The end of the road is getting nearer.
Dodge is discontinuing production of its V8-powered muscle cars when the 2023 calendar runs out and is sending them out with a bang.
The final iteration of the Dodge Challenger will be the most powerful internal combustion engine muscle car ever sold.
The Challenger SRT Demon 170‘s supercharged 6.2-liter V8 is rated at 900 hp when it runs on gasoline, but can crank that up to 1,025 hp using an E85 blend.
The 170 in its name is a tip of the hat to the alcohol proof of E85, which has a higher octane rating than gasoline that unlocks the extra power.
Dodge will build no more than 3,000 of them for the U.S. and 300 for Canada, but it might not even reach those numbers due to all of the production issues the car business has been running into these days.
The base price has been set at $100,361, including destination charges and the gas guzzler tax, but good luck finding one for that much.
The Demon 170 was an instant collectible and, despite Dodge’s efforts to stop dealers from marking them up, it hasn’t been uncommon to see orders going for twice that and more.
So it’s probably not much of a surprise that the 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat that came before it is hanging on to its value, even though the Demon 170 soundly trumped its 808 hp rating.
The original Demon listed for $86,090, but one that just crossed the block at the Mecum Auctions Dallas event on Friday sold for $159,000.
Granted, it only had 119 miles on the odometer, making it effectively a new car, but goes to show how in-demand these monsters are as Dodge readies to replace them with electric muscle machines next year.
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The price paid wasn’t even an outlier. According to Classic.com, one with 318 miles on it sold just last week for the same amount and another with 514 miles was sold in August for $179,000. A dealer in Plymouth, Mich. Currently has a 79-mile example listed for sale at $229,000.
Whether or not anyone will ever put some serious mileage on these cars is yet to be seen, but a good number of them appear to be taking over for the 1987 Buick GNX as high-priced garage queens destined to spend more time on the auction block than the drag strip for decades to come.