Rumormill: There Might Be an 850hp Hellcat Challenger Coming in 2019

While there has been no official word whatsoever from FCA, insider information suggests that the company is working on a more powerful Hellcat Hemi for the 2019 or 2020 Dodge Challenger – one which will allegedly offer some 850 horsepower in street legal form.

I should open by pointing out that I am a little skeptical of these insider reports, even though these insiders have proven to be accurate in the past with future Mopar information. To me, it seems unlikely that FCA would spend the money to create the 850 horsepower Hellcat Hemi and go through the rigorous emission tests when the current Hellcat Hemi with 707 horsepower doesn’t have any real competition in the US market. However, all sorts of people claiming to be in-the-know state that there is an 850 horsepower supercharged Hemi in the works and the intention is for this engine to be used in a road-going version of the future Dodge Challenger.

While it seems like Dodge might not “need” an 850 horsepower Hemi in the Challenger right now, since the Mopar muscle car is already the king of the segment in terms of power can performance capabilities, but we know that both Ford and General Motors are working on their own answer to the Hellcat – and we can bet that they will have more than 707 horsepower. Fortunately, we know that during the early R&D stages of the Hellcat Hemi program, the company was able to get 825 horsepower out of the engine without any problem.

Well, there was one problem – based on internal sources, emission tests would have been a problem in the 825 horsepower setting, so for the sake of those folks who live in states which rely on California emission standards, Dodge went with a “conservative” setting of 707 horsepower.

In the hands of private owners, there are scores of Dodge Challengers with lightly worked Hellcat engines and with a mod list as simple as a new blower pulley, free flowing exhaust, a higher volume fuel system and a good engine tune with engine output in excess of 900 horsepower. There are others running more elaborate builds making over a thousand horsepower and in almost all of these custom-built cars – the engines and the drivetrain components are holding up well.

In short, the current Hellcat Hemi in the 2015-2016 Dodge Challenger and Dodge Charger is very capable of making over 850 horsepower and putting that power to the ground reliably, so with some tweaks, there is no reason that FCA cant bump their supercharged Hemi up to 850 horsepower. The trick will be getting this engine to pass emission tests in the strictest states – but with this information suggesting that this car will arrive in 2019 or 2020, the engineers have several years to work out the bugs.

Patrick Rall

"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.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

Rall can be contacted at QuickMirada@Yahoo.com

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