cars news 10: 2016 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Update 2: Retired and Retested

Certain things just hurt. Getting dumped, getting punched in the ear, and testing “your” long-term Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat with busted up, worn-out, no-grip tires. I simply wasn’t able to get new meats slapped on those sweet Brass Monkey wheels in time for the red cat’s first test. These things happen. The results, of course, were inevitable.

Historically speaking, we tested a 2015 Charger Hellcat that thundered to 60 mph in 3.7 seconds before running the quarter mile in 11.8 seconds at 124.3 mph. Great numbers for a 4,562-pounder. With the dusted tires on it, the long-term Hellcat took 4.2 seconds to hit 60 mph and 12.1 seconds at 123.4 mph to get down the quarter. As the Germans who used to own Mopar would say, nicht gut.

Wrapped up in a fresh set of 275/40ZR20 Pirelli P Zeros, our 2016 Charger improves: 60 mph falls to 3.8 seconds, and the quarter mile drops to 11.9 seconds at 122.8 mph. Quicker, yeah, though not as quick as the 2015 four-door Hellcat we tested last year. However, not everything improved.

With the bad tires, the long-termer stopped from 60 mph in 103 feet, had a maximum average lateral acceleration of 0.93 g, and ran around our figure eight in 24.4 seconds. With the new tires, the braking distance from 60 mph increased to 105 feet, the maximum grip fell to 0.92 g, and the figure-eight time increased to 24.6 seconds. “Scrubbed tires improve braking and skidpad,” our testing director, Chris Walton, said, “but it rarely launch as well—especially with 707 hp.” Please note that the 2015 Charger Hellkitty was right there, stopping from 60 mph in 104 feet, pulling 0.94 g, and completing the figure eight in 24.5 seconds.

Speaking of things we discovered, the black-key-activated Eco mode doesn’t do anything positive. While making “only” 505 hp, the Hellcat returns Real MPG numbers of 17.0/23.3/19.4 mpg city/highway/combined. When running the red key and all 707 ponies, we saw 17.0/24.6/19.8 mpg. Oh, and both keys beat the stuffing out of the EPA estimates, which are 13/22/18. Lesson here is never Eco when Hellcatting. Think of the planet.

More on our long-term Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat here:

Arrival
Update 1: Hungry, Hungry Hellcat

2016 Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat
BASE PRICE	$68,640
PRICE AS TESTED	$73,725
VEHICLE LAYOUT	Front-engine, RWD, 5-pass, 4-door sedan
ENGINE	6.2L/707-hp/650-lb-ft supercharged OHV 16-valve V-8
TRANSMISSION	8-speed automatic
CURB WEIGHT (F/R DIST)	4,530 lb (57/43%)
WHEELBASE	120.4 in
LENGTH x WIDTH x HEIGHT	200.8 x 75.0 x 58.3 in
0-60 MPH	3.8 sec
QUARTER MILE	11.9 sec @ 122.8 mph
BRAKING, 60-0 MPH	105 ft
LATERAL ACCELERATION	0.92 g (avg)
MT FIGURE EIGHT	24.6 sec @ 0.82 g (avg)
EPA CITY/HWY/COMB FUEL ECON	13/22/16 mpg
ENERGY CONS, CITY/HWY	259/153 kW-hrs/100 miles
CO2 EMISSIONS, COMB	1.22 lb/mile