The design distinctions between 1970 and ’71 were subtle, and that’s true of the 2015 update. That model year, its second on the market, marked the zenith of Challenger performance, the final year with the option of 426 Hemi V8 muscle. Dodge has been faithful to the original Challenger styling, and that continues to be true of the redesign, with one proviso: the current Challenger was faithful to the 1970 original. The sheetmetal surrounding all this power is new, but that’s not readily apparent.

It’s the only transmission offered with the basic SXT model, while a 6-speed manual is available with most of the V8s. Chrysler’s 8-speed automatic transmission is available across the board, and new to the Challenger inventory for 2015. It’s rated for a prodigious 707 horsepower, the most powerful passenger car engine ever offered by Chrysler and also the most powerful in the contemporary pony car corral.Įngine options for the rest of the 2015 Dodge Challenger pale a bit in comparison to the Hellcat, but are heavy hitters in their own right: a 5.7-liter Hemi (372 hp) and the 6.4-liter Hemi, aka the 390 (485 hp). The power lineup starts with 305 horsepower, the output of the 3.6-liter V6 that propels the basic Challenger SXT, and now includes the new Hellcat V8, a supercharged 6.2-liter variant of Chrysler’s naturally aspirated 6.4-liter V8.

It was a minor player in the dawn of the pony car era, but as Dodge rolls into its second century, the 2015 Challenger looms as a powerful presence, upstaging Ford’s Mustang and the Chevy Camaro with a potent array of engines, including one that packs the biggest kick of all.

Need for speed 2015 cars challenger