Dodge plans to ramp up availability of its 707-hp Hellcat supercharged V-8 engines for the 2016 model year after demand outstripped supply this year. Dodge is still building any 2015 Charger or Challenger Hellcat models already purchased, but stopped taking new orders several months ago after a "huge flood" of orders, Dodge and SRT brand president and CEO Tim Kuniskis told Automotive News.
"We're going to build more [Hellcats] for 2016," Kuniskis told AN. "It's a small sliver of what we sell, but it really creates a halo for the rest of the lineup."
A Dodge spokesperson confirmed to AUTOMOBILE that the brand stopped accepting new orders for the Challenger and Charger Hellcat on March 9, but that the company continued building any cars already in the ordering system, because Dodge received "an unprecedented response" to the car. A specific plan for how many Hellcats will be offered for the 2016 model year will be announced in a few weeks' time.
Although Dodge has only sold 4,000 Charger and Challenger Hellcat models so far this year, compared to a total of about 73,224 Charger and Challenger models overall through the end of May, it reportedly takes significantly longer to build a Hellcat engine than a standard one for those cars. That's due in part to the fact that every 6.2-liter supercharged V-8 Hellcat engine is dyno-tested for 42 minutes after assembly.
Source
Automobile Mag