Here’s a drag race that rarely happens, if ever. A Porsche 911 GT3 RS going up against a Dodge Challenger Hellcat is not a normal shootout, but what follows is a battle of horsepower versus technology and lightness that you just need to check out.
Neither of these two cars are brand new models. They’re not some Plaid electric dragsters with two many motors, and they don’t qualify as supercars, at least not strictly speaking. Unlike many fast cars, these two red devils lack AWD, but that’s where the similarities end.
The star of this epic drag race from YouTuber Sam CarLegion is undoubtedly the Porsche 911 GT3 RS. It’s an older model, but still a potent weapon with an almost unique 4.0-liter flat-6 that screams all the way to 9,000 rpm. Porsche claims this makes 520 horsepower, but because there are no turbos, torque is surprisingly low 346 lb-ft. Those just sound like racecar specs, don’t they?
Power goes from the rear-mounted engine through a lightning-fast PDK gearbox to reach its wide rear tires. So what about its rival?
Well, this being a widebody Hellcat, it’s got to be a newer version with the 717 hp 6.2-liter supercharged V8 that also delivers 656 lb-ft of torque. It’s pretty good at drag racing; in fact, that’s what it’s designed to do. But the Hellcat clearly has a few disadvantages in the traction department.
Firstly, we know the rear-mounted 911 engines actually add grip by forcing the rear end down at launch. Also, the Hellcat is much heavier, but more of that weight is over the front, where the V8 lump resides. And also, the GT3 RS’s tires are a little wider, believe it or not.
A GT3 RS costs about $190,000 (new), and Porsche spends a lot of that money on advanced technology. PDK could be one of the best gearboxes in the world, and the 4.0-liter is a jewel sitting on advanced mounts.
So what exactly happens in the drag race? Well, the skill of the drivers plays a big part. When Sam drives the 911, he does a high-rev launch and bogs down a little. The car’s actual owner does the opposite and immediately jumps ahead of the Hellcat. But in all races, the Dodge muscle car doesn’t stand a chance.
