Back in 2005 when Dodge revived the Charger, it would’ve been pretty hard to imagine the sedan would evolve into the 797 hp madness that is the widebody Charger SRT Hellcat Redeye. Given this factory madness, it’s only natural for independent builders to deliver savage creations. And the “Helljet 2” twin-turbo Charger Hellcat Redeye, which used to be a cop car, is as crazy as they get, especially when unleashed on the drag strip.
We first discussed the modded Mopar sedan two months ago, when YouTuber Westen Champlin unveiled its current second-gen Helljet form. And the Kansas-based vlogger has now taken the compound boost (the turbos feed the factory blower) toy to the drag strip, aiming for a 9s quarter-mile run.
The body of the vehicle comes from a Dodge Charger Pursuit police vehicle that Westen bought in the fall of 2020. As for the supercharged, high-output 6.2-liter HEMI and the rest of the Hellcat hardware, such as the ZF eight-speed automatic tranny, this was lifted off a Redeye pre-production vehicle whose shell Dodge had to scrap, as it normally happens with these no-VIN prototypes.
In addition to the said free goodies, Dodge gave the vlogger $10,000 for mods, but we suspect he invested more into the vehicle. Among others, the HEMI was gifted with a Hellion twin-turbo kit, while it was tuned by Illinois-based Tim Barth, a Hellcat drag racing community favorite.
Compared to the original Helljet, the Helljet 2 sports an upgraded WWII bomber-inspired shark mouth wrap and bespoke fender badges, which are a bit of a trend these days. Another upgrade involves installing a back seat, which was missing as the vehicle had been stripped for racing.
In between our two stories on the Helljet 2, Westen Champlin’s YouTube channel went from 2.09 to 2.28 million subscribers. And the explanation lies in his energetic personality, backed by his mechanic skills—he runs a repair shop with his childhood friend, Dom—that he uses to put together these high-impact builds (have you seen his Cummins diesel-swapped S550 Mustang?).
1,300 HP twin-turbo Charger Hellcat at the strip
In standard trim, the Dodge Charger Hellcat Redeye can complete the 1/4-mile task in 10.6 seconds at 129 mph, which puts it straight into supercar territory. Of course, those are ideal numbers that need a perfect trap prep and ideal atmospheric conditions.
Now, in the clip below, which starts with Westen doing an off-road rescue that sees him going for a swim, you’ll see him delivering the maiden quarter-mile voyage of the Helljet 2.
Before hitting the track, the twin-turbo Hellcat was fitted with a Flowmaster exhaust, while receiving smaller rear wheels shod in stickier Hoosier tires.
And, speaking of those mechanic skills, the vlogger had to put them to use when assessing the heavy smoke emitted by the Dodge—it seems like the HEMI is guzzling oil due to what he believes to be a faulty turbocharger O-ring, but with the pressure still being decent, this didn’t stop the show.
So, was it all enough to give Westen his desired 9s run, which, by the way, is a totally reasonable target for a full-weight Hellcat builds with a four-digit output? Guess there’s just one way to find out.
