Update: 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat is a 10 Second Car (With a Caveat)

When we reported that the Challenger SRT Hellcat was officially the most powerful production muscle car ever made, we all knew the performance numbers were likely to be impressive. Still, given the Challenger’s mass, there were some reservations about just much sporting prowess 707 horsepower could provide to a car that is expected to weigh in north of 4200 pounds. Well, Dodge continues to exceed our expectations – the Hellcat will roar down the quarter mile in under eleven seconds. But there’s a catch.

 

As you’ll see in the video below, Dodge is officially estimating the Challenger SRT Hellcat will tear off a 10.8 second quarter mile time – provided your wheels are shod in drag radial rubber. On the stock Pirelli tires, that time goes up to 11.2 – still certainly nothing to scoff at, but it does put the Porsche 911 Turbo S and the Nissan GT-R in front of the Challenger through the traps. Of course it’s worth noting that both of those competitors boast advanced all wheel drive systems and price tags that are likely to be significantly higher than the Hellcat’s still-unannounced figure.

 

 

Still, the drag radial asterisk raises some questions about whether this is a valid statistic, as Ford and Chevrolet didn’t disclose the theoretical performance potential of the Mustang GT500 and the Camaro ZL1 on an undisclosed brand and configuration of drag radial tire when those cars were announced. What about drag slicks? What about other basic modifications, like ECU tunes? Supercharger boost levels? We wonder if this is a Pandora’s box of bench racing that the automaker might have thought twice about opening.

 

In video below, along with some slightly hokey commentary from Richard Rawlings of Fast and Loud fame, Dodge and SRT brand chief Tim Kuniskis rightfully points out that "It wasn’t that long ago that ago that a 10-second quarter mile car was a full-on race car, not an everyday daily driver."

 

Regardless of anything else, if the concept of buying a showroom stock 707hp horsepower muscle car that can tear off times like these with a simple tire swap isn’t evidence that we are currently living in the golden age of performance, we don’t know what is.

 

 

Keep an eye on the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat overview page for updates as we have them – we’ll have quite a bit more to bring you about the 2015 Dodge Challenger, and the SRT Hellcat, in the coming weeks.