Is the 2024 Dodge Hellcat Actually Better Than the Scat Pack?
The 2023 Dodge Charger and Challenger are some of the gnarliest muscle cars around. Between widebody kits and SRT editions, these cars’ top trim levels may seem confusing. Know that each Dodge trim level designates a different engine: A 6.4-liter HEMI V8 powers the Charger and Challenger Scat Packs, while a supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI V8 powers Hellcat, Redeye, and Superstock models. This system will continue through one more year with the 2024 Stac Pack versions of the Charger and Challenger, as well as the Hellcat halo cars of the same models.
How much does a Hellcat cost?
The 2023 Dodge Challenger Hellcat’s MSRP was $74,290, and the Charger version (widebody only) cost you $84,650. That is almost exactly $10k more than their 2022 prices. For their final year (2024), we expect prices to climb again.
The Hellcat engine is a project cooked up by the glorious mad scientists at Dodge’s Street and Racing Technology (SRT) team. By 2015, the Dodge Charger and Challenger needed a refresh, so Dodge SRT stepped in and engineered the first factory supercharger for a HEMI engine. “Hellcat” was the team’s internal term for the project, but marketing loved the phrase so much it became the car’s official name.
The Hellcat engine debuted in the 2015 SRT edition of the Challenger and Charger. It initially made 707 horsepower. It has since spawned several new models, including the 808 horsepower Demon. Today, you can buy a regular Hellcat, a 797 horsepower Hellcat Redeye, and an 807 horsepower Super Stock.
Is the Dodge Scat Pack a good deal?
The 2023 Dodge Challenger R/T Scat Pack’s MSRP is $49,265, while the Charger version costs $51,330. They only went up $5k between 2022 and 2023, so the 2024 Hellcat prices will probably leave them in the dust. With the largest V8 Stellantis makes, available SRT suspension, and available widebody kit, the Scat Pack is a steal.
The defining attribute of the Scat Pack trim level is its engine: a 6.4-liter (392 cubic inch) HEMI V8 shared with heavy-duty Ram trucks, the Grand Wagoneer, the Dodge Durango 392, and the Jeep Wrangler 392. In both the Challenger and Charger Scat Pack, this V8 makes a healthy 485 horsepower. In the Jeep Wrangler, it is tuned for 470 horsepower.
There are many ways to upgrade a Scat Pack Charger or Challenger to make it even faster. You can order a Scat Pack car with the SRT-tuned Bilstein suspension that’s standard on the Hellcat. You can also upgrade any Scat Pack with a factory widebody kit and wide tires. The extra rubber improves acceleration, braking, and performance.
The Hellcat vs the Scat Pack
The Hellcat and the Scat Pack trims of the Charger/Challenger are different tools for different jobs. The Hellcat excels at highway pulls from 60 mph up to well over 100 mph. But you can build a Scat Pack that is as good as the Hellcat at most everything else.
And while the Hellcat makes an excellent halo car for the Challenger and Charger lineups, the American muscle car originated as an affordable sports car, not a supercar competitor. A muscle car that pushes six figures when fully loaded misses the entire point.
A Dodge Challenger Scat Pack with SRT-tuned suspension and a widebody kit may just be the ultimate naturally-aspirated American muscle car. And manual transmission fans will be happy to hear you can even get it with a stickshift.
Next, find out whether the 1,000-horsepoer Demon 170 is a supercar or a hypercar, or watch the Hellcat vs. the Scat Pack Widebody race in the video below:
