F8 Green Dodge Challenger Demon runs a 9.378 at 146 miles per hour launching from just over idle.
This week’s Track Time Tuesday video comes to us from the YouTube channel of Doug Ritter and it features his 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon making a blast down the quarter mile at Grand Bend Motorplex. This car was tuned by the modern Mopar racing experts at High Horse Performance, and not only does it run in the low 9-second range, but it does so while carrying the front wheels high and far on the launch. Most importantly, this Demon is launched from just over idle, without the added power of the transbrake and Torque Reserve system.
Build
Doug Ritter’s F8 Green Dodge Demon is not stock, but the mod list is fairly short.
The supercharged Hemi has been fitted with a stock-size ATI Super Damper, a 2.75-inch upper pulley, ID1050x injectors, a JBA catalytic convertor delete, a 180-degree thermostat and a Q16 tune from High Horse Performance. The car has also been fitted with a 15-inch Wilwood front and rear brake package, tucked behind drag skinnies up front and big, fat Mickey Thompson Pro Drag tires out back.
So this Demon has pulleys, injectors, cat delete, and a world-class Q16 tune from HHP, along with smaller wheels, the smaller brakes needed to fit under those wheels and a good set of sticky tires.
That short mod list makes this Challengerconsiderably quicker than the stock Dodge claim, while also allowing to do some impressive wheelies for a car of this size and weight.
Wheels-up 9s
In the short video above, Ritter is already inching into the starting beams when the footage begins. He launches from just over idle, around 1,200 rpm without the transbrake, so the car is very loud until the second he launches, at which point it gets a whole lot loud.
Not only does this green Demonrip the front wheels close to a foot off of the ground, but it carries them a bit and brings the front end down smoothly. This leads to a smooth run down the track, stopping the times at 9.378 at 146.12 miles per hour, leaving with a 1.313 60-foot time and a 5.976 eighth mile.
"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.
"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.
"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.
"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.
"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.
