The Chrysler Sebring was an awful car, and the Chrysler 200 sedan that replaced it is better, but only because the bar was set so very, very low. But a new Chrysler 200 sedan has said to be in the works, and it is a car that is increasingly important to the Pentastar bottom line. The name change alone resulted in an increase in sales, so now that Chrysler will have a fresh platform to work with, hopes are high that the next 200 will be awesome.

Reuters reports that Chrysler is getting ready to retool its Sterling Heights Assembly Plant in Michigan to produce the next-generation Chrysler 200, as well as a Dodge Avenger replacement. Being that it is an all-new car from the ground-up, dare we hope for a hotter SRT version?

As it stands, the Chrysler 200 can be fitted with a torquey, 283 horsepower Pentastar V6 engine, making it the most powerful mid-size sedan on the market. That’s not a bad starting point, but as with most car enthusiasts, we just plain old want more. Rumor has it that a single or twin-turbo V6 is in the works at Chrysler, with around 400 horsepower. Imagine what that would do in the next-gen Chrysler 200?

There has never been a SRT version of either the Sebring, Avenger, or 200, and it may be that Chrysler intends to keep it that way what with the SRT brand spinning off on its own. Then again, the mid-size sedan segment is seriously lacking a performance car contender, and an all-wheel drive, turbocharged sedan with sharp looks can certainly build buzz around a brand. There is some low-hanging fruit ripe for the picking, if Chrysler is bold enough.