2008 Dodge Caliber on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Dodge Charger Hellcat hitting 60 in 2.9 seconds on drag radials?

The Dodge boys and their cousins from SRT have shoehorned the same 707-horsepower, 6.2-liter supercharged V8 into both the Dodge Challenger and Charger. The former being a two-door, it's lighter than the latter four-door sedan. So it would stand to reason that the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat would be the quicker of the two, right?
Only that's not necessarily proving to be the case. On stock rubber, yes, the coupe beats the sedan: Dodge quotes a 0-60 time of 3.7 seconds for the Charger SRT Hellcat and 3.5 for the Challenger. Same gap across the quarter-mile: 11 seconds flat for the Charger versus 10.8 seconds for the Challenger. But according to recent reports, the story changes when you put both on drag radials.
While visiting Chrysler HQ in Auburn Hills, MI, TorqueNews.com caught wind of performance figures for the Charger Hellcat on drag tires: 0-60 in a mind-blowing 2.9 seconds and a quarter-mile in just 10.7. The latter figure just barely pips the Hellcat-powered Challenger's NHRA-certified figure of 10.8, making the Charger not only the fastest sedan on the market, but also the fastest muscle car. What isn't immediately clear, however, is whether the drag radials in question have any tread on them and are street-legal, or if they're pure slicks confined to a closed strip.

Dodge Challenger SRT Demon TransBrake eliminates the need for brake torquing

Performing the perfect launch is key to drag racing. In order to get consistent starts, the engineers behind the Dodge Demon developed TransBrake, a system that holds the output shaft of the automatic transmission to keep the vehicle stationary until launch. Rather than the traditional method of two-foot brake torquing, the system is triggered by pulling the shift paddle for quick and consistent launches. According to Dodge, the main benefit of TransBrake versus a two-foot setup is a quicker power delivery and higher engine launch torque potential. The system gives brake-free launches up to 2,350 RPM, a 105-percent increase in launch boost pressures, and a 120-percent increase in engine launch torque. Dodge also claims that using the paddle provides a 30-percent better reaction when compared to using your feet. In addition to shifting duties from your feet to your hands, the Demon's TransBrake will preload the driveline. Torque is loaded at the wheels, not the transmission. That means full torque delivery 150 milliseconds after the shift paddle is released. It should also help reduce the driveline shock that occurs when those 315 section rear tires get near-instant grip. The reveal is coming near. Continue checking out Autoblog and ifyouknowyouknow.com every Thursday until the New York Auto Show. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. New York Auto Show Dodge Coupe Performance drag racing dodge demon dodge hellcat drag strip

Everything is absurd in Fate of the Furious, including the car hacking

Truly ridiculous and absurd scenes and situations are a staple of the Fast and Furious series, And earlier trailers made it clear that Fate of the Furious wouldn't be any different as soon as the submarine appeared. However, it turns out the craziness has spread to the topic of car hacking. The hacker is Charlize Theron's character, Cipher, and she can apparently control any car in the world, and many of them at once. She uses this to great effect in creating giant rivers of rampaging automobiles through city streets, and waterfalls of cars flying off of parking structures. And if you look closely at these groups of vehicles, it is evident that she can even control older cars that have no automated steering or throttle capabilities whatsoever. We would ask how that works, but we know that's a silly question in the Fast and Furious universe. After all, this is the series that featured Dominic Toretto flying through the air over a freeway to catch Letty Ortiz and land on another car. And they survived. Your logic has no power here! We also noticed that Cipher seems to have a preference to hack vehicles from Fiat Chrysler. In the trailer, multiple Chrysler 300s, a Jeep Cherokee, a Jeep Grand Cherokee, and a Dodge Challenger all get some prominent screen time when they're being hacked. We're not so sure this is good product placement for the brand, particularly considering this is the same company that recalled over a million vehicles to fix a software issue that could lead to hacking. Maybe this is the trade-off for having the Dodge Challenger Demon as a hero car. There's more to this trailer than Chryslers and hacking though. It turns out that Cipher has been following Toretto for a few movies now. Also, characters fly with jet packs, and Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson's character shoves a torpedo out of the way, on ice, while hanging out of a truck. Check it all out in the video above. Related Video: