Dodge has been slowly releasing information about their forthcoming drag strip menace, the 2018 Challenger SRT Demon. Their latest video and release show the benefit of having math on your side. The new information reveals the 315/40R18 Nitto NT05R drag radials, at 12.6 inches wide, will have about 15-percent more contact patch compare to the Hellcat. In addition to their increased contact patch and sticker tread compound, the taller, softer sidewalls give them the ability to absorb the shock of a hard launch, as evidenced in the photo they provided. Dodge says it’s good for twice as much grip as the already-potent Hellcat.
We all know that drag races are won or lost at the starting line, and the launch is critical. Thanks to their newfound traction capacity, SRT engineers gave the Demon even more of a mechanical advantage at launch with a higher stall torque converter and a new final drive ratio of 3.09:1. According to the release, the torque converter and final drive ratio increase torque multiplication by about 18-percent, each.
Compared to the ‘60s and ‘70s drag race muscle cars, a 3.09:1 ratio seems like a highway cruiser, but the TorqueFlite eight-speed we expect to see behind the Demon’s V8 has a first gear ratio of 4.71:1. To put that into muscle-era perspective, that gives more torque multiplication than an A727 transmission with a 5.57 ring and pinion. Even second gear in the eight-speed gear offers more torque multiplication than an A727 with a 3.91 ring and pinion.
With that sort of launch potential, the Demon could potentially leave every production car in a cloud of its drag radial smoke by the time it crosses the 60-foot mark. Until we can drive one for ourselves, we’ll be waiting for the New York Auto Show just like you.
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