Automotive

Dodge unveils fastest, most powerful factory sedan ever

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The Charger SRT comes several weeks after the reveal of the 2-door Challenger SRT
The Charger SRT Hellcat is the fastest factory sedan ever
A rear view of the Charger SRT Hellcat
The Charger SRT sports 20-inch Slingshot wheels
The Charger SRT is set to go on sale in early 2015
The Charger SRT comes several weeks after the reveal of the 2-door Challenger SRT
The front braking system includes huge 15.4-inch rotors
The front brake caliper features 6 pistons
An exploded view of the engine
An exploded view of the engine
An aggressive front fascia
Front styling from above
20-inch Slingshot wheels all around
Pricing is expected in the next few months
This fast sedan is an 8-speed automatic
Driver's vantage point
Backseat with legroom
No all wheel drive on this one
A center touch panel allows custom control
The center digital display
Sport-tuned handling included
From the rear
The digital display can handle certain apps
Race options
Traction options
In-car performance tracking
View gallery - 25 images

The world of four-door sedans is about to get real, thanks to the 2015 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat, unveiled Wednesday at a special event in Detroit. Dodge claims it is the most powerful mass-produced sedan ever, at 707 horsepower, as well as the fastest, with a top speed of 204 mph (328 km/h) and the ability to cover a quarter-mile (0.4 km) in 11 seconds.

"This is a car that no customer has ever asked us to build," said Tim Kuniskis, Chrysler's President of the Dodge brand. "But sometimes you need to build a car that just defines itself. Sometimes you need to build a car that redefines the preconceived definition of practicality."

If you buy that line, then the new definition of "practical" is apparently a HEMI 6.2-liter V8 engine capable of 650 lb-ft (881 Nm) of torque. Among other mind-bending factoids is a specially tuned crank damper tested to 13,000 rpm.

Unlike its brethren, the Challenger SRT two-door unveiled last month, the Charger will only be available with an 8-speed automatic transmission and no all-wheel drive.

Driver's vantage point

At the center of its rolling parts are 20-inch Slingshot wheels in front and back, fitted with huge 15.4-inch rotors and 6-piston caliper brakes in front and 13.8-inch rear disc brakes in back.

A little more practicality does come with those two extra doors and a back seat that Dodge claims comes with enough legroom "for your basketball-playing sons and daughters."

On the outside, the sedan gets an aggressive look in its front fascia that fits the Hellcat moniker well. The whole beefy package weighs in at 4,560 lb (2,068 kg) and should go on sale in the first quarter of next year with pricing details still to come. You can watch the entire product reveal below.

Source: Dodge

View gallery - 25 images
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25 comments
Milton
Awesome performance, but something tells me the mpg (CITY) figure isn't going to be so "practical".
Daishi
I watched the video and it may have been a slip but it sounds like at 24:33 in the QA portion the CEO said "We purposefully priced this car at 59 95 to put it within reach of.." I assume that's $59,950 but then someone directly asked for the price of the car later in the QA and he said it wasn't available yet.
@Milton A couple people asked that in the QA and the MPG hasn't been EPA certified yet but they said they were hoping the challenger would get 20 MPG highway. The Charger is a tad heavier but has a tad better (~18%) drag coefficient so that's probably ballpark for highway.
Stradric
Holy crap. 4560lbs? That's a mini-van.
Keith Reeder
"Awesome performance"
Not really - not for 707 bhp. It'd be a damn' sight faster if it didn't weigh as much as my house.
Milton
@Daishi
Thanks, I missed that in the video (didn't watch the Q&A).
20 mpg highway is likely to mean 12-15 mpg city. Ouch!
But I guess if you are buying this thing MPG isn't much of a factor. I just cracked-up that the spokesman kept calling it so "practical".
VoiceofReason
I wish they would have innovated a little and grabbed the 3.0L V-6 Diesel that powers the Ram 1/2 ton and Maserti quattroporte, with more hp of course in the latter. 275hp and 442 ft-lbs torque in the Maserati.
A Charger ( or ChargeD, if you prefer) with the 8 speed auto would have gotten probably 32-34 mpg and still decently fast.
Mel Tisdale
Yep, they sure know how to "disregard the data"!
Daishi
@Milton I have to think redefining practical was meant as a joke. They took something practical like a sedan, and gave it an impractical amount of power. Maybe Iran or ISIS could come on board as a sponsor. Your operating costs would be highly depending on who set who's oil fields on fire this week.
4560 lbs is heavy. A base Bugatti is 4200 lbs and 1000 HP but also about $2.2 million (plus $200k in tires and rims every 10,000 miles) vs about $60k for the charger.
Bob
Looks a lot like a four door Viper. It probably gets as good MPG as my pickup.
Ed Yee
This engine needs to be put into the 300C SRT8.