Me-wow!: 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Howls with +700 hp

It's official: The supercharged 6.2-liter "Hellcat" HEMI V8, offered as the top engine in the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT, will deliver 707 hp and 650 lb.-ft. of torque when the car hits dealerships in the third quarter of this year. It's enough for the Challenger to set a new record as the most powerful muscle car ever to enter retail production, and marks a notable bar-raising in both departments as compared to the previous record holder—the 2014 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500.

On the other hand, there's no word yet on what the Blue Oval may have on tap for the eventual next-gen Shelby model, although Ford does promise the 2015 Mustang GT will make at least 420 hp and 390 lb.-ft. of torque.

Until we get more news from Ford, or the Bowtie brand gets in on the action, the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat sits atop the muscle-car top-five power leaderboard as shown here:

1. 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT8—707 hp, 650 lb.-ft. of torque
2. 2014 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500—662 hp, 631 lb.-ft. of torque
3. 2015 Chevy Camaro ZL1—580 hp, 556 lb.-ft. of torque
4. 2015 Chevy Camaro Z28—505 hp, 481 lb.-ft. of torque
5. 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT8 392—485 hp, 475 lb.-ft. of torque

(Note: For a more comprehensive look at how the 2015 Dodge Challenger team stacks up against its crosstown competition, keep reading Autobytel.com for our upcoming muscle-car showdown article.)

Also, for a bit more context, Motor Trend put together a list of 700-hp cars in May of this year, and according to MT writer Christian Seabaugh, there are just 10 current-ish production car with more horsepower than the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT. Of course, those are 10 of the most exotic cars ever to see the light of day, led by the latest from McLaren, Hennessey, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Pagani and Koenigsegg.

Now, those cars are generally much lighter than the 4,400-lb. 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat, and even the 2014 Shelby only came in at about 3,850 lbs., so it will be interesting to see exactly how the Hellcat's power translates into actual performance. The obvious target, however, would be breaking the 200-mph barrier, since that's another current benchmark set by the Blue Oval product.

Readers also can check more info about the 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat.