7 Things to Know Before you Get in Line For a Dodge Demon
Before you drop your cash deposit on the new quickest accelerating vehicle on the planet, check out these seven tips.
1. One Dollar Sure Goes a Long Way
Most cars these days charge you an arm and a leg for options, heck, on a new Porsche, you can easily double the price tag by tacking on some extras. That is not the case with the Dodge Demon, however, for the paltry sum of one extra U.S. dollar, you get a lot of added stuff. A single will get you goodies like a passenger seat, carpet, rear seat leather, and trunk carpet. But the best deal of all is the "Demon Crate," which contains an estimated $6,410 worth of goodies including narrow front wheels/tires, replacement instrument panel, upgraded ECU, ID badge, performance air filter, and passenger side mirror block off plates. Also contained in the crate are a set of tools including a floor jack, impact wrench, torque wrench, tire pressure gauge, and tool bag. It's the deal of the century!
2. The Demon Crate Contents Fit Nicely in the Trunk
If you opt for the Demon Crate (and why wouldn't you?), you might be thinking that you'll also need a support vehicle to accompany you to the track. But you'd be wrong, because all of that kit fits neatly in the trunk. The included foam rubber pack also keeps all that gear from sliding around and beating up the inside of your trunk. Now, you can enjoy a day at the track without having to find a friend to help haul your stuff.
3. It's Already Been Banned From NHRA Events (kind of)
The National Hot Rod Association has a rule that cars are capped at 9.99 second E/Ts and speeds of 135 mph before they must meet certain other rules and regulations. So, when Dodge ran a certified quarter mile time of 9.65 seconds in the Demon, the NHRA promptly banned the car from competition (unless it comes back meeting all the rules set forth for that E/T). Dodge wasn't mad about this revelation, of course. They're so happy about it, in fact, that they're selling posters of the letter. Contrary to some online chatter though, that was just one particular car at one track, and you should be safe to run your car until you break the 9.99 barrier yourself.
4. You'll Want to Make Friends With a Tire Dealer
Obviously, the Demon needs some serious rubber to get all of its power to the ground, so Dodge fitted the world's first factory delivered DOT drag racing tires to it. As you would imagine, those Nitto NT05R tires are super sticky, and have an expected lifespan of only around 5,000 miles, assuming you don't do huge burnouts all the time. Which kind of defeats the purpose of buying a Demon in the first place. If you want to actually drive the Demon around town, a better (less expensive) solution might just be to pick up an extra set of wheels and tires.
5.One Inner Headlight is Actually an Air Vent, the Other is Fake
On first glance, it might look like both of the Demon's inner headlights are actually air vents designed to feed its engine with cool air. But the driver's side light is the only one that actually functions this way. Why, you ask? During testing, Dodge found that the air coming in the passenger side vent actually got too hot after entering the engine compartment, defeating the purpose of using it as such. So you get a fake air vent with your $80k+ ride.
6. Finding One Won't Be Impossible
Limited production cars like the Demon are notorious for selling out immediately, and often at a premium over sticker. But, Dodge is building 3,000 Demons, which is quite a lot more than most limited edition rides. To discourage dealer markups, Dodge is prioritizing future shipments to dealers who sell the cars at MSRP. So, unlike the Porsche 911R or the Ford GT, you might actually have a legitimate shot at buying a Demon, and getting it at the price it's supposed to sell for.
7. If You Miss out, There's Always the Hellcat Widebody
Undoubtedly, not everyone who wants a Demon will be able to get one, but you can get a Hellcat Widebody as a consolation prize. Sure, it's "only" got 707 horsepower, but it does have the front splitter, rear spoiler, hood, and fender flares from the Demon. It's larger rolling stock helps the Widebody slice two seconds off the regular Hellcat's lap time at Dodge's test track. The extra traction also means it's faster to 60 mph (3.4 seconds) and in the quarter mile (11.2 seconds) too. That's pretty darn good in our book. Plus, those numbers won't get you banned from your local NHRA sanctioned track either.
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