2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 Photos, engines & full specs

Dodge made the last call for the Challenger and introduced the SRT Demon 170 in 2023 for those looking for glory on the drag strip with the same car they could drive back home.

In 2023, Dodge created a special edition of the Challenger SRT Demon with more power than a Bugatti Veyron. It was so fast that it had to install a designated port for a parachute to be able to run on official NHRA drag strips, while the regular, non-170 SRT Demon was not. Furthermore, the new version was all business. There are no fancy flared wheel arches at the front, no rear seats, and no no-sense features on the vehicle, apart maybe from the sound system. That was not particularly needed on a car that could complete the quarter-mile run in 8.91-second ET at 151.17 mph (243.3 kph), but it was welcomed when the vehicle was used on public roads. That’s because, despite its outrageous performance, the SRT Demon 170 was street-legal.

While it shared many components with its regular, non-170 brother, the Demon 170 had a few details that made it look apart. At the front, Dodge installed hollow inner lamps. The one on the driver’s side fed air to the massive conic air filter, while the one on the passenger side was there to match the look, albeit some said that it added more fresh air into the engine bay. The hood featured a broad air intake and sported the wording “alcohol injected” as a warning note.

Dodge made a few slight changes to the Challenger Demon 170 compared to the rest of the range. It featured 245/55 Mickey Thompson tires up front wrapped around 18-inch alloy wheels. At the same time, in the back, the automaker adorned the rear fenders with flared wheel arches that covered the 315/50 rubbers on 17-inch wheels. This setup was made by the automaker to enhance performance, not to look awesome in the parking lot. The rear fascia featured a black panel between the rectangular LED taillights, while behind the license plate was the mounting point for a parachute. That’s right, Dodge offered one for those who wanted to outrun any other production car on a drag strip.

The interior looked like a standard Dodge Challenger with a few options on it, but the automaker made some specific changes. Fronting the driver was an instrument cluster fitted with a seven-inch digital information display flanked by the red dials of the tachometer and the speedometer. On the center stack, an additional touchscreen served both for the infotainment unit and to control driving modes, as well as to select other attributes needed on the drag strip. Despite being so potent, the 2023 Challenger RT Demon 170 was not made for track days. It could handle well, but it was not its specialty. And yet, the automaker installed high-bolstered bucket seats for the driver and their side passenger. On the center console, it placed a big handle to deploy the parachute while racing. There were no seats in the back, just a carbon fiber shelf.

Under the hood, Dodge installed the well-known 6.2-liter HEMI engine. It added a three-liter supercharger on top of it, resulting in a 900 hp (912 PS) monster powerplant when it ran on regular E10 fuel. When the special 60% mix of ethanol-gasoline fuel was used, the power went straight up to 1,025 hp (1,039 PS). Thanks to its reinforced eight-speed automatic transmission, the car could accelerate with a face-bending 2.004 g from 0 to 60 mph (0-97 kph) in just 1.66 seconds.