Dodge are pushing the performance envelope of their 4-door ‘family’ sedan by offering a Widebody Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat for the 2020 model year.The result will be the most powerful and fastest mass-produced sedan in the world. Under the hood is a supercharged 6.2-liter HEMI Hellcat V-8 engine churning out 707 horsepower and 650 lb.-ft. of torque. It will be fitted to the standard TorqueFlite 8-speed automatic transmission. That combination will result in a top speed of 315 km/h or 196 mph.

The Widebody will be standard on Charger SRT Hellcat and an available option on Charger Scat Pack. It features new front and rear fascias with integrated fender flares, adding 8.9 cm or 3.5 inches of width over the wider wheels and tires. The Widebody Package adds 20-inch by 11-inch wheels, wider Pirelli 305/35ZR20 tires, Brembo 6-piston front calipers with 2-piece front brake rotors, and unique suspension tuning with Bilstein 3-mode adaptive damping, all combining to deliver improved performance on the road and race track.

The Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody accelerates from 0-60 mph (0-96.5 km/h) in just 3.6 seconds and a quarter-mile elapsed time of 10.96 seconds, pulling .96 g on the skidpad and making this the quickest and best-handling production Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat ever. Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody laps 2.1 seconds quicker on their 2.1-mile (3.4 km) road course than its predecessor.

The Charger Scat Pack offer the most muscle for the dollar with the 392-cubic-inch HEMI V-8 engine’s best-in-class naturally aspirated 485 horsepower mated to TorqueFlite 8-speed automatic transmission. The Charger Scat Pack Widebody accelerates from 0-60 mph (0-96.5 km/h) in 4.3 seconds making it the quickest and best-handling production Charger Scat Pack ever offered. The new Charger Scat Pack Widebody runs 1.3 seconds faster than standard Charger Scat Pack on a 2.1-mile road course.

Both cars will start arriving in Dodge SRT whowrooms in early 2020. The Dodge Charger has dominated the U.S. full-size car segment in total vehicles sales for five straight years, from 2014 to 2018.

“People say, ‘no one wants cars anymore’,” said Tim Kuniskis, Head of Passenger Cars at Dodge, SRT, Chrysler and FIAT, FCA North America. “I would tell you that the 40,000 people who bought a Dodge Charger so far this year would probably agree, because to them, the Charger isn’t just a car.

The Charger’s reach extends beyond body-style practicalities and it can’t be defined by average industry shifts. Can you buy a vehicle that is dollar for dollar more practical than a Charger Widebody?

Absolutely, but there are also more than 1,000 flavors of ice cream and vanilla is only one of them. If the ‘average’ person will own six cars in their lifetime, our cars need to connect so strongly that people can’t help, but turn around and take a second look before walking away.”

For the first time ever, the Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody features standard EPS with selectable steering tuning to better manage increased grip. The result is improved handling performance and delivery of better steering feel and ease of turning efforts at parking lot speeds. With EPS and standard SRT Drive Modes accessed via the 8.4-inch Uconnect touchscreen, drivers can tailor their experience by controlling horsepower, transmission shift speeds, steering, paddle shifters, traction and suspension settings. SRT Drive Modes offer selectable settings for Street (Auto), Sport and Track, while the Custom setting allows the driver to select individual preferences.

Four race-inspired technologies that come standard for 2020 also bolster performance. They include Race Cooldown which cools the supercharger/charge air cooler after the engine is shut off by running the intercooler pump and radiator fan. Line Lock engages the front brakes to hold the Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody stationary, but leaves the rear wheels free for a burnout to heat up and clean the rear tires. Launch Control, accessed from a switch on the dash, manages tire slip while launching the vehicle to allow the driver to achieve consistent straight-line acceleration. And Launch Assist uses wheel speed sensors to watch for driveline-damaging wheel hop at launch and, in milliseconds, modifies the engine torque to regain full grip.

Not only does Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody go fast, it also stops shorter than the vehicle it replaces. For better heat management and longevity, the Charger SRT Hellcat Widebody features standard 15.4-inch Brembo 2-piece front brake rotors with 6-piston front calipers and 4-piston rear calipers. Stopping distance is 4 feet shorter at 107 feet from 60-0 mph.

“Since we first launched Scat Pack in 2014, the sales mix of our high-performance models has increased from 4 percent to more than 25 percent,” Kuniskis added. “Charger Scat Pack models deliver more muscle for the dollar than any car out there. Offering a Widebody Package on Charger Scat Pack gives us the opportunity to build on that momentum.”