Charger Hellcat Redeye: Beautifully Insane & Insanely Beautiful
Charger Redeye Hellcat is rowdy, relentless and ruthless, yet perfect for your next family road trip.
For nearly seven years, the SRT Team’s crowning achievements (though clandestine pet projects at the time) have ruled American streets and dragstrips with fury and might. But if Dodge does one thing better than any of the other Big Three from Detroit, it’s offering insane amounts of power with the most comfy, leisure-minded interiors American Muscle can offer. A Charger Redeye? Yes, it is insane, but it’s par for the course with Dodge.
Yet, you’ve also got menacing fender flares, beefier supercharger, wider wheels, competition suspension. It’s everything the Charger Hellcat Widebody is–only with 80 more horsepower. Bigger is better, and the smiles it puts on peoples faces are best of all.
Hellcats are larger than life, and this Redeye is no different. But they also have finesse in other areas worth noting. So, let’s talk about it (also, in case you’re a history buff, yes, that is indeed the SS Lane Victory used in WWII in the background).
Photo: Michael Palmer, Internet Brands AG
First Impressions with the Charger Redeye
Ever since Dodge’s fleet managers dropped the behemoth Mopar off at my house, I’ve had near-incessant inquiry from literally everyone from kids to cops. It’s always pleasant conversation. But it also makes production a little challenging sometimes. Nonetheless, I immediately took my family for the obligatory spin.
Needless to say, they were thrilled as much as they were jaw-dropped at the performance. Who wouldn’t be at 797 horsepower and 707 lbs-ft. of torque being violently (but gloriously) pushed through a hearty street/strip drivetrain draped with plush seats?
Their awe, however, is not at the insane amounts of power the Charger Redeye transfers onto the pavement but just how damn comfy and spacious it is. These Laguna leather seats aren’t designo grade, but they are much softer than the Mustang or even the Camaro.
Despite being plusher, they also offer more contour than the competition. So even while you’re going frighteningly fast, it still feels easygoing the whole time.
If you look at it more dogmatically, it exists in an interstitial space between two extremes: leisure and chaos. And that is where it is most comfortable.
Of course they have all heard of the term “Hellcat,” in some way or another. They are also well aware of the connotations that word really has. Despite knowing the car is a sedan, they went from excitement over the name to flabbergasted (in a good way) at the experience. This is all a testament to how well Dodge’s branding really works, and how the SRT Team’s focus has really paid off.
‘Even with ECS on, you can still pretty handedly overcome traction control. You don’t even need to be at a dig to have your backend get away from you, thanks to 797 HP. But like a well-behaved feline, this cat can be just as tame as a Honda Accord, if you so desire.’
Others really enjoyed the hue, “Smoke Show,” a color first offered on the 2020 Challenger and Charger Hellcats. It effectively replaces the 2017 Destroyer Gray color, and looks absolutely astonishing in person.
I normally dislike silver or silvery-gray cars (they are so hard to shoot properly), however the Satin Black Wrap package ($3,495) makes the sedan almost impossible to not look at. And it squarely reminds me of the only gray/grey color I have ever fallen in love with.
Who knew such a gloomy shade could be so alluring to the eyes?
Driving Impressions + More Gorgeous Shots Next…
