A new video from the YouTube channel DragTimes compares half-mile straight line performance between the 2018 Ford GT and the 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon during the WannaGoFast South Florida runway racing event. Both of these cars have become icons since their release and are capable of 200-plus mile-per-hour top speeds, so pitting them against each other will surely make for an interesting test.
For the race, the Dodge Demon was running on 100 octane fuel, bumping power up to 840 from the 808 figure it typically runs on pump gas. The Challenger was also running with the “Demon Crate” skinny tires up front and wide Mickey Thomspon drag radials at the rear. The Ford GT, on the other hand, was given no race prep before making its passes on the runway.
From a numbers perspective, it seems like the Demon should be the obvious winner of this duel. It’s powered by a 6.2-liter pushrod Hemi V8 with a 2.7-liter supercharger bolted on top, and it pushes that previously mentioned 840 horsepower to the ground using an eight-speed auto box that Dodge re-designed with drag racing in mind. The Ford GT has a relatively tiny 3.5-liter twin-turbocharged V6 making 647 horsepower, and is mated to a seven-speed, dual-clutch transmission.
That’s a nearly 200 horsepower deficit compared to the Challenger, but you can’t rule out the GT’s weight and aero advantage. The Ford is made from lightweight carbon and is shaped like a Le Mans racer, while the Dodge carries the weight and form of a giant brick. The Ford GT weighs in around 3,400 pounds, while the Demon packs on almost half a ton more, at 4,280 pounds.
With all these figures in mind, how will the two fare on the runway? Skip to the five-minute mark in the video to get straight to the racing action.
The Ford GT and Challenger Demon sounded brilliant running together and managed to put down fairly even finish line speeds. The GT was slightly faster in the half-mile, putting down 157.784 mile-per-hour compared to the Dodge’s 157.123.
The GT and Demon are two cars that go about beating physics in two completely different ways. While Ford makes use of expensive engineering and state-of-the-art technology, Dodge simply throws more torque and more rubber at the problem until it goes away. It’s interesting to see that these cars take a totally different approach to speed but arrive at the same 157 mile-per-hour conclusion.