After a slow start, the supercharged Mopar comes from behind to chomp on the cammed Chevy like Pac-Man.
The video above comes to us from the Monster Garage YouTube channel and it features a Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat taking on a fifth generation Chevrolet Camaro. This footage appears to be from the revamped Lapeer Dragwayin Michigan and in the cool autumn air, the big Mopar sedan gets a slow start, but it runs down the Chevy muscle car on the big end.
Unfortunately, there are no details on the two American performance machines in action, but we can make a few assertions based on what we can see and hear.
Charger vs. Camaro
First, both cars have sticky tires out back and skinny, lightweight tire up front. The Camaro sounds like it is cammed and has big exhaust, making it louder than the Charger at idle. There is no obvious sound of forced induction from the Camaro, nor is there a nitrous purge, but based on the top end results, there is no question that this Chevy is making solid power. It could be a big N/A build or it could have something that we can’t hear, but in any case, it is quick.
As for the Charger, in addition to the aftermarket wheels and tires, it doesn’t need all that much to run in the nine-second range. This car could have a build as simple as pulleys, a race gas tune and a little nitrous to run the times needed to run down a Camaro running high 10s.
The Battle
After the Camaro and Charger clean off their tires, both cars carefully stage and when the green lights drop, the Chevy is the first to head down track. In fact, the Dodge leaves so much later that it almost looks like a bracket race, but it is not.
Early on, the race looks to be an easy win for the Chevy, but the Hellcat sedan quickly closes the gap and at the end of the track, the two are side by side. In fact, we can’t tell which car wins, as the time in the right lane doesn’t come up and there is no win light, but the video title claims that this Dodge ran in the 9s. We don’t know that for sure, but there is no question that this supercharged SRT sedan closed quick on the Camaro.
"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.
