For over 12 weeks now, Dodge has been slowly releasing bits and pieces leading up to the release of their new 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon. Well, it’s finally here and to say Dodge has made a huge jump on the playing field is an understatement, and we couldn’t be more excited.
As all of you probably have seen, the Demon is powered by a 840 horsepower, supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI Demon V-8 which makes it the world’s most powerful factory-production V-8 that is capable of a record setting of quarter mile time of 9.65 seconds @ 140 mph. It’s so fast, the NHRA banned the Demon from competition before the car was even released to the public. The 4200-pound Demon goes 0-60 mph in just 2.3 seconds, which makes it the fastest 0-60 mph ever recorded from a production car. Just to put that in perspective, the Demon is quicker and faster than a Bugatti Chiron, Bugatti Veyron, Porsche 918 Spyder, Ferrari LaFerrari and Tesla Model S P100D. If you aren’t impressed by that, then we don’t know what else to tell you.
The best thing about the Demon, in our opinion, is the fact that it’s the perfect example of a true, full weight, street car that can be driven to the track, raced all night long and driven home. The “Demon Crate” includes everything that allows you to take the Demon from street to strip ready and back in just a few minutes. We have asked for a street-legal drag car and Dodge has answered. Was it a bold move? It sure was, and we hope that General Motors and Ford follow in the same bold footsteps that Dodge has taken so they don’t get left on the starting line. This is a milestone and a great leap forward in motorsports. The Demon is exactly what we needed for a push in the right direction. All of us here at STREET/RACE Magazine cannot wait for the Demon to hit the street and strip later this year.
The 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon has put Dodge pretty far ahead in the game, Ford and General Motors, it’s your move.
We have listed some of the key highlights and photos of the 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon below from the Fiat Chrysler Automobile press release which can be located here: http://media.fcanorthamerica.com/newsrelease.do?id=18241&mid=1
2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon Key Highlights:
- 840 horsepower and 770 pounds-feet of torque from supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI® Demon V-8 engine makes Dodge Challenger SRT Demon the most-powerful muscle car ever
- Highest horsepower V-8 production car engine ever produced
- First-ever front-wheel lift in production car (2.92 feet) as certified by Guinness World Records
- World’s fastest quarter-mile production car with an elapsed time (ET) of 9.65 seconds and 140 miles per hour (mph) as certified by National Hot Rod Association (NHRA)
- Challenger SRT Demon is too fast for the drag strip – officially banned by NHRA
- World’s fastest 0-60 production car: 2.3 seconds
- 0-30 miles per hour: 1.0 second
- Highest g-force acceleration of any production car: 1.8 g
- Air-Grabber™ induction system includes the largest functional hood scoop (45.2 square inches) of any production car
- Significant upgrades to create the Demon engine include:
- Larger 2.7-liter per rev supercharger; increased boost pressure to 14.5 psi
- Higher rpm limit of 6,500
- First-ever factory-production car with innovative SRT Power Chiller™ liquid-to-air intercooler chiller system
- First factory-production car with After-Run Chiller that keeps cooling the supercharger/charge air cooler after the engine is shut off
- First-ever, factory-production car designed to run on 100+ high-octane unleaded fuel or 91 octane on demand
- First-ever, factory-production car with TransBrake for more powerful and quicker launches
- First-ever, factory-production drag car with Torque Reserve, to deliver increased levels of power and torque at launch
- First-ever, factory-production car with front passenger seat delete
- Exclusive, serialized Demon Crate offers components that fully unleash the car’s potential at the drag strip
- Challenger SRT Demon is covered by FCA US LLC factory warranty, including three-year/36,000-mile limited vehicle warranty and five-year/60,000-mile limited powertrain coverage
- Production of limited-edition single model year (3,000 United States/300 Canada) Challenger SRT Demon begins later this summer; deliveries to Dodge//SRT dealers to begin this fall
- All customers who buy the new 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon receive one full-day session at Bob Bondurant School of High-performance Driving
- Dodge has named Hagerty as its official insurance provider of the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon
- Factory-installed wider, Nitto street-legal drag radials for improved grip, 40 percent more launch force compared with SRT Hellcat tires
- Available Direct Connection engine controller calibrated for 100+ unleaded high-octane fuel
- SRT Power Chiller™ redirects air conditioning refrigerant to chill the charger air cooler
- After-Run Chiller runs the cooling fan and the low-temperature circuit coolant pump after engine shutdown
- TransBrake locks the output shaft of the TorqueFlite eight-speed automatic transmission to hold the car before launch, allowing the driver to increase engine rpm for higher torque and quicker response
- Torque Reserve boosts engine air flow and supercharger rpm before launch, delivering wickedly fast acceleration
- Drag Mode suspension tuning maximizes weight transfer to the rear wheels for better traction
- Drag Mode Launch Assist uses wheel speed sensors to watch for driveline-damaging wheel hop at launch and in milliseconds modifies the engine torque to regain full grip and then continues accelerating the car down the track
- Available narrow “front runner” wheels for use at drag strips cuts front-end weight
- Wide-body exterior styling, with concealed wheel well attachments house Challenger SRT Demon’s massively wide 315/40R18 tires
- Front passenger seat and rear seat deleted to reduce weight (can be optioned back for $1 each)
Photo Gallery
Photos via: FCA North America, Larry Chen Photo and Webb Bland
