[normgarry]

http://https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0WIhroQ0nzE

As many of you know, I spent my entire month driving fast cars.
The TESLA P85D which is silently faster than the HELLCATS up to the Quarter mile, but doesn't offer their 200+ top speed...

and more recently a few days in the CHALLENGER HELLCAT both manual and automatic.

To tell you the truth, I wasn't satisfied with either.

#1 The Challenger HELLCAT was sold to my friend, take it-or-leave-it with a $5000 markup. The Manuals being sold in NJ have $20,000 tacked on (but they claim they'll negotiate *hmmmf*)

#2 The Challenger is too small inside. My friend is tall and skinny. Yet - he has to "lay back" in the Chally despite there being no moonroof and extra headroom.

#3 None of the Challengers I've seen offered full power recline seats. The "slide" was powered, but the backs weren't.

#4 These cars DEMAND STAGGERED tires. They come with 275/40/20 all around, but that's not nearly enough to replicate the advertised 0-60 times. The car SPINS hard below 3000 RPM.

And Finally, I need the 4-doors. The Charger is my best option.

I would trade my Jeep SRT 2014 for it (less than 12,0000 miles)


THE HELLCAT is a car you don't want to be driving in the city. It's simply too powerful for the streets. This car demands highways. NYC would destroy these tires and the bottom of this car given enough time.


THE TESLA P85D will attract a lot of rich attention due to a simple fact: It's got AWD.

This causes me to scrutinize SRT for lacking an AWD option other than the JEEP SRT.

What happens when you want 470HP or more, but live in bad climates - need AWD - and don't want the ride height of the JEEP?

As Chrysler has dropped the V8 with AWD in favore of the v6 and an upcoming turbocharged V6, the closest comparison is the Maserati Ghibli (which I've driven) and isn't much better than a MKS Ecoboost or XTS-V. Then there's the Cadillac CTS-Vsport which does offer AWD, rides/handles better than ALL OF THE ABOVE, but costs $70,000 similarly equipped to my $55,000 Chrysler 300 SRT.

It's time for DODGE MAGNUM HELLCAT AWD.

If you build it, they will come.

 

[inyadreems]

What part of NYC are you from? I am in SI.

 

[normgarry]

I live and work in NYC, but I own a place in NJ as well.

 

[inyadreems]

Rgr, I work in NJ. You part of the NYC Mopar Club?

 

[normgarry]

I'm part of Team Move Over, but I'm the type of person who doesn't personally advertise anything. No tattoos. No stickers on my car. No logos on my windshields.

 

[inyadreems]

I'm part of Team Move Over, but I'm the type of person who doesn't personally advertise anything. No tattoos. No stickers on my car. No logos on my windshields.

Me too lol. I hang with both Dodge and Ford guys and no advertising for me either. I don't even advertise my detailing side business.

 

[MCaesar]

The CTS-V is not AWD, it is RWD

The XTS V Sport is AWD but can't handle worth a darn

 

[normgarry]

CTS and XTS "V-sport" are offered with AWD.

The "CTS V" is RWD.

 

[frank1966]

there is a nYC mopar club! did not know that. So would you say the charger hellcat will handle NYC roads better? I asked this question a while back about driveability of such a high HP car on roads with alot of traffic! Highways sure no problem, i am little concerned with the constant stop and go pot hole bumps in the roads, etc.. I know everyone on here says let up on the gas but with almost double the power i have now it seems like even at low rpms there will be alot of power!

 

[Mtr]

So would you say the charger hellcat will handle NYC roads better? I asked this question a while back about driveability of such a high HP car on roads with alot of traffic! Highways sure no problem, i am little concerned with the constant stop and go pot hole bumps in the roads, etc.

I don't know why you can't accept the answers you've already been given. Both Hellcats are fine at low speeds. The cars have a gentle throttle tip-in that allows easy throttle modulation. Lots of reviews have been written about the Hellcat when journalists were given access in a press event during heavy rains. If the car had uncontrollable throttle, there'd be all sorts of entertaining stories about writers that went off into ditches.

That said, I'm hard pressed to think of a car I'd want to drive LESS in NYC traffic than a Charger, Hellcat or no. It's a huge, heavy car and its power would be completely useless in that setting. Actually there's one worse car: a manual transmission Challenger. What's average speed there, about 8MPH? Not fun riding a clutch through all that. My perfect NYC car is a small beater so I don't freak out every time someone plays bumper tag with my car trying to get into a parking space.

 

[tgl]

The Hellcat is definitely awesome, but the "regular" SRT-8 remains awesome, too, and seems to be overlooked a lot lately in the media storm that the HC has caused.
Personally, I place the regular SRT being naturally aspirated as a plus over the HC's being supercharged.
Best of both worlds would be the HC's 700+ hp being NA instead of relying on SC, but I understand why it is like it is.

Mucho kudos to Dodge for having such great choices! :beerchug:

 

[702RN]

The Hellcat is definitely awesome, but the "regular" SRT-8 remains awesome, too, and seems to be overlooked a lot lately in the media storm that the HC has caused.

Personally, I place the regular SRT being naturally aspirated as a plus over the HC's being supercharged.

Best of both worlds would be the HC's 700+ hp being NA instead of relying on SC, but I understand why it is like it is.



Mucho kudos to Dodge for having such great choices! :beerchug:

The SRT has lost almost all coverage this year due to the hellcat, but more so due to the introduction of the Scat Pack.

The power the SRT had was one of the main selling points. Now it's power is the same as that of the Scat Pack and less than the hellcat.

Yes the new SRT offers improved braking and moderately improved suspension over the Scat Pack, but largely it is not much different.

Like I said, the vast majority of the population associated with this particular car market is primarily concerned with power. The hellcat offers immense power, while the SRT and scat pack offer the same amount of power. Dodge did bump the power of the 6.4 up to 485 horses from the previous 475 horses, which was nice. But if they wanted to keep the SRT relevant they should have given it either more power, or other more impressive features to make it stand out.

The new SRT's braking and tunable suspension is remarkable. However, imo, I don't think it is nearly impressive enough to keep the SRT as popular as it was. I understand financially it may not have been doable, but I still feel they should have made the SRT "pop" more.

 

[Ddaddy]

The SRT has lost almost all coverage this year due to the hellcat, but more so due to the introduction of the Scat Pack.

The power the SRT had was one of the main selling points. Now it's power is the same as that of the Scat Pack and less than the hellcat.

Yes the new SRT offers improved braking and moderately improved suspension over the Scat Pack, but largely it is not much different.

Like I said, the vast majority of the population associated with this particular car market is primarily concerned with power. The hellcat offers immense power, while the SRT and scat pack offer the same amount of power. Dodge did bump the power of the 6.4 up to 485 horses from the previous 475 horses, which was nice. But if they wanted to keep the SRT relevant they should have given it either more power, or other more impressive features to make it stand out.

The new SRT's braking and tunable suspension is remarkable. However, imo, I don't think it is nearly impressive enough to keep the SRT as popular as it was. I understand financially it may not have been doable, but I still feel they should have made the SRT "pop" more.

They only make a few thousand SRTs every year and sell all they make. They aren't trying to build market share with it. There are still plenty of buyers for it, so they don't need to hype it.

The Hellcat is now the Flagship intended to sell more Scat pack cars than anything else. They are trying to grab the 'tweeners who want more than the R/T but aren't up for spending the SRT price. This is the new market they are trying to grab to boost total sales.

The previous SRT "core" models tried to do that but they got the performance/price mix wrong and it just didn't grab market share they wanted. It's why there isn't a Super Bee anymore.

The Scat Pack is being positioned as a new model. It's not an SRT "light", it's more like an R/T on steroids. Add the appearance goodies from the SRT and it's a smart play...give the car it's own identity above the R/T, but retain the link to the top performance models in looks.

There is a huge perception difference between the R/T and the SRT. Look across the Forums over the years you will see hundreds of R/T owners who built up their cars and then proclaimed that they had done better than the SRT for less money. They wore it like a badge of honor.

Now with the Scat Pack, that same attitude has it's own identity...and a factory badge to go with it.

Brilliant move on Dodge's part to capitalize on it.

 

[normgarry]

The SRT brand is getting more and more buzz on Social Media and everyone wants in.
Neither the Charger, Challenger or 300 can be by any means considered cheap cars. They range between the high $40k and high $60k range. As The Hellcats dominate the media, they give people with newfound money something else to reach for - beyond a used BMW, Audi or Benz.

A 6.4-Liter HEMI is far more power than ANYONE needs on the road for ANY driving situation.

The reasonable and smart option is a V6 or 5.7 HEMI with/without AWD depending on region.

But no one wants that... they want the car constantly being advertised for its awesomeness.

The HELLCAT is just showing off.

I was talking to my cousin earlier about this.

Though the Hellcat comes with a Black key and a Red key, you are almost certainly forced to drive with the RED KEY since anyone who sees you is gonna ask to see it - and hold it - just to feel it...

...as if the Black key was any different.

Reminds me of how the Veyron can't be put in top speed mode - a speed that there aren't even roads long enough to drive it on legally - without the "top speed key".

 

[702RN]

Judging by what I've read I think SRT sales may suffer. I think the new toys that have been released offer far wiser investments, better bang for the buck. However, I do agree with you on the SRT badge of honor business. Some folks may like the competitive pricing of the Scat Pack but the fact that it's not truly an SRT (as if any real adult would care) they will be inclined to spend the extra coin just to sport the SRT badge. I did just realize I have forgotten about the SRT core. That's only a few thousand more than a well-optioned Scat Pack. The downside there is you lose a lot of creature conifers, so it's a toss up.


Every article I've read regarding the new dodge line up the SRT is never/rarely mentioned. This make sense because it's not "new" like the hellcat or scat pack. But you'd think they would still advertise the improvements.

But, like you say they only make a few thousand. This will prevent them from getting burned. Perhaps when we see how many SRTs are made this year it will give us some insight into what the dodge boys feel the demand will be.

I'm very excited to see how all of this plays out! I've see a ton of new challengers on the roads here, no hellcats but plenty of Scats and SXTs. No chargers yet either...I don't know why. There are tons at the dealerships!

 

[frank1966]

I don't know why you can't accept the answers you've already been given. Both Hellcats are fine at low speeds. The cars have a gentle throttle tip-in that allows easy throttle modulation. Lots of reviews have been written about the Hellcat when journalists were given access in a press event during heavy rains. If the car had uncontrollable throttle, there'd be all sorts of entertaining stories about writers that went off into ditches.

That said, I'm hard pressed to think of a car I'd want to drive LESS in NYC traffic than a Charger, Hellcat or no. It's a huge, heavy car and its power would be completely useless in that setting. Actually there's one worse car: a manual transmission Challenger. What's average speed there, about 8MPH? Not fun riding a clutch through all that. My perfect NYC car is a small beater so I don't freak out every time someone plays bumper tag with my car trying to get into a parking space.

Is it okay for me to ask others, the OP, their opinions? Or is there one answer for everything? Your answer was very good, whats the point in throwing in the first sentence with your answer?

I never drove a car with more HP than what iam driving now. With my canned tune i feel the cars works alot in stop and go traffic between 30-40mph, lots gear activity, holding in gear, downshifting, upshifting, some bucking here and there, etc. I use up oil and i can never stretch my oil beyond 5k miles even with the 15k oil before my oil light comes on.

 

[Ddaddy]

I never drove a car with more HP than what iam driving now. With my canned tune i feel the cars works alot in stop and go traffic between 30-40mph, lots gear activity, holding in gear, downshifting, upshifting, some bucking here and there, etc. I use up oil and i can never stretch my oil beyond 5k miles even with the 15k oil before my oil light comes on.

What you should remember is that Taxis and Limos all prefer to drive large heavy cars in the city environment.

Why? Because they are far more comfortable and handle the bad roads better. The power and braking also provide a big advantage in taking spots in traffic quickly to make forward progress smooth and confident.

Sure the city is hard on cars, but that is independent of the vehicle size. Small cars take it in the teeth far worse than large cars do. (parking ability aside).

If you drive primarily in the city, I suggest that a V6 Charger or 300 is the best choice to maintain the advantages and provides more than sufficient power to make it work well (300 HP).

 

[Mtr]

Is it okay for me to ask others, the OP, their opinions? Or is there one answer for everything? Your answer was very good, whats the point in throwing in the first sentence with your answer?

I guess I shouldn't have written that first sentence. I do realize that buying a Hellcat is a big investment and you're just doing what you can to become comfortable with that. Apologies if I came across as overly harsh.

 

[MCaesar]

I don't know why you can't accept the answers you've already been given. Both Hellcats are fine at low speeds. The cars have a gentle throttle tip-in that allows easy throttle modulation. Lots of reviews have been written about the Hellcat when journalists were given access in a press event during heavy rains. If the car had uncontrollable throttle, there'd be all sorts of entertaining stories about writers that went off into ditches.

That said, I'm hard pressed to think of a car I'd want to drive LESS in NYC traffic than a Charger, Hellcat or no. It's a huge, heavy car and its power would be completely useless in that setting. Actually there's one worse car: a manual transmission Challenger. What's average speed there, about 8MPH? Not fun riding a clutch through all that. My perfect NYC car is a small beater so I don't freak out every time someone plays bumper tag with my car trying to get into a parking space.

Good post

Chargers in general are not good low speed traffic cars.

The cars sit pretty low
The front suspensions are sensitive
Hemis tend to run hot
etc

 

[MCaesar]

Scat Pack - the lack of the upgraded suspension is an issue. I have seen 2 road tests complaining about the ride quality

The reasonable and smart option is a V6 or 5.7 HEMI with/without AWD depending on region.

Totally disagree

The V6 not only is underpowered for this much weight but it lacks the character which is essential in the Charger experience

There are several better buys in the V6 range but none better than the V8s for their price