Last week, we talked about Doug Reddicopp, who ran a 9.08 in his 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 without removing any components and without any tuning. Doug was back at the track yesterday and while there, he dipped into the 8-second range without any lightweight components or tuning of any kind – running an 8.993 at 148.48 miles per hour.
Earlier this week, we talking about the 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 that is owned by Lee Saunders and campaigned with help from Gearhead Fabrications, which was the first privately owned 170 to run in the 8-second range. Saunders was also at the track yesterday and with an 8.89, he continues to be the quickest 170 owner in the world. Ron Silva also got into the 8s last week, running an 8.962 and an 8.979, making him the second private owner to run in the 8-second range. Saunders’ car had a mild transmission tune and Silva’s car had weight reduction, so to some people, those cars have been modified, albeit lightly modified.
However, Doug Reddicopp’s 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 is much closer to stock. In fact, some people will consider his car to still be stock, as the only change from stock is the Winlite wheels. Reddicopp’s F8 Green Demon came from the factory with a full interior and the standard aluminum alloy wheels, making it dramatically heavier than the Dodge test car (single seat car with carbon fiber wheels) that set the official time of 8.91. To close that gap and weight differential a bit, Reddicopp removes the leather passenger seat and rear seat when he goes to the track, and since he does not have the lightweight Dodge carbon fiber wheels, he switched to a set of aftermarket wheels that weigh less than the stock alloy rollers with skinnies up front, but he is still running the Mickey Thompson ET Street R tires out back.
In short, compared to a stock, one-seat Demon 170, the only difference with Reddicopp’s car is aftermarket front and rear wheels, the skinny front tires and some extra weight. For those who don’t know, a Demon 170 that comes from the factory with a full leather interior, with the passenger and rear seats removed, carries more weight inside than a single-seat car. Doug’s car still weighs 4,380 pounds at the track, but with just a few trips to the track to gain valuable seat time, he has gotten into the 8s.
To be more specific, Doug Reddicopp ran an 8.993 at 148.48 miles per hour. On that run, he pulled a 1.241 60-foot time and got to the 8th mile stripe in just 5.725 seconds at 122.21 miles per hour. Density Altitude was around +350 feet (similar to the DA when he ran 9.08 last week), but as he learns how to launch the Demon 170, he is shaving hundredths and that has allowed him to be the first private owner to run in the 8s without tuning or without removing any parts that were present on the Dodge test car. During the course of the day, he also made seven passes in the 9.0X range (9.071, 9.062, 9.086, 9.090, 9.058, 9.041, 9.015), and all of his runs were on E85.
Whether or not you consider the switch to the aftermarket wheels and skinny front tires to still be stock, the bottom line here is that Reddicopp’s 2023 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon 170 with just the wheels and front tires changed is an 8-second car in positive DA. As a reminder, Dodge ran their 8.91 in Georgia with negative DA and about a thousand test runs under their belt, in a car that likely weighed a few hundred pounds less than Reddicopp’s, so as he gets more seat time and negative DA, he will almost certainly match, if not beat, Dodge’s official quarter mile time. Also, that 8.993 is with a foot brake launch, so he could get quicker once he gets more practice with the Demon 170 TransBrake, which was used for the Dodge 8.91.
You can watch Reddicopp’s F8 Green Demon 170 make its first 8-second pass in the video below.
