Dodge Challenger Drag Pak With a Twin-Turbo I6 Just Feels Wrong
Dodge was testing the twin-turbo Challenger Hurricane Drag Pak at Roadkill Nights, and it did not bring the thunder.
The modern Hemi V8, like it or not, is one of the icons of modern performance. It made a loud, thundering V8 available to everyone, bad credit or not. Okay, yeah they are a bit of a public nuisance when it comes to rogue Dodge Challengers and Chargers roaming the streets, but anyone who has driven one can’t help but love it. And after you listen to this video of the Hurricane twin-turbo inline-six-powered Challenger Drag Pak testing at Roadkill Nights, you’ll start to miss it too.
Dodge has made quite the occasion of the Hemi V8 going away after this generation of cars. It’s almost been Pagani Zonda-esque in the way that there are models that feel like the last one, there is usually another, more special V8-powered one right behind it. The third-generation Hemi engine has been around since the early aughts and has seen continual iteration until it finally became a cultural staple in the mid-2010s. Now, the V8 and its sound have been weaved into popular culture, with Hemi becoming something of a household name brand.
But the naturally aspirated or supercharged V8 can’t exist forever in this world. And it's one of the last ones standing next to the Chevy small block and Ford Coyote. Emissions and fuel economy requirements are only getting more strict, and every automaker has an exit strategy. Dodge is going with the Hurricane inline-six.
The Hurricane can certainly make the horsepower, with the High Output Hurricane making 500 horsepower–enough to beat the 6.4-liter Hemi. Where it falls short is in acoustics. Dodge was testing the Challenger Drag Pak with the Hurrican at Roadkill Nights, where it looked fast and hooked up well. However, it did not match the thunder of the V8s that surrounded it. It has a classically six-cylinder sound with a bit of rasp and bass but overall, it sounded flat.
Of course, there could be huge power potential with the Hurricane. Once it has a huge turbo and a louder exhaust, it’ll probably sound way sicker. But as it sits, it doesn’t match the Hemi even slightly in sound. Give it some time, and I’m sure Dodge will figure it out.
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