diff --git a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/CoreBundle.php b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/CoreBundle.php
index 71ef37b..f7a8991 100644
--- a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/CoreBundle.php
+++ b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/CoreBundle.php
@@ -145,14 +145,7 @@ public function build(ContainerBuilder $container) {
       ->addArgument(new Reference('database'))
       ->addArgument(new Reference('path.alias_manager'));
 
-    // Add password hashing service. The argument to PhpassHashedPassword
-    // constructor is the log2 number of iterations for password stretching.
-    // This should increase by 1 every Drupal version in order to counteract
-    // increases in the speed and power of computers available to crack the
-    // hashes. The current password hashing method was introduced in Drupal 7
-    // with a log2 count of 15.
-    $container->register('password', 'Drupal\Core\Password\PhpassHashedPassword')
-      ->addArgument(16);
+    $container->register('password', 'Drupal\Core\Password\PhpassHashedPassword');
 
     // The following services are tagged as 'nested_matcher' services and are
     // processed in the RegisterNestedMatchersPass compiler pass. Each one
diff --git a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Password/PhpassHashedPassword.php b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Password/PhpassHashedPassword.php
index d5ae542..4d348d7 100644
--- a/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Password/PhpassHashedPassword.php
+++ b/core/lib/Drupal/Core/Password/PhpassHashedPassword.php
@@ -15,6 +15,15 @@
  */
 class PhpassHashedPassword implements PasswordInterface {
   /**
+   * The default log2 number of iterations for password stretching. This should
+   * increase by 1 every Drupal version in order to counteract increases in the
+   * speed and power of computers available to crack the hashes. The current
+   * password hashing method was introduced in Drupal 7 with a log2 count of
+   * 15.
+   */
+  const HASH_COUNT = 16;
+
+  /**
    * The minimum allowed log2 number of iterations for password stretching.
    */
   const MIN_HASH_COUNT = 7;
@@ -50,7 +59,7 @@ class PhpassHashedPassword implements PasswordInterface {
    *   The number of times is calculated by raising 2 to the power of the given
    *   value.
    */
-  function __construct($countLog2) {
+  function __construct($countLog2 = self::HASH_COUNT) {
     // Ensure that $countLog2 is within set bounds.
     $this->countLog2 = $this->enforceLog2Boundaries($countLog2);
   }