Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Eats EVs For Lunch With 707 HP, Makes No Apologies Whatsoever

With all due respect to Jackson Galaxy, the famed cat behaviorist featured on Animal Planet's "My Cat From Hell," some cats just aren't meant to be tamed. Dodge's 2015 model Challenger SRT with its supercharged 6.2 Hemi V8 engine, also known as the Hellcat, is one of them. The Hellcat engine in what Dodge is pimping as "the most powerful muscle car ever" outputs 707 horsepower and 650 lb.-ft of torque, though if that's too much for your commute around town, just use the black key fob to limit the engine to 500 horsepower.

When you need the added power -- at the racetrack or when some punk kid in a souped-up Civic revs his engine at a red light (on an abandoned road, of course) -- the red key fob unlocks the Hellcat's full potential. Both key fobs come standard with every 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT, which is a first in Chrysler's history.

Dodge Challenger SRT

Plenty of care was taken to ensure the Hellcat can withstand the kind of engine revving it's sure to receive. It has a forged-steel crankshaft with induction-hardened bearing surfaces that can withstand firing pressures of 110 bar (1,595 psi), which is equal to five family sedans standing on each high-strength, forged-alloy piston at every two revolutions.



The Hellcat also sports heat-treated aluminum-alloy cylinder heads optimized for thermal conductivity, along with die-cast aluminum rocker covers in Hemi orange.



While the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT is certainly the cat's meow, there's also a bit of Viper in the vehicle. The Tremec six-speed manual transmission is derived from the Dodge Viper and features an upgraded clutch along with an external cooling circuit for durability.

Dodge's list of features seems endless and includes things like gas-charged adjustable shock absorbers, 15.4-inch Brembo two-piece front brake rotors optimized for performance, six-pot calibers for superior stopping power, oodles of creature comforts (heated seats and steering wheel come standard), and so forth.

Challenger Inside

Looking to own one? Every 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT is built at the company's Brampton, Ontario assembly plant and will start arriving in Dodge dealerships in the third quarter of this year. No word yet on pricing.