(Words: Keith Griffin – Photos: Keith Griffin/Chrysler) – Anybody who has passed by the Internet in the last few days knows the 2015 Dodge Challenger has a 6.2-liter supercharged Hellcat engine that produces a jaw dropping 707 horsepower and 650 lb. ft. of torque. It is the most powerful American production car ever. But a number many people overlook comes via Darryl Smith, chief engineer, Dodge Challenger SRT. The Hellcat produces 411 lb. ft. of torque at 1200 rpm. When other cars are just beginning to think about accelerating, the Challenger stands ready to pump out 411 lb. ft. of torque. There are sports cars that don’t produce that much torque period.

As drives around Portland, Oregon streets and the Portland International Raceway demonstrated, at no time does the Challenger lack for acceleration. Nothing holds this car back. Mark Trostle, head of SRT & Mopar Design, put it best during a presentation when he said the engine “punches everybody in the face.” This car, without going all fanboy on you, simply oozes power.

The Challenger has always had a strong reputation for going balls out in a straight line (and it keeps that cred with a 11.2-second quarter mile in stock tires). A big surprise is now it can corner. Even in the midst of a steady rain the Challenger easily handles PRI’s road course. Now, though, as ably demonstrated during a hot lap on a wet track, this Challenger won’t shy away from curves and turns.

With great power comes the need for strong brakes. This car not only has neck- snapping acceleration (you will rarely get beat when the light turns green) but it also snaps your neck when braking at first. The 15.4-inch Brembo two-piece rotors with six-piston calipers take some getting used to. Fortunately the electronic nannies (i.e. ABS, ESC and traction control) can be configured to your driving habits. Dodge has gone overboard to make sure there are no failures in the Hellcat. Performance problems could torpedo this car to has-been status faster than you can say Chevy Vega.

The Hellcat’s two available transmissions, an 8-speed automatic (with 30 percent greater maximum engine-torque capacity) and a 6-speed manual, are both performance proven. The manual shifter, now a ball and no longer a pistol grip, is a modified Viper-sourced transmission with an internal cooling pump and external, vehicle-mounted oil cooler. The final-drive ratio for the TorquFlite automatic transmission in the Hellcat is 2.62. The transmission’s overall top gear is 1.76. Shifting is smooth with the six-speed manual as expected. But spend the $1400 on the eight-speed TorqueFlight transmission. You are not going to be able to out shift the automatic. Maybe one-tenth of 1 percent of the population could. You’re just not that quick.

It’s a testament to how far technology has come that the onboard computer offers four modes to tailor the driving experience by controlling horsepower, transmission shift speeds, steering, paddle shifters, traction and suspension. The track system intuits (with probably 8000 lines of code) when a driver wants to drift through corners vs. losing control. The ESC will kick in for the latter while the system will benevolently standby for the former.

Launch control is standard in the Hellcat. According to Dodge, its performance is upgraded thanks to stiffer, asymmetric half-shafts that greatly reduce that frustrating hop when you punch the accelerator. Dodge has also strengthened the CV joints so nothing drops when it’s not supposed to.

Helping propel all this power is the Hellcat’s twin screw supercharger. (No turbos allowed on a Dodge paying homage to the 1971 classic.) “We can suck all the air out of a hotel room in less than a minute,” is how Chief Engineer Smith describes the strength of the air intake system that is fed by an inlet port in the driver’s side headlight. It looks like a flaw but it isn’t. Internal charge coolers and an integrated electronic bypass valve regulate boost pressure to a maximum of 11.6 PSI. Strengthened fuel/cooling systems help the Challenger stand up to the harshness of track days. The ceramic catalysts are capable of withstanding temperatures up to 1922 degrees Farenheit and a high-capacity oil/air heat exchanger, mounted in the front of the car, mitigates oil temperatures.

A new rear axle also stands up to the higher torque output. It features a lightweight aluminum housing; cooling fins; high-efficiency head, tail and differential bearings; and low-viscosity fluid. It also benefits from welded ring gears; hardened shims for added strength; robust four-pinion differential; and, a four-point mounting system for improved stability. The asymmetric limited-slip differential, Dodge points out, allows for unique bias-ration tuning for on- and off-throttle behavior. It enhances grip, stability, and steering response, which results in smoother power delivery for hard acceleration on corner exits. Less experienced drivers (i.e. most of the free world) will appreciate the latter. Muck up a sharp right-hand turn of a road course and the Hellcat is going to get you back in the game quickly. It even steps back with force on those occasions when the electronic nanny pulls you back from going wheels off the course.

The Hellcat rides on standard 275/40ZR20 Pirelli P Zero all-season tires. The new standard wheels are SRT-exclusive “Slingshot” split-seven spoke 20 x 9.5-inch lightweight forged-aluminum wheels with a matte black finish (or optional “Brass Monkey” dark bronze finish because apparently you can never have enough animal references on a muscle car.) Not that fans of true power really care what the inside of a muscle car looks like but the Challenger Hellcat is, dare we say it, almost luxurious and draws a lot of inspiration from the Dodge Charger. It has a prominent gauge cluster and driver-oriented cockpit. It’s a minor touch but cupholders were installed on the doors so as not to interfere with manual shifting.

This is the most technologically advanced Challenger ever to hit the road. (It even has an available WiFi hub.) It’s lacking for no creature comforts and has a nice mixture of soft-touch surfaces. It’s a true highway cruiser with a quiet cabin even tooling along at 80 mph in a driving rain. Well-bolstered seats provide nice levels of comfort.