Murdered-out Dodge station wagon runs an 8.88 with upwards of 1,300 horsepower.
This week’s Track Time Tuesday comes to us from the BigKleib34 YouTube channel and it features what the title calls “the sickest Dodge Magnum you’ll ever lay eyes on”. Based on the walk-around, the sole 8-second pass that we see in the video and the fact that it previously went so fast that the hood came apart on the top end, we are inclined to agree.
In fact, if anyone has proof of a Dodge Magnum that is more badass than this one, share information about it in the comments so that we can check it out. In the meantime, here are the details on this HHP-built super-wagon.
Wheels-up Launch
The video above begins with a quick look at the Dodge Magnum as hot-shoe Gary Rhudy climbs in and heads out to the track for a run during a Modern Street Hemi Shootout event. The man behind the camera points out that Rhudy runs a great many vehicles for different people at the track and the driver jokes that if you leave your keys in the car, he might make a pass in it.
Jokes aside, Rhudy quickly shows why people put him in their cars. The big, black station wagon lifts the front wheels off of the ground and storms down the quarter mile in just 8.88 seconds with a trap speed of 155.08.
HHP Magnum
After the track pass, Rhudy talks about the car in the pits. He explains that it is powered by a 404-cubic inch Hemi built by BESand tuned by Josh Schwartz of High Horse Performance. With the help of an F-1A-94 ProCharger, this wagon packs around 1,300 horsepower, but it is set up for a nitrous system that is not in use, but when engaged will lift the output to around 1,600 horsepower. At that point, Rhudy and the rest of the team are hoping for a 7-second quarter mile, but in this video, they were dealing with a blower belt issue that prevented more 8-second runs.
In addition to discussing the belt problem, Rhudy talks about a previous run where the custom hood came apart on the top end at over 155 miles per hour. BigKleib includes a short clip of that incident, which ended up in some obvious damage to the car, but Rhudy was able to get it stopped with the hood across the windshield without hitting anything.
Based on the available power from the nitrous system, there is a very real chance that this Dodge Magnum could get into the 7-second range next season, but in the meantime, it is one of the sickest modern Mopar wagons in the world.
"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.
