What Drivers Can Expect In Terms Of Fuel Efficiency

Talking about a Dodge muscle car’s miles per gallon (mpg) is irrelevant. It’s more about “smiles per gallon” when referring to the fuel economy of an almost extinct Dodge Charger or Challenger. Although a V6-equipped Dodge Charger could achieve an EPA-rated 19/30 miles per gallon in city and highway driving (23 combined) with an eight-speed automatic, the numbers drop if you choose the Charger or Challenger R/T Scat Pack.

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The Scat Pack branding started as a marketing stint to sell higher-performance variants of some late-’60s Dodge muscle cars, and lives on in the Dodge Charger Daytona EV. Before it crossed over to the electric realm, the Scat Pack trim slotted between the Charger or Challenger R/T with the 5.7-liter HEMI V8 and the all-out SRT Hellcat Redeye and its supercharged 6.2-liter V8 motor.

The Scat Pack option includes a naturally aspirated 6.4-liter HEMI V8. It produces 485 horsepower and 475 pound-feet of torque when paired with a six-speed manual or eight-speed automatic transmission. The Scat Pack unlocks a zero to 60 mph time of under five seconds, but the burlier and more potent V8 sips more fuel than the base V6. With the manual transmission, the EPA-rated fuel economy of a Dodge Charger or Challenger Scat Pack is 14 miles per gallon city, 23 highway, and 17 combined. With the eight-speed automatic, each of those numbers climbs by one mile per gallon.

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Widebody variants of the Dodge Charger and Challenger R/T Scat Pack use more fuel than their standard-bodied counterparts. The widebody package adds more style points with burlier fender flares, wider wheels and tires, adaptive suspension, and six-piston Brembo brakes. These add-ons drive fuel economy down to an EPA-rated 17 miles per gallon combined, 14 in the city, and 23 on the highway for a widebody Challenger with the six-speed manual. Models with the eight-speed automatic have slightly better mileage at 18 miles per gallon combined, 15 in the city, and 24 highway.

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However, the Scat Pack is not the most gas-guzzling version of the Charger or Challenger. That dishonor goes to the Challenger SRT Super Stock, which achieves 13 miles per gallon city, 22 on the highway, and 16 combined. This beast is capable of scampering from zero to 60 miles per hour in 3.25 seconds and achieving a top speed of 168 miles per hour. Moreover, the Super Stock makes good use of its 807-horsepower Hellcat V8 by eclipsing the quarter-mile in a breathtaking 10.5 seconds at 131 miles per hour.

The Super Stock has since given way to the Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 as the brawniest of Dodge muscle cars. Under the hood is one of the highest horsepower engines Dodge has ever built, producing up to 1,025 horsepower and capable of pushing the car from zero to 60 miles per hour in 1.9 seconds. The price for all that fun? A miserly 10 miles per gallon in the city and 17 on the highway.

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