Bar Talk: Does The Hellcat Body Need A Better Design?

By Mark Weisseg

The Dodge Challenger Hellcat was on my short list recently to buy as I really got interested in the power curve. What began to weigh on me though, was the reviews in the magazines and the talk I heard on the street.

Certainly, the car has plenty of straight line power. The 707 hp is clearly incredible. However, I started seeing many Hellcats on the used car market already. It wasn’t and isn’t a cheap date to buy one so why are some already out there? Well, I discovered the following reasons and not in any order. The car is heavy and possibly not as nimble as its contemporaries and the design is arguably a little plainer than its muscle car contemporaries.

When I sat in one recently my head almost touched the roof. Not the case with a Camaro or a Mustang. I also in my opinion thought the dash cheaper than the rest. And lastly, as much as I love Mopar’s ( I have a Road Runner) I became concerned about FCA recently when they publicly put out a notice that they want a partner and nobody publicly responded yes.

The Challenger of course currently is the hot rod two door and it’s becoming dated already. The Charger is cool but, I did not want a four door. Rumors are out they will introduce a two door with a Hellcat but then, that brings about the same issues as the last time.
So, you wanted a plum crazy Challenger with certain options. Other Jeep dealers are promising a Jeep next year with this monster engine and then I read a Ram truck might get the special engine.

The Hellcat commercials keep showing the Challengers and Chargers doing these great burnouts. Nothing is mentioned about a great ride or a safety feature or trunk space and so on.
Everything is geared toward pulling out of your driveway and stomping on the gas pedal and burning the rear tires off.

I sensed some trouble last year at the car show locally. A guy showed up with a Challenger with the 707 under the hood and many people zoomed over for a look expecting a rabbit to come out or something. After 15 seconds they walked away because the car from the exterior looked like the one that had a V6 in it. Not the case for example with a Camaro. You know right away if someone has a base model or the Z28. It was a shame, as that Hellcat engine should have stole the show.

After I slowed my brain down, I realized FCA is banking on this engine solely. I decided then to take a wait and I am glad I did. Used Hellcat cars are getting good money still but again I worry why so many are on the market. Did you know that the giant car sales chain CarMax does not resell them on the used lot? They go right to a wholesaler. I could not get an official statement as to why since they sell Mustang GT’s with 600 plus hp and Corvette’s and many other cars with big horsepower.

It’s hard to say anything negative about the Challenger or Charger, as they are both pushing the muscle car breed, I just worry they are focusing too much on the engine and not the car as a whole. At least compared to the rest of the muscle car market.

We need a more mind blowing design to accompany that great engine.
The Challengers and Chargers of yesterday still stand as incredible designs, along with the engines. Not one or the other, but both.

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