Last week we brought you the news of a factory stock Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat owned by Jay Gustafson running an 11.08 with every factory component including the stock Pirelli performance tires. Jay’s 11.08 is the quickest fully stock time I have seen online for a Hellcat Challenger, but this past weekend, Gustafson was back at Cecil County Dragway for the last racing of the season.
His hope was to pull down a 10-second ¼ mile time with his stock-to-the-tires Hellcat Challenger, and he did just that.
Early in the day, Gustafson and his Hellcat Challenger took advantage of the cool Maryland weather to set a couple of scorching runs of 11.02 and 11.03. After those two runs, Jay texted me and told me that we was concerned that his tires only had a couple runs left, but as it turns out, his Hellcat Challenger only needed one more run.
On his best run of the day, Jay Gustafson and his Plum Crazy Hellcat Challenger made it through the top end beams in just 10.997 seconds, with a speed of almost 129 miles per hour. To my knowledge – and the knowledge of many active Hellcat racers – that is the first 10 second ¼ mile by a fully stock Hellcat car, so in addition to being the first in the 10s, Gustafson’s Challenger is the quickest stock Hellcat car in the world.
Unfortunately, he was by himself so there was no one to film the run, but the important note here is that Jay Gustafson has proven that in the right conditions, a well driven Hellcat Challenger with go 10s with the stock tires.
"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.
