When Dodge unveiled the Challenger SRT Hellcat for the model year 2015, many muscle car fans struggled to imagine how the company could possibly do more. However, Dodge did it again with the SRT Demon, a limited production car with a singular purpose: to dominate the drag strip. That they did, but did the Demon really leave the Hellcat in its shadow? Or is the Hellcat, in some ways, faster than the Mopar halo car?

Is a Demon quicker going 0-60 mph than a Hellcat?

The Demon is significantly quicker from 0-60 mph than an SRT Hellcat. In fact, the Dodge Demon was the fastest accelerating gas-powered production car at the time of its release. To secure that record, the Dodge halo car put down a 0-60 mph time of just 2.3 seconds. That is, of course, after getting the $1 ‘crate’ treatment, including a new ECU, high-flow air filter, skinny lightweight front wheels, and new switchgear. 

Still, the SRT Hellcat was just as mold-shattering when Dodge released it for the 2015 model year. The supercharged 6.2L V8 produced a monstrous 707 horsepower, a figure that most performance cars still don’t touch. Also, the car managed a 0-60 sprint of 3.6 seconds, making it swifter than a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG of the time. 

Does the SRT Hellcat have a higher top speed than the Dodge Demon?

Despite the over-the-top excessiveness of the Demon, the Hellcat has a higher top speed. A 2022 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye has a top speed of 203 mph, while the O.G. 2015 Hellcat could reach 199 mph. However, the ferocious, record-breaking Demon had a top speed of 168 mph. Why the slower top speed?

Dodge engineered the Demon for one reason and one reason only: to outrun just about any other production car in the world in the quarter-mile. The Demon will hit over 140 mph throughout a quarter-mile drag run, but it doesn’t require a massive top speed to do it. 

Does the Demon run a faster quarter-mile than a Hellcat?

The Demon definitely outruns the Challenger SRT Hellcat in the quarter-mile. Even the newest, grippiest Hellcats can’t manage to outrun the 2018 halo car. For example, a 2022 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye manages an 11.8-second quarter-mile at 125 mph. That’s fast, but it’s not fast enough to catch the Demon on the drag strip. 

Instead, Road & Track says that the Dodge SRT Demon will run a quarter-mile in just 9.65 seconds and over 140 mph. That’s so fast that it got the attention of the National Hot Rod Association (NHRA). Not in a good way, though. The NHRA promptly banned the Demon because it ran a sub-10-second quarter-mile without a roll cage. 

Does the SRT Hellcat brake harder than the Dodge halo car?

The latest Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Redeye packs enormous 15.4-inch vented front brakes and 13.8-inch rear brakes. Additionally, Dodge’s Tim Kuniskis hailed the original Hellcat’s brakes as the largest steel rotors ever fitted to a production car up to that point. Compared to the 14.2-inch front rotors on the Demon, the halo car simply can’t compare, right? Not true; the Demon brakes faster than the Hellcat. 

According to Motor Authority, the Demon stops from sixty in just 97 feet, compared to the Hellcat Redeye’s 104 feet. That might not seem like much, but the lighter, crazier Demon will also out-stop a track-focused Dodge Viper ACR. If you want to read more about Dodge Challengers, scroll down to the following article!