Dodge Challenger SRT-8 392 lap time at Willow Springs - Streets of Willow Extended

Yep. Q: "If your looking for a Muscle Car, Or a car thats in a similar segment, Your going to look at all 3 plain and simple. And "Usually" most of the time, When somebody would buy a Challenger, Its more about wallet size and style then comfort." I am one of those who chose to buy a Challenger. I've owned 2 of the modern versions. I've also owned two 5.0 Stangs in the past. Like them also. While people looking for American muscle look at all 3, they choose a car based on their personal requirements/preferences. A very large percentage of Challenger owners choose them because they want a GT. Not a "pony." I know this to be a fact. I am a member of 2 Challenger Forums (including Challengertalk, which has 33,000 members). We have discussions like this on all the time. These owners bought the generally more expensive car because the interior is more plush, it has more room, and it is a Muscle Car, vice Pony. The people who want track performers get Camaros.

...The next Challenger is getting smaller, And lighter that has been confirmed, Not bigger and heavier, You can still have a comfortable GT without weighing as much as an oil tanker. It competes with both Mustang and Camaro on both a consumer market and a performance market, How many comparisons have there been on those 2 subjects?..Exactly. If your looking for a Muscle Car, Or a car thats in a similar segment, Your going to look at all 3 plain and simple. And "Usually" most of the time, When somebody would buy a Challenger, Its more about wallet size and style then comfort.

If it was intended to be a sportscar, yes, but it's not. Its a GT. I stand by my earlier posts. It has been given more power in the HC trim lines. It does not need to get smaller. An aluminum motor would make it a little lighter. The hood is aluminum. The skin of the car is the thinnest metal in the industry. There really is not a lot to cut, unless it got smaller or less comfortable. If the car got smaller, it would compete against Mustang/Camaro in the consumer market. It doesn't. It gets customers looking for a modern Muscle Car, vice Modern Pony Car. It is "Pony" in shape only. It is more of a modern; Chevelle, GTX; Roadrunner; Impala SS; Satellite; Charger, etc--U pick. People choose to buy Challengers because they are big. If they wanted a smaller/lighter car, they would get a Mustang. Same reason as why people bought Chevelle SS instead of Camaro SS back in the day.

They tested the 6.4, The difference between the RT Scat and the SRT 392 isn't big when comparing around a bend or acceleration.

And the Challenger does need to go on a diet, It always has since it's introduction.

@Hemisrt
The SCAT name is like false advertising.... I agree.
It makes it sounds like Dodge is trying to make a track-ready Challenger. But clearly it's not.
Just don't blame MotorTrend and say "they tested the wrong car". They tested the 3 cars performance(track) packs. It's Dodge's fault for saying it's track capable when it's clearly not.
Like you said, the Challenger is much more GT-oriented, with enormous power, acceleration, & speed. And it's definitely more spacious, comfy, & luxurious than any Mustang or Camaro.

The Trac Pac (on Scat Pacs) is not a real suspension upgrade (it's an old/"slight" upgrade to 5.7 RT's--which the 6.4 RT now has). Scat pac includes bigger sway bars on the 5.7 RT, and "old tech" Bilstein shocks). Infact, Scat Pac was a marketing gimmick, based on old option packages offered on early 70's Mopar--Bee emblem and all. And Dodge is currently being sued by the Scat company for copyright infringement. The 15' SRT has bigger brakes (suitable to it's heavy mass), electric steering, 3 mode adaptable suspension, and wider tires all around. The SCAT name is like false advertising. It handle's like a 2011 SRT (which is 2 major suspension developments behind current Challengers). As for its slow time, its about as fast as the 911 shown above. 4 doors has nothing to do with track times. A WTI can have 4 doors. The 6 Series BMW's and Bentley GT coupes have better suspensions than any American Muscle Car. GT coupes are designed to handle well, "as well as a heavy car possibly can." They are a different class of car...just as 6 Series BMW's will not beat M4's on curves. I like ALL 3 American Muscle cars. The Chevy SS is built to perform well in curves. If I wanted a trac car, I'd have bought the SS, as it sits lower...and handles even better than the 5.0. But I like the better interior, comfort, and POWER and looks of the SRT.

@ hemisrt
Of course the Challenger is a GT car, but my point is a less-powerful 4-door sedan was faster than the Challenger, even when equipped with the "Scatpack"(aka track pack)...

they tested the WRONG car. The test was unfair... Not true. The R/T ScatPack is(like I said) the track pack for the Challenger. No naturally it's compared to the Mustang(performance pack) and Camaro(1LE). Totally fair, valid test. If it's meant to be a GT car then why give it a track pack? It needs a diet(at least the track pack version)...

It does not need to go on a diet. That is what the SRT suspension is for. The car is NOT a sports car. It is a GT, like a 6 Series BMW Coupe. There is a market for heavy comfortable GT's, and Challengers fill that market in the US. What this article shows is that you can now get sports car like performance in an American GT, except they tested the WRONG car. The test was unfair, as the they should have tested the 6.4 SRT against the SS and 5.0, both of which were Trac Pac editions, and still in the same class. The RT is a drag strip/stop light race machine.

Well that is good news for SRT drivers....should beat that by a few seconds.

Yes NON HellCat, I always post the source before i post a time.

Interesting that the 4-door Chevrolet SS managed a faster lap-time than the R/T Scatpack... The Challenger really needs to go on a diet.

http://m.motortrend.com/roadtests/coupes/1412_comparison_camaro_ss_1le_challenger_rt_scat_pack_mustang_gt/

@hemisrt
It's as as listed here. The R/T 6.4 Scat Pack, 485 hp. Did 4.2 to 60 and 9.9 to 100 mph.
Time in the mag is 1:25.77

I believe that time is for the 6.2 L Supercharged Hellcat, vice RT 6.4L Scat (I've seen a 1:25 "HC SRT" claim before). For comparison, I checked the "Challengertalk Forum" and saw these Challenger laptimes for at Willow Springs for stock to lightly modded 5.7L RT's: Stock-1:40, Stock-1:36, and for a "Modded" car (coilover shocks, front/rear strutbraces, Wilwood Brakes)1:30. 2011 Car and Driver times for 6.4L SRT "Pre Adaptive Suspension" Challenger at Laguna Seca was 3:09 (Vs. BMW1 @ 3:06, Mustang Boss 302 @ 3:02 and Audi TT @ 3:04). The 2015 Scatpack 6.4L Challenger does not have the "adaptive suspensions that 2012-2015 SRT's have. It should run about 1:29 on stock tires (245/255) IMO, as it uses 2011 SRT "Core" suspensions...which are basically 5.7L RT TRAC PAC components (SRT Sway bars and non-adjustable Bilstein Shocks) with 14' - 4 piston front Brembo Brakes, and smaller rear Brembo). The 2015 SRT uses 15" -6 piston Fronts and 14" - 4 piston rears brakes, on 275 tires (all around)--with 3 mode adaptive suspension. The sport mode really tightens the turns--huge difference. I believe the 6.4L SRT should do about 1:28/29