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This 1,080-HP Dodge Hellcat Is "Catching Criminals Wherever It Roams in Texas"

Introduced in 2014 for the 2015 model year, the 6.2-liter supercharged HEMI that gave birth to the Hellcat line is no stranger to big power numbers. On 100-plus octane fuel, the Demon-spec engine develops a simply ludicrous 840 horsepower and 770 pound-foot (1,003 Nm). This particular example of the breed is no Demon, but it’s more powerful than a Demon, according to the Texas Department of Public Safety.
Texas DPS 1,080-HP Dodge Hellcat highway patrol car 16 photos
Photo: Texas DPS on Facebook
Texas DPS 1,080-HP Dodge Hellcat highway patrol carTexas DPS 1,080-HP Dodge Hellcat highway patrol carTexas DPS 1,080-HP Dodge Hellcat highway patrol carTexas DPS 1,080-HP Dodge Hellcat highway patrol car2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT2019 Dodge Challenger SRT
Whatever modifications it may hide under the hood, the wide-bodied Challenger in the Facebook post below is rocking 1,080 horsepower. The black-painted muscle car went from evading law enforcement in Harris County to catching baddies; hence the Highway Patrol and State Trooper decals on the doors and front fenders. How did it end up here, though?

“The fast & devilish-looking car was added to the Department of Public Safety fleet of patrol vehicles after a judge awarded it to the agency.” The problem is, why did the Department of Public Safety restrict the dual-snorkel hood scoops with lights? Said scoops are functional, you know…

As opposed to pre-2018 Hellcats, which feature heat extractors, the dual-snorkel hood of 2019 and newer models also improves drag compared to the Air Grabber hood of the Demon. Every single variant of the Challenger SRT Hellcat uses the dual-snorkel design for the 2022 model year, including the 807-horsepower Super Stock and the recently-introduced Jailbreak.

On that note, Dodge prepares to bid farewell to the Challenger – and the Charger four-door sedan – after the 2023 model year. Before production comes to a screeching halt, the American brand will launch no fewer than seven “Last Call” special editions. The final one should’ve been presented at SEMA, but Dodge has recently admitted that it won’t be ready in time for the Specialty Equipment Market Association’s high-octane event.

It should also be mentioned that the Charger will be reinvented as an electric muscle car in due time, an e-muscle car that will be featured in Fast X.

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Editor's note: 2019 models also pictured in the gallery.

About the author: Mircea Panait
Mircea Panait profile photo

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.
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