2020 Dodge Charger Hellcat Widebody: Bragging rights

The 707-horsepower Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody muscle car reminds me of Terry Crews, the actor and the front man for “America’s Got Talent.” Both are a chiseled wedge of entertaining fitness with pec-pumping power in a sharp suit.

Dodge says its supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi Hellcat V-8 engine continues its reign as the most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan in the world. The big sedan’s body width was stretched by 3.5 inches with fender flares and wider front and rear fascias.

The fatter flanks allowed for wider 20-inch wheels with 11-inch-wide Pirelli P-Zero high-performance tires (305/35 ZR). The suspension gets a competitive boost with SRT-tuned Bilstein three-mode adaptive shock absorbers.

And more power required bigger brakes: 15.4-inch Brembo two-piece rotors with six-piston front calipers. Dodge says the 4,587-pound Charger Widebody takes 107 feet to stop from 60 mph, which puts it among the ranks of two-seat sports cars.

Making the most of this nameplate, Dodge debuted the redesigned Charger in 2014 as a 2015. And it is adding widebody and Hellcat options for other models, including the 840-horsepower Challenger SRT Demon.

The basic Charger family sedan, in rear or all-wheel drive, starts with a 292-hp or 300-hp V-6 (with fuel economy of 19/30/23 city/highway combined or 18/17/21 with AWD). Moving up the power chain are the V-8s: the 360-hp 5.7-liter Hemi or a 485-hp 392 Hemi (15/24/18 mpg) and up to the supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi Hellcats.

Charger starting prices range from about $31,000 ($34,500 for AWD) up to about $62,000 for the Hellcat, including the $1,495 freight charge from Brampton, Ontario, Canada.

There are two choices of Hellcat Widebody, with pricing of $71,140 or $75,635 for the 717-hp Daytona edition. Special paint striping or graphics, wheel options with special brake-caliper colors, an audio upgrade and even red seat belts can push the price to $84,000. (Check Dodge.com for incentives. Recently there was a $7,070 cash allowance.)

New for 2020 are instrument panel Hellcat badging, a Carbon & Suede Interior Package and two optional wheel designs.

Today’s non-Daytona Hellcat Widebody tester was $81,710, including a $2,100 gas-guzzler tax.

This big bruiser has a level of stompin’ burn-in-hell fury, but it lives on a second stage of accelerator action. It doesn’t take much, however, to scratch the match.

Hit the red start button and the mighty Hemi booms to life and idles like an outlaw before settling into a deep, intense bass. Pull the shifter into Drive and the Hellcat moves out with the grace of a luxury liner. It moves decisively with a light touch to the electric steering amid a well soundproofed cabin. I was ready for anger but was met with a confidence that didn’t need gimmicky sound effects or hyped performance. The whine of the supercharger is enough.

This muscle monster is ever-ready to boil its 20-inch Pirelli P Zeroes into clouds of white smoke. The force is handily distributed by the eight-speed TorqueFlite high-performance automatic.

Give it a hard launch and the Hellcat bellows a death charge through 650 foot-pounds of torque, at 4,800 rpm. It hurtles to 60 mph in 3.6 seconds, the quarter mile in 10.96 seconds and on to a top speed of 196 mph, which I did not feel the need to verify. That’s an impressive display for a family sedan weighing 4,587 pounds.

You can almost hear the premium fuel being sucked from the 18.5-gallon tank, earning a black flag as a gas-guzzler — but it might be worth it for such driving pleasure. Its official fuel economy ratings are 12 mpg city, 21 highway and 15 mpg combined on the required premium. (I noted 12.2 mpg in city driving.)

And its near rock-bottom EPA emissions ratings for fuel economy, greenhouse gas and smog muster just a two and one out of 10.

Hellcat cocktail

A Hellcat is built for abuse with a cocktail of heavy-duty track reinforcements. Among them, a competition suspension, line-lock launch control and launch assist, after-run chiller, anti-spin rear differential and performance shift indicator. And there are driver-customizable performance settings, such as for steering weight, in the SRT Performance Pages.

New owners also get a one-day SRT Track Experience at the Bondurant Racing School in Chandler, Ariz.

Helping to keep the driver on the straight and narrow are such safety features as blind spot and cross-path detection, brake knock-back mitigation and traction controls with four-mode performance settings, plus six air bags.

The tester’s cabin with the Laguna leather upholstery and the carbon-fiber and suede headliner package ($1,595) created a posh lair. Standard features include heated and ventilated front seats, heated steering wheel, heated back seats and a six-speaker Alpine audio system. And there are four USB ports for device charging and plenty of console room for an e-bin.

The back seats have as much comfort and support as the front sport seats with big-sedan legroom of 40 inches. The trunk is wide, low and spacious at 16.5 cubic feet.

The Hellcats have good company in their civil disobedience. In the last year Chevrolet introduced a more powerful (495-hp) midengine Corvette Stingray. Ford matched swords with a 760-horsepower Mustang Shelby GT500. Toyota brought back its Supra as a six-cylinder, two-seat performance hardtop. Nissan honored its 565-horsepower GT-R supercar with a 50^th anniversary edition. And the luxury brands are in their own race for power domination.

There is no place except a race track to legally exercise this car to its limits. And there is no need for a 700-plus-horsepower Hellcat in the wrong hands. But those are the bragging rights for this family supercar with a 60/40 folding back seat.

2020 Dodge Charger Hellcat Widebody

• Body style: large, 5-seat, RWD sport sedan, with steel body and aluminum hood
• Engine: 707-hp, supercharged 6.2-liter Hemi Hellcat pushrod V-8; 650 lb.-ft. torque at 4,800 rpm
• Transmission: 8-speed Torqueflite automatic; with manual control and paddle shifters; SRT modes for street, sport and track with performance shifting
• Fuel economy: 12/21/15 mpg city/hwy/combined; premium fuel required

SPECIFICATIONS

• Fuel tank: 18.5 gal.
• Trunk space: 16.5 cu. ft.
• Front head/leg room: 38.6*/41.8 in. *36.9 w/sunroof
• Rear head/leg room: 36.6/40.1 in.
• Length/wheelbase: 201/120 in.
• Weight distribution: 56/44 front/rear
• Curb weight: 4,587 lbs.
• Turning circle: 39 ft.; 2.5 turns lock-to-lock

FEATURES

• Standard equipment includes: smart-key locking and push-button ignition, stitched dash pad, engine-turn aluminum trim accents, 6-speaker Alpine audio system, heated and ventilated front seats, heated steering wheel, heated back seats, Uconnect 4C infotainment 8.4-inch touch screen, Apple CarPlay or Android Auto, 4G Wi-Fi internet connection, 4 USB power-charging ports, power convenience group (includes power front seats with 4-way lumbar, power tilt-telescopic steering column), heated and ventilated front seats
• Hellcat specific features: Competition suspension, line-lock launch control and launch assist, after-run chiller, anti-spin rear differential, Bilstein ADS shock absorbers front and rear with three-mode adaptive damping, 200-mph speedometer, performance shift indicator; Pirelli P Zero tires (305/35ZR) and the SRT Track Experience.
• Safety features include: 6 air bags, blind spot and cross-path detection, hill-start assist, brake knock-back mitigation, brake assist and stability and traction controls with 4-mode performance settings

PRICING

• Base price: $71,150, including $1,495 freight charge; price as tested $81,710, with $2,100 gas-guzzler tax
• Options on test vehicle: Carbon-suede interior package, $1,595, includes suede headliner and carbon fiber trim accents;
• Where assembled: Brampton, Ontario, Canada
• Warranty: 3-years/36,000-miles bumper to bumper; 5-years/60,000-miles powertrain