2016 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat - Quick Review, Video

(Contributing Editors: Peter Stamatis; Susan Frissell: "Women With Wheels")

It's Official: Roadblazing.com (and former sister blog site ChicagoNow.com"Drive...He Said") has now completed its mission of whetting Tire Shredding appetites, (with the exception of the about to be introduced Dodge Challenger Hellcat Demon).

Two years ago RB.com's former sister outlet, ChicagoNow.com "Drive...He Said," began it's descent towards the Netherworld with a bona fide "Burnout" in a 2015 Dodge Challenger Hemi R/T Plus 5.7L.

That was followed by laying down a long tandem patch of rubber in the more potent 2015 Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack 6.4L :

Tarmac tarring beasts though both may be, they are but a veritable "Warm Door" before entering the "Scorching Gates to Hades' House" itself: the 2016 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat 6.2L.

Driver's who brave the House of Hellcat are probably a little Plum Crazy to take the wheel of a machine doused in Plum Crazy Pearl Coat. For only concentration, wits, stomach, the constabulary and ample open road can keep the right foot in check over dispatching 707 stonking horse hoofs worth of wicked rear-drive power.

MENTAL PREPARATION FOR THE 2016 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat

1. MASS combats GRAVITY: Charger SRT Hellcat's 4500 lbs. = 1000 lbs. > Porsche 911 Carrera. More than 55% is over the front axle.
2. POWER IS NOTHING WITHOUT TRACTION: Without all-wheel drive a nose heavy, front engined rear-drive 4500 lb. sedan would need an awful lot of especially soft tire to have a fighting chance of putting a good portion of the power down to pavement.
3. A 4500 lb. Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat requires a mere 27 horsepower to cruise at 65 miles per hour.

FIRING UP THE BEAST OF AMERICAN STREET MUSCLE 2016 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat:

1. Bring along the RED Key Fob
2. Depress brake pedal and depress RED Start button on upper left side of center stack
3. Depress center stack SRT button to display SRT Pages on 8.4" U-Connect touch LCD screen
4. Select TRACK mode on Upper Left of SRT Pages, displaying 700+ hp available
5. Select TRACK SET-UP → RACE OPTIONS on Mid Lower Left of SRT Pages
6. On RACE OPTIONS select LAUNCH CONTROL → LAUNCH RPM SET-UP
7. Select Launch RPM and set at 1500 rpm
8. Depress Traction Control button on center stack for 10 seconds to fully deactivate
9. With right foot applied to brake pedal, move transmission position selector into DRIVE
10. Select ACTIVATE LAUNCH MODE on LAUNCH CONTROL screen
11. Follow Instructions in Gauge Cluster trip display
12. Depress brake pedal with left foot, and place transmission position selector into DRIVE
13. MAINTAIN LEFT FOOT firmly on brake pedal firmly APPLY RIGHT FOOT to accelerator building engine revolutions
14. Once LAUNCH light displays RELEASE LEFT FOOT from brake pedal and apply full force on accelerator

REGISTERING ANTICS IN THE 2016 DODGE CHARGER SRT HELLCAT FOR POSTERITY:

1. Before STEP 3 above, download U-Connect Apps to a bluetooth mobile device
2. Create a U-Connect account
3. Pair the mobile device via U-Connect bluetooth phone pairing
4. Select U-Connect Apps from bottom icons of U-Connect 8.4" home screen
5. On left side of screen select ALL APPS
6. Select PERFORMANCE PAGES; (This may take a moment to intitialize.)
7. Select TIMERS
8. From TIMERS you can SAVE driving performance metrics

UPGRADED BITS: 2016 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat 6.2L (vs. Dodge Charger SRT 6.4L)

Powertrain:

• IHI twin-screw heat-exchanger cooled Supercharger, swallowing up to 30,000 liters of air / second to produce 11.8 psi of boost to combustion intake of the 6.2L OHV gas V-8. BTW it takes 80 hp to spin the supercharger rotors at 14,160 rpm.
• 707 net horsepower , 650 pound-feet torque @ 4200 rpm
• High capacity oil cooler
• Connecting rods = powder forged steel w/ cracked bearing caps
• Hardened forged steel 5 main bearing crankshaft secured by 20 bolts
• Hollow stem intake & exhaust valves, latter filled with cooling sodium gas
• Same aluminum heads & deep skirted cast iron block as 6.4L V-8 SRT Apache engine
• Shorter 90mm stroke & shared 103.9mm bore compared to other 5.7 & 6.4L OHV V-8 engines
• Variable pressure fuel pump + 8 x 600 cc/ min flow fuel injectors which can empty 18.5 gallon fuel tank within 13 minutes of full power operation
• Red key fob necessary to access 707 hp; Black valet key fob "limits" engine management power to 500 hp
• No cylinder deactivation = can't stave off $1700 federal "Gas Guzzler" tax

Drivetrain:

• Upgraded ZF 8-speed torque converter planetary automatic gearbox w/ fluid cooler
• Taller 2.62:1 final drive
• 9.3" ring variable electronic locking viscous multi-clutch limited slip differential

Suspension:

• 3-mode electronic adjustable Bilstein monotube dampers
• Hydraulic assisted power rack & pinion steering w/ slower 14.4:1 ratio
• Brembo front 6-piston, rear 4-piston fixed caliper two piece slotted w/ larger 15.4 front brake rotors
• Wider 275-40 Z Pirelli P-Zero ultra-high performance tires on forged 20" wheels

Exterior, Body:

• "Hellcat" illustration front fender emblems, "SRT" front grille & rear trunk lid logo
• Large functional NACA hood duct
• Fog lights have been ditched for air ducts, reducing air charge temperature to 140° F
• Deeper lower front fascia splitter
• Contrasting grey lower rear fascia w/ larger diameter dual exhaust outlet housings

Interior, Cabin:

• Leather SRT sport bucket seats
• Genuine carbon fiber dash & console appliques
• Red analog gauge cluster & ignition button switch

LIVING WITH THE 2016 DODGE CHARGER SRT HELLCAT :

- Normal drive mode and an un-leaden right foot belie dispatch a docile demon. The exhaust rumble humbles all other stock 4-wheeled vehicles on public roads. Hydraulic assisted steering comes off less lively than preferred, perhaps owing to the 500 extra pounds of mass versus the last Challenger 392 Scat Pack driven by Roadblazing.com editors. Jam the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat throttle, on a roll, and the driveline shudders as the rear electronic limited slip differential goes to work, scrapping to bring the butt back into line. It's a toss-up whether the supercharger whine replicates a Hoover vacuum or friction wind-up toy Pan Am 707. Hard launches of the Charter Hellcat guarantee tire shrieking and smoke billowing.

- Understeerer-in-Chief: Damping in track mode imparts a rapid compression rebound control firmness, though never quite a beating. Yet in normal drive mode, the adaptive damping and compliant springs yield some ride comfort joy. Steering, while hefty in the hand, blurs some of the surface activity, rebuffing sharper turn in. Six pot Brembo fixed calipers squeeze on the front 15.4" two-piece aluminum rotors, vented and slotted at the all corners, reeling in the Charger SRT Hellcat the way Papa Hemingway reeled in Marlin off the Florida Keys.

Trailing Prestige Breeds in Spiff:

- There's a reason Cadillac's CTS-V is $15K pricier...add another $20K for a BMW M5; 2016 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat material fit / finish, refreshed along the entire MOPAR LX line in 2015, possesses late 20th century charm, characterized by large grain hard plastics, and a pliable dashtop resembling foam. Center console storage is abundant, but more scant in the door pockets.

- Moreso than some other's in the high performance genre, the Charger SRT Hellcat benefits from a clean cockpit layout, with oversized twin dial gauges flanking a sequence of comprehensive performance status readouts. Lots of accessible system settings are built into the center stack embedded U-Connect 8.4" touch LCD screen. Few competitors can best the SRT Track Apps and Performance Pages, though they can occasionally stall. Logically grouped climate and U-Connect shortcut physical buttons are a true blessing. Yet, activating the front seat heating happens through infotainment display icons. (Second Row outboard seat heating happens by buttons at the back of the first row center console.)

Connectivity is covered by an impressive four USB ports and Bluetooth. The upgraded Harman Kardon streaming audio system boasts 19 speakers, with dual subwoofer, delivering 900 thumping, yet listenable watts, through DSP circuitry.

- Those front thrones The targeted American male muscle-car demographic probably will find the tall back front thrones a wee bit snug, while the cushion lifts knees sky high. The thick first row seat back, impinge on knee room for any brave individuals daring to witness the Charger SRT Hellcat's shenanigans from the back seat. The D-shaped steering while, originally sized for a cruiser sedan, isn't as larger as others in the field, but it does get de rigeur webbed stitched leather, and smooth spoke controls. Contrast stitched leather doesn't cover flat bottom of power tilt and extending steering wheel; Row 2 knee room is compromised by thick front seat backs.

- The four door Dodge's tall liftover, deep aperture, coarsely lined trunk, with 60:40% split folding 2nd Row seat back pass-through, is good for a sinister "Goodfellas" grin.