Here we are at the Last Call Dodge Event, Las Vegas Motor Speedway. For the global unveil of the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170. But I've already seen it, and I want to dive into it right now. All the cool things they did on this car.

Dodge has introduced this ethanol burning, fire-breathing monster offering 1,025 horsepower, 941 pound-feet of torque, 0-60 in 1.66 seconds. That's before it raced through the quarter mile at and NHRA-certified 8.91 seconds at 151.17 mph. The 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 delivers more than 2 Gs of lateral force during launch, the highest number for any production car. Dodge's CEO, Tim Kuniskis, used the industry term "bat-shit crazy" to describe the Demon 170.

I owned an original 2018 Dodge Demon, a car that was capable of zero-to-60 in 2.3 seconds and pulling 1.8Gs off the starting line while lifting the front wheels. It could do the quarter mile in an NHRA-certifed 9.65 seconds at 140 miles per hour.

Now why would Dodge feel the need to eclipse that original Demon's already crazy numbers? Well, for one thing, they aren't world-beating numbers today. The Tesla Plaid, along with multiple hyper cars, broke the 2-second 0-60 barrier over the past 5 years, taking the Demon's crown from its horned head. That alone wouldn't give rise to the new Demon 170, but when the global pandemic struck it delayed the death of Dodge's LX-platform, as supply chain issues put a 3-year stay of execution on the Challenger and the Charger.

That delay gave Tim Kuniskis time to consider a more dramatic close to Dodge's era of big-displacement V8s. Cars that still lead their respective categories in sales while spawning a massive, and massively-loyal, fan base. Thus the Dodge "Last Call" line of seven models, culminating in teis 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170.

While the original Demon had two horsepower ratings, 808 hp with 91 octane fuel and 840 hp with 100+ octane, the new Demon 170 has a wide range of potential power ratings based on fuel type. It still features a 6.2-liter supercharged Hemi V8, but Dodge says everything except the camshaft has been upgraded to accommodate the substantial increase in power. There were actually rumblings of multiple engine failures during durability testing until Tim Kuniskis cleared things up with an official statement: "So far, we've grenaded 7 engines."

The engine's durability hurdles undoubtedly stem from its use of ethanol fuel to increase performance. The Demon 170 starts off with 880 horsepower on 91 octane pump gas. The numbers climb to 900 horsepower and 810 pound-feet of torque on E10, or 10 percent ethanol blend, which you can get at at local gas station pumps, then it maxes out at 1,025 horsepower and 941 pound-feet of torque with 85 percent ethanol race fuel. You can't buy E85 race fuel at gas stations, but it is available at performance outlets for about $20 a gallon. And because ethanol is alcohol-based, this race fuel is technically 170 proof, thus "Demon 170".

Designing an engine to support that range of power, and fuel type, started with increasing the supercharger displacement from 2.7-liters to 3.0-liters. It also required higher-flow fuel injectors, an upgraded valvetrain, and high-strength cylinder head studs, plus stronger main bearings, rod bearings, and connecting rods. The spark plugs also had to be updated to run at a lower heat range to accommodate the ethanol fuel.

Behind the engine sits Dodge's venerable TorqueFlight 8-speed automatic, but in the Demon 170 it features an updated output flange to accommodate a 30 percent larger prop shaft. A 240mm ring gear, a 53 percent stronger differential housing, and stronger half shafts send power to the rear wheels. Two other production firsts from the original Demon return on the Demon 170: the "Power Chiller" air conditioning system, which can cool the engine between drag strip runs, and the transbrake that holds the car at the starting line without using the brake system. Dodge says the new "TransBrake 2.0" will be much easier to use. A good thing, as nobody used the first Demon's transbrake due to its clunky interface.