.

There’s already “money on the hood” of the new Charger. The muscle car enthusiasts are thus far staying away from the new Dodge, Fratzonic exhaust and all, regardless of how quick it is. (The electric Scat Pak supposedly hits 60 mph in 3.3 seconds and clears the quarter-mile in 11.5 seconds at 120.5 mph.)

Old-school muscle enthusiasts, however, want to hear a real V8 roar, not electric noise from speakers. It seems that a HEMI Charger is a necessity if Dodge ever wants to sell 50-75,000 Chargers annually.

People tend to forget that Dodge sells tons of HEMI crate engines through Direct Connection. With all the new tariffs imposed on Mexican imports, the HEMI may be coming back to America to avoid these onerous duties.

We won’t know how this actually flies for a while, but it is exciting to see there is hope on the horizon.