Efficiency? Where we are going in America we don’t need efficiency. We need power. Dodge just gave it to everyone.
The 2026 Dodge Durango will come with a V8 engine as standard. The V6 engine? It’s dead.*
That asterisk is because fleet customers can still order a V6-powered Durango, but a normal consumer? Nope, not after August 13. “It’s all Hemi all the time,” a spokesperson told The Drive.
Dodge’s all-in assault on efficiency and “underpowered vehicles” will cost $42,495, presumably not including an unknown destination charge. That price puts a standard 5.7-liter Hemi V8 under the hood, which has 65 horsepower more than the V6, though final output hasn’t been released yet.
The 2026 Durango R/T now gets what was an old SRT engine, the 392 cubic inch 6.4-liter Hemi V8, and it’s implied that this engine is now standard. Power output will check in at 475 horsepower and 470 pound-feet of torque, which is 115 more horsepower than the 2025 model’s 5.7-liter Hemi. The 2026 Durango R/T will cost less than $50,000, according to Dodge, and that probably doesn’t include a destination charge.
The Hellcat? It’s not only living on, it gained the Jailbreak customization options. It also received a massive price cut. The 2026 Dodge Durango Hellcat will cost $79,995, which likely does not include a destination charge. The 2025 Durango Hellcat Silver Bullet edition cost about $115,000, while the base 2025 Durango Hellcat cost about $102,000. That’s a price cut of about $22,000.
The Durango became a staple in the Dodge lineup and the V8 is keeping the current model alive. Plans for the next-gen Durango have shifted many times at this point. It’s clear the current, very much not new, Durango is alive, well, and has an eight-cylinder heart.
Orders for the 2026 Dodge Durango GT and Hellcat begin on August 13 with arrivals beginning in the fourth quarter. The 392-powered 2026 Durango R/T order bank won’t open until “late 2025.”
The only thing missing from this entire presentation was a bald eagle and fireworks. It’s Hemi time at Dodge, at least in its three-row SUV.
Got a tip about gas-guzzling V8s? Send a note to tips@thedrive.com