Introduced for the 2015 model year, the Hellcat wowed the automotive industry with a 6.2-liter supercharged V8 that cranks out 707 horsepower and 650 pound-feet (881 Nm) of torque at 4,000 revolutions per minute. It was peak muscle car for that era, but as it’s often the case with brawny coupes, putting all those resources down to the ground is often difficult.
Instead of straight-line performance, the previous-generation M3 is a corner-loving marvel of engineering that hides a twin-turbocharged sixer under its hood. The F80 in the featured video isn’t stock, though. Based on the N55 engine, the S55 straight-six lump allegedly makes 480 to 490 horsepower and about 460 pound-feet (624 Nm) thanks to a minor tune.
These figures don’t pose a problem to the Challenger, but on the other hand, bear in mind that we’re dealing with a dual-clutch transmission in the Bimmer and a torque-converter automatic in the force-fed coupe. It’s also worthy of mentioning the curb weights of these unlikely rivals: 3,653 pounds (1,657 kilograms) compared to 4,448 pounds (2,018 kilograms).
Given these circumstances, the “no replacement for displacement” crowd won’t like how the following video concludes. Spoiler alert: the Hellcat manages to win once from a roll. Traction control intervenes twice at launch, yet the muscled-up opponent settles in and crosses the line first.
From a dig, the modified Bimmer makes easy work of the Challenger, although the American land missile that Dodge builds in Ontario closes in like nobody’s business. The most important question is, which would you take home, considering that both will become collectibles in a few short years?
Pretty much every Hellcat-engined vehicle is going the way of the dodo because of ever-stringent CAFE regulations. The finalized rule calls for a fleet average of 40 miles per gallon (5.9 liters per 100 kilometers) by 2026, which is why Stellantis will roll out a straight-six engine next month and countless electric vehicles by the end of the decade, including a Ram pickup.
The M3, on the other hand, faces a few troubles of its own, starting with Euro 7 regulations. The Mercedes-AMG C 63 is going plug-in hybrid, and Audi will hybridize the RS 4 as well. An e-tron RS 4 may also happen, but the Ingolstadt-based automaker hasn’t confirmed the rumor thus far.
After a 1:43 scale model of a Ferrari 250 GTO sparked Mircea's interest for cars when he was a kid, an early internship at Top Gear sealed his career path. He's most interested in muscle cars and American trucks, but he takes a passing interest in quirky kei cars as well. Full profile
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