Only a few years ago U.S. car makers where in deep, deep trouble for making pointless rubbish and had to be rescued by the government. So one would have thought they’d played safe now that they’re out of the woods. But no. The new plan was more daring than before and, judging by the success of stuff like Hellcat, it’s worked out just fine.
Since 2010 the Big Three have been putting out some seriously powerful fun machines that in the time of recession would have broken their back. Now though, with the economy flourishing and excess one again a virtue, we get 600+ horsepower Corvettes and 700+ horsepower Hellcat Dodges. And they are selling like hot cakes. Dodge has just announced they are more than doubling the production both Hellcat models, Charger and Challenger, to meet the increasing demand.
The dealers are apparently shifting these cars faster than Dodge can make them. Powered by a 707 horsepower and 650 lb.-ft. of torque HEMI V8, the rather unsophisticated Dodge Charger and Challenger are as American as shock and awe. They are big and all about big numbers. It’s no wonder Americans love them. They are pretty accurate representation of the ideal American state of mind, which is massive power, little or no finesse, a lot of noise, getting things done.
“We could not have asked for a more enthusiastic response to the Charger and Challenger SRT Hellcats – it was absolutely unprecedented, but then again, these 707-horsepower muscle cars are unprecedented,” said Tim Kuniskis, President and CEO, Dodge and SRT brands, FCA US. “To meet this demand, we are more than doubling our SRT Hellcat production for 2016 and simplifying the process to make it easier for our enthusiasts to get their hands on the hottest muscle cars in history. In addition, customers with verified sold orders that weren’t built in the 2015 model year will receive special discounted pricing if they re-order in 2016.”