The Dodge Charger has seemingly been around forever now and while that makes some cars just old, this one keeps getting added appeal each year.
With 797 horsepower and 707 pound-feet of torque laid to pavement by its 6.2-liter high-output “Hellcat” supercharged V8, he 2021 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye is billed as the most powerful, fastest regular production sedan in the world. Pretty heady for an “old” car.
Add in bulging fender flares and 20×11 wheels with 305 section tires that make up the “Widebody” treatment and this thing is just as bad ass as it gets from curbside.
All this extra hardware and go-fast goodness does cost. Our tester is priced at $90,060 with options. While some might laugh at the concept of a near $100k Dodge sedan, consider that you will spend nearly double that to get the next best thing in terms of performance sedans.
When it comes to performance, Dodge claims a 203 mph top speed, a 10.5 second quarter mile and a mid 3-second 0-60 time. In our driving we found that is all very likely. Short of a laboratory test at a race track, we have to take their word for it.
This is because with nearly 800 horsepower, there are few places in the public earth to unleash this car. Trying to really let it rip around any town or even back roads is like going quail hunting with a bazooka. It’s almost too much.
Taken in small powerful doses though, this thing is as magic as any illegal drug. It screams with supercharger whine loud enough to wake neighbors a mile away. It angers with exhaust rumble that can set off car alarms. It pushes you back into the seat like little else.
Surprisingly, it does all these things with a level of refinement you might not expect. Starting nearly two decades ago with a derivative of the Mercedes-Benz E-Class chassis, the Charger is built on good bones that have evolved over the years.
Today we have electronic nannies that keep all that power in check, allowing even most idiots to mash the pedal and unleash 800 horsepower to the planet and do it in a straight line. Thank you.
That said, it does come at a price. The Dodge Charger Hellcat Redeye is rated at 12 mpg city, 21 mpg highway and 15 mpg combined. We got about 14 mpg in our week, mostly driving like a normal person.
At the end of the day, we like it. This is a car that really has no competition. Ford is too pussy to build a sedan like this, GM hasn’t yet pulled it off in a way that sells consistently. Dodge has shown they’ve got this and if you want one, they are who you go to.
