Racing a 1,300 HP Hellcat with Twin Turbos: Wicked Wednesday Presented by the All-New Nitto Recon Grappler™ A/T

Blazing 1,300 HP Hellcat beast has 115 octane fuel running through its veins and massive amounts of air forced into its lungs. 

Traction and power. If you want to win a drag race you will need both of them in equal measure. The Charger Hellcat has enough power from the factory to put a lot of cars on the trailer. However, if you are going to compete at Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge, you are going to need more than a stock Hellcat. A lot more. Something close to double the power ought to be about right. But, a 1,300 HP Hellcat won’t win races, if you can’t get the car to hook and the power to the ground.

This week’s “Wicked Wednesday” presented by Nitto Tire features YouTuber Westen Champlin and his Dodge Charger Hellcat Redeye. You may remember, a couple months ago we reported that Dodge gave Champlin the Hellcat to compete at Roadkill Nights.

Well, Champlin and his team have been very busy since that time turning the stock car into a drag strip terror. The power side of the equation is taken care of, but will the car have the grip it needs to compete? Champlin posts a video of his Hellcat racing on Woodward Avenue on his YouTube channel. Win, lose or draw, this car is fun to watch.

Mods

A Charger Hellcat Redeye tips the scales at over 4,600 pounds, so it is not exactly light on its feet. The first thing Champlin did was strip every non-essential part out of it to bring down the weight as much as possible. Then a full rear suspension kit was added to help get the power to the ground. A triple pump fuel system was also installed to handle the 115-octane racing fuel.

But the icing on top of the power cake is a pair of 64-millimeter turbos from Hellion Turbo. These turbos do not replace the supercharger that Dodge installs on the Hellcat. These turbos work with the supercharger and force a massive amount of air into the engine. The result is over 1,300 HP. That is a big number, but is it enough to dominate on race day?

Tech Inspection

You can’t race if you don’t pass tech so the first order of business is to get the car inspected. Everything in the car needs to be secured and mufflers need to be installed. But this is where you can take some liberties with the rules. When asked if the car has mufflers Champlin replies: “spinning ones.”

Turbos do muffle engine sound, so technically he isn’t lying. With tech out of the way it is time to get this Hellcat out on the track.

Warm Up Races

In the first race Champlin goes up against another Hellcat Charger. He is beaten off the line but manages to pip the other car right at the finish. Champlin was not able to go more than half throttle as the car would just spin its rear wheels if any more power was applied. Still a win is a win. Champlin sums up the first race this way: “It didn’t blow up. It’s good!”

After playing with the tire pressure Champlin has a better second run and easily beats the Challenger he is pitted against. But he was still spinning wheels. This time he was able to go to two thirds throttle but nothing more. If he hopes to take the overall win, he is going to have to figure out how to get all the power down.

Third time is a charm. On the third run Champlin is able to get more power down and he rockets down the course to another easy victory. But now the warmups are over, and it is time to race for real.

The Real Races

In the first round Champlin is lined up against a yellow Challenger and takes an easy win. However, you can see he leaves the line gingerly as going full throttle at the start would result in nothing more than tire smoke. But he does make it to the final round.

In the final round Champlin is up against Alex Taylor in her Challenger. This race was not even close. Taylor got a jump off the line. A little bit of an early jump it seems, and Champlin spun his rears for nearly the entire quarter mile. Taylor walked to an easy victory. At the end of the day, the 1,300 HP Hellcat just could not use enough of its power to be able to take the win.

The Video

To see all the action for yourself checkout the video below. The power that all of the Hellcats can put down with only $10,000 worth of modifications is truly astounding. And reliable power, as all of the cars ran fine for the duration of the event.

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Joe Kucinski

Joe has been obsessed with cars since he got his very first Matchbox toy in the 1970s. In 2003, he found a new obsession in track days that led to obtaining his SCCA competition license in 2015. In 2019, he became a certified driving instructor for the National Auto Sport Association. His love for all things four wheels has never wavered, whether it's driving some of the best cars in the world on the racetrack, tackling 2,000-mile road trips in 2-seat sports cars or being winched off the side of a mountaintop in a Jeep. Writing for the suite of Internet Brands Auto Communities sites, including Rennlist.com, Ford Truck Enthusiasts, 6 Speed and more allows him to share that knowledge and passion with others.