Copyright SlashGear
When Dodge introduced the Hellcat lineup of engines to the world, it included the Challenger, Charger, and eventually the Durango SUV. Dodge was throwing a massive 700+ horsepower engine into anything that could fit it. Unfortunately, the automaker put the Hellcat out to pasture and cut back on its high-performance vehicles. One of the most popular Hellcat models was the Challenger. Dodge took the normal Challenger, whose base model featured a 305-horsepower V6 engine, and added two more cylinders and 410 more horsepower. The supercharged HEMI V8 engine in the Challenger Hellcat was capable of producing 717 horsepower and an absurd 707 lb-ft of torque. Dodge did also offer a widebody Redeye version of the Challenger Hellcat as well, which produced 807 horsepower, along with various other versions that pushed way past 1,000 hp. Although Dodge may have gotten rid of one of the coolest and most powerful vehicles on the market, it's far from the most powerful horsepower. Brands like Mercedes-Benz, Lucid, and even American-rival Chevrolet have all produced vehicles that far exceed the Hellcat in terms of horsepower. Granted, the following vehicles are all production vehicles that can currently be purchased, while the Hellcat series is gone. Let's see which vehicles have more horsepower than the Hellcat. To keep things simple, we'll focus on the base Hellcat and its 717 hp. First up on our list of vehicles with more horsepower than a Hellcat is the Mercedes-AMG S 63 E Performance, which produces 791 horsepower. Mercedes-AMG, the performance division of the German brand, placed a handcrafted 4.0-liter V8 engine into an S-Class and mated it with an electric motor on the rear axle, which also gives it over 1,000 lb-ft of torque. The Mercedes-AMG S 63 E Performance is capable of hitting 60 mph from a standstill in just 3.2 seconds, whereas the last of the Hellcats were capable of that feat in 3.7 seconds. Where the Challenger Hellcat beats out the Mercedes-AMG is in top speed — the German is only capable of hitting 180 mph, but the Hellcat is capable of surpassing 200 mph. The 2025 model of the Mercedes-AMG S 63 E Performance is currently priced at $186,200, which is far higher than what Dodge charged for the Hellcats. The Challenger Hellcat started at just $71,895. Chevrolet has been in the running for the best American sports car with the Corvette for over 60 years, and it's no surprise that there is a model with more horsepower than the Hellcats. The base Corvette, which will run drivers around $70,000, comes with a perfectly respectable 495-horsepower V8, but it's far from the most powerful 'Vette in the lineup. The second most powerful Corvette available is the ZR1, which sits just below the truly bonkers ZR1X. Powered by a 5.5-liter twin-turbo V8, the Corvette ZR1 offers drivers 1,064 horsepower. That's enough to scoot the Chevy from zero to 60 mph in just 2.3 seconds, faster than both the Mercedes and the Hellcat. Add in a quarter-mile time of less than 10 seconds, and the Corvette ZR1 will make sure drivers and passengers remember the experience. The 2025 Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 is priced at around $183,400, although it can easily surpass the $200,000 mark with add-ons and options. While the Hellcat may cost around $100,000 less than the Corvette, that extra money means an extra 300+ horsepower. While the conversation around electric vehicles tends to focus on range anxiety and affordability, there's a group of EVs that put an emphasis on performance and fun. Lucid, an American electric vehicle company that has been making a case as a Tesla rival, produces one of the fastest EVs on the market today, the Air Sapphire. The most powerful Lucid Air delivers an insane 1,234 horsepower. With no internal combustion engine, that 1,234 horsepower is sent to the wheels directly without any real hitch. This means that acceleration is instant, and the Lucid Air Sapphire is capable of hitting 60 mph from a standstill in just 1.89 seconds. With that type of quick acceleration, you can have Hellcat owners eating your environmentally-friendly dust.Granted, all that power and acceleration comes at a steep price. Currently, the Lucid Air Sapphire retails for $249,000 fully equipped. Lastly, with about double the horsepower of a Hellcat, it's the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport. The luxury supercar, one of the most expensive in the world, is also one of the most powerful production cars on the market. Referred to as the "Record breaking Bugatti" by the brand, the Chiron Super Sport blends luxury and performance perfectly. Featuring a massive 8.0-liter W16 engine, the Chiron Super Sport puts out a ridiculous 1,578 horsepower. Paired up with AWD, this means the Chiron Super Sport is capable of going from zero to 60 mph in just 2.2 seconds, beating out the Challenger Hellcat by a second and a half. The Chiron Super Sport can also smash the quarter-mile in 9.1 seconds, making it by far the fastest vehicle on this list. While it may be the fastest and most powerful, it's also the most expensive vehicle on this list. While earlier vehicles on this list had prices in the hundreds of thousands, the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport costs well over that. The base model can be had for a few million dollars, with some models reaching above the $4,000,000 mark. The Koenigsegg brand is not very well known outside of the automotive enthusiast circles, but the supercars and hypercars the Swedish brand creates are some of the most impressive on the market. Currently, the Koenigsegg Gemera is the most powerful production car on the market, as well as one of the most expensive. It may not be as expensive as the Bugatti Chiron Super Sport, but it certainly has more horsepower. In 2023, Koenigsegg announced a new hot-vee V8 engine for the Gemera that would be capable of producing 2,300 horsepower. You're not mistaken, the Koenigsegg Gemera has more than three times the horsepower of the Challenger Hellcat. Even if the Gemera didn't receive an all-new powertrain, its previous iteration with the TFG (Tiny Friendly Giant) three-cylinder engine and the Dark Matter electric motor would still be powerful enough to take the top spot on this list with more than 1,600 horsepower.
