Shelby GT500 Drag Races Dodge Challenger Black Ghost, American V8 Muscle Wins

The only problem with the newcomer isn't rarity. 300 units will be produced in total, exclusively in Pitch Black. The issue with Black Ghost 2: Stellantis Boogaloo is curb weight. 4,476 pounds, more specifically, which means 2,030 kilograms in the metric system.

Weight is the biggest enemy of a given vehicle's performance in a straight line, but even more so in the twisties. If you're a bit of a nut when it comes to the smallest of details, you're certainly aware those summer tires aren't good enough either. The factory rubber boots come in the form of 305/35 by 20-inch Pirelli P Zero PZ4s mounted on 11-inch-wide alloys.

Pictured in orange, the 2020 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 in the video below rolls on the standard 20- by 11-inch alloys with skinnier tires. Be that as it may, those 305/30s are super-sticky Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2s, which make a world of difference. The S550 platform also happens to be much lighter than the Challenger's extremely old platform, with this particular example of the breed tipping the scales at 4,168 pounds (or 1,891 kilograms; according to Edmunds).

The 'Stang, however, isn't as powerful or torquey as the black-painted special edition of the Challenger. 760 ponies and 625 pound-feet (847 Nm) versus 807 and 707 (959) puts the Black Ghost at an advantage. On the other hand, the faster dual-clutch transmission of the Shelby GT500 and greater curb weight of the Challenger is certain to make for an exciting race.

Make that two races from here and there, a format designed to test more than merely a vehicle's performance in the quarter mile. It starts with a dig to the quarter mile, followed by a braking zone, then by a hairpin turn. The last segment comprises a pedal-to-the-metal dash back to the start/finish line, and that would be that. Over the course of two U-drag races, the good folks at Edmunds clocked 0-60 times of 3.8 seconds for the Shelby and 4.8 for the Black Ghost.

The one-second gap decreases to 0.9 seconds over the quarter mile, with the GT500 recording 11.7 seconds compared to 12.6 for the Dodge. Of course, the Mustang also carries a little more speed. The significant weight of the Challenger becomes apparent in the 180-degree turn, where it pulls 1.14 Gs compared to 1.35 Gs for the muscled-up pony from Michigan.

Across the start/finish line, the Shelby GT500 runs a respectable 33.2 seconds at 143.3 miles per hour (230.6 kilometers per hour) versus 35.2 seconds at 135.0 miles per hour (217.2 kilometers per hour) for the Black Ghost. Regardless of which side you're on, that's a win for American V8 muscle, the kind of muscle that will soon become uncommon due to increasingly stringent fuel and emission regulations.

The Challenger is also going the way of the dodo, taking the third-gen HEMI engine family with it. Stellantis, the cross-border merger between FCA and PSA, will replace the cam-in-block V8 in two ways.

First and foremost, a 3.0-liter Hurricane inline-six turbo that belts out 510 horsepower and 500 pound-feet (678 Nm) in the yet-to-be-unveiled 2025 Ram 1500 Tungsten. Second, the Charger will come back in the form of an electric liftback coupe with 455 horsepower as standard. The Banshee version levels up to 800 volts and three motors, and it's expected with 1,320 ponies on deck. It will be sad to see the third-gen HEMI go in 2024, but the future doesn't look that bleak either.