2023 Dodge Challenger Demon 170 Is Already Banned From NHRA Quarter-Mile Drags

Without a roll cage and a parachute, the NHRA won’t let any car go as fast as the Demon 170 down a quarter mile.

byPeter Holderith|
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The Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 is too quick for its own good. The 1,025-horsepower E85-powered muscle car can hit 60 mph in just 1.66 seconds and run a quarter-mile in just 8.91 seconds at 151.17 mph. That's all well and good if you have a private dragstrip, but at a National Hot Rod Association-regulated track, you're going to need a roll cage and a parachute.

And the Demon 170 does not come standard with a roll cage or a parachute.

A safety cage and a parachute are both optional extras. However, because it runs a quarter mile in less than nine seconds and those items are not included as standard, it'll be banned in its stock form. That's after the NHRA recently relaxed rules around the times that 2014 model-year and newer cars can run. Cars like the old Dodge Demon and the Tesla Model S Plaid could not legally race without modification at NHRA drag strips until last year when the association said nine seconds was now the fastest newer cars could go, reduced from 10 seconds. At 8.91 seconds, The Demon 170 is nearly one-tenth too fast.

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Indeed, it's as fast or quicker than almost anything you're going to see on the street or anything in its price range. At a bound-to-be-marked-up MSRP of $96,666 before destination fees, it's cheaper than its closest electric competitors, the Lucid Air Sapphire and the Tesla Model S Plaid. The Lucid costs a massive $249,000, and the Tesla is $109,990 (before destination). It is faster than the Tesla at an official 9.23-second time, but Lucid claims the Air Sapphire can do a quarter mile in less than nine seconds. It does not specify an exact figure, however. In terms of ICE competition, the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport will conquer the quarter in around 9.4 seconds.

This all comes with caveats. The Demon 170 effectively has slick rear tires and its 1.66-second 0-60 time was recorded on a prepped track. In other words, it probably won't do that time on the street. Its electric competition, equipped with all-wheel drive, likely can achieve closer to their stated performance figures without a rubbered-in surface. That being said, the drag strip is the only really safe place to test this kind of performance.

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