There are plenty of things we come across while browsing the web daily here at Landmark Dodge of Morrow that initially seem hard to believe! Americans were not the first high-octane-loving nation to cram a good deal of power into a 3-row SUV, as the Motor1.com blogging staff revealed this week. Even though this very detailed honor goes to Mercedes-Benz, Dodge was the entity that perfected this task!
The Dodge Durango Hellcat debuted in 2021 and still claims the title of the mightiest gas-powered three-row SUV on Earth. It arrives fully flexed at the table with 710 horsepower and 645 lb-ft of torque and can blast up to 60 mph in just 3.5 seconds flat. The details regarding the Durango Hellcat’s future are now official news, with the brand moving rapidly away from gas power to full electrification.
The V-8 Durango, Charger, and Challenger may soon be a distant memory, but they sure are worth every bit of commemoration and true gearhead’s respect in the meantime! The patented Hellcat experience begins the instant you press the red ignition button, and your neighbors receive a hefty dose of boisterous 8-cylinder roar. This is the same engine used in everything from the Charger sedan to the TRX truck, while it musters up more power here than in any other application.
This all is adamantly required to move the 5,710 lbs. of mass heaped right down on top of it, and here the Motor1.com experts claim that the Durango “goes like stink” when you get down hard on the throttle. A distinct and shrill supercharger whine quickly populates the cabin, and a deep exhaust note escapes the back of the quad exhaust tips. You can enjoy the petrol head’s perk of watching the physical speedometer rapidly rise in speed, and experience outright ability from a vehicle that is blisteringly fast for a 3-row SUV.
The throttle quality here is as responsive as it gets, enough so that kneading around a big-box parking lot most definitely seems a bit painstaking. Expert writer Jeff Perez was excited to constantly be pushing the limits, while putting things into Sport or Track mode made the Dodge Durango Hellcat even hungrier and more athletic. Whether you opt for the paddle shifters or not, the ZF 8-speed switches with a ferocious quality, and it’s tough to tell that you’re tasked with lugging a 17-foot SUV around.
The suspension is soft without “having a full-on yard sale” of sorts too much in turns, and the steering has a genuine and thoroughly weighted boost. The quite massive 15.7-inch six-piston Brembo rotors complete their braking duties excellently, with the pedal offering a permissive yet purposeful application. The front chairs are wrapped in red Nappa leather and boast the Hellcat logo stamped directly onto the seatback. The charms of carbon and steel designed for going fast in a straight line are seemingly basic yet rewarding. This is a last blast of bravado that anyone with a penchant for the finer things on pavement will be proud of.
