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2021 DODGE DURANGO HELLCAT HITS 1.2 LATERAL G, 120 MPH AROUND TRACK: VIDEO

A Three Row SUV Has No Right To Do This, And That’s Why We Love It

2021 Dodge Durango Trackhawk SRT
Image Via FCA.

The 2021 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat is wonderfully ridiculous. Name a vehicle that can seats seven people, can swallow just about any cargo, has all the comfort and features you want, has over 700 hp, can tow 8,700 lbs and goes 180 mph. The simple answer is there isn’t one. While those stats are incredible on paper, we can now confirm the Durango Hellcat has yet another skill to add to its lengthy resume: it drives around a track better than it has any right to.

Our own Manoli Katakis went for a passenger lap in the newest member of the Hellcat family at North Carolina Motorsports Park to see how how it performs around the track, and the results are very impressive, as you can see in the video below. The four wheel drive system gives very neutral cornering, allowing the throttle to adjust between over and understeer. Another impressive aspect are the brakes. We were just one of many passengers out for a hot lap, and they showed very little evidence of fade, notable for such a big and heavy beast. The driver, FCA vehicle dynamics engineer David Carr, says you can even get the Dodge Durango Hellcat to rotate on turn in with some trail braking.

The video also gives us a chance to check out the SRT Performance Pages in action. The G-Force meter is up on the all-new 10.1 inch Uconnect touchscreen, reading a lateral max of 1.15 G. Remember folks, this is an SUV that’s just as capable taking the kids to school.

And of course, there’s the ever present 6.2 liter supercharged Hellcat V8 under the hood, which sounds fantastic. It also pushes the Dodge Durango Hellcat to around 120 mph on the straightaways. All while the cooled seats keep everything comfortable. And there’s room for the kids in the cabin, too. And the dog. And grandma.

By now, it should be obvious there aren’t many vehicles that excel in as many areas as the 2021 Dodge Durango Hellcat, and certainly none at this price point. Yes, the Germans have their own super SUVs and wagons, but they are considerably more expensive, and none come close to the sheer power output of the mighty Durango Hellcat. Now we know those numbers translate from paper to the real world just as well as we hoped.

2021 Dodge Durango Trackhawk SRT
Image Courtesy of FCA.

Written by Sam Krahn

Sam graduated with a communications Degree from Wayne State University, where he was also a member of the swim team. He's interested to see how new technology will affect the American performance vehicle landscape.

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