No One has Sold More High Horsepower Cars than Dodge in 2016

Since the Scat Pack and SRT Hellcat versions of the 2015 Dodge Challenger and 2015 Dodge Charger were introduced, these high performance models have been very hard to get due to their massive popularity. During the 2015 model year, both the Scat Pack and the SRT Hellcat sold out, with waiting lists for both packages and while the waiting lists are gone – both the Scat Pack and the Hellcat Challenger and Charger continue to be very popular with prospective buyers.

Unfortunately, since automakers aren’t too keen on breaking up sales of a model by trimline or engine option, we aren’t likely to learn just how many Scat Pack and Hellcat versions of the Challenger and Charger have been sold. However, an FCA representative was able to confirm that through the first portion of 2016, 33% of Dodge muscle cars have been powered by either the 392 Hemi or the Hellcat Hemi.

Based on some simple math, this 33% means that Dodge has sold more cars with 485+ horsepower than any other automaker doing business in the USA.

33% with 485-707hp
Through the end of September, Dodge had sold 51,186 examples of the Dodge Challenger and 73,745 examples of the Dodge Charger for a total of 124,931 muscle cars sold during the course of the 2016 calendar year. Each of those models are offered with the 3.6L Pentastar V6, the 5.7L Hemi V8, the 392 Hemi V8 and the supercharged Hellcat Hemi V8 and as is generally the case, the V6 and the smallest Hemi are the most popular engine options.

However, with the 392 Hemi and the Hellcat accounting for 33% of Challenger and Charger sales this year, roughly 41,227 cars were equipped with either the 485hp 392 Hemi or the 707hp Hellcat Hemi. We don’t have a breakdown by engine or trimline, but we know that Dodge has sold more than 41,000 muscle cars with at least 485 horsepower – and that is just from the Challenger and Charger.

Tack on the 443 Vipers sold during that time and we have a told of nearly 42,000 cars with at least 485hp - easily making Dodge the leading purveyor of high performance cars in the USA.

Comparing the Competition
Like FCA, GM and Ford Motor Company aren’t quick to break down sales numbers by trimline or engine option, but consider this – Dodge sold 41,227 cars with at least 485 horsepower in the first 9 months of 2016.

The only vehicles that General Motors offered during that time with at least 485hp are the 650hp Corvette Z06 Cadillac CTS-V. GM sold 22,719 Corvettes and 13,172 CTS sedans sold through September and while there is no engine breakdown, it is mathematically impossible for GM to have sold more than 41k cars with at least 485hp. Even if every Corvette and every Cadillac CTS sedan sold this year had the LT4 V6 with 650hp, they still wouldn’t have reached the 41k mark. Even with the introduction of the 2017 Camaro ZL1, GM isn’t likely to near the 41k mark in terms of models with more than 485hp.

The only vehicle that Ford Motor Company offers with at least 485hp is the Shelby GT350 Mustang with 526 horsepower. Ford hasn’t announced the actual sales numbers for the newest Shelby Mustang, but we learned back in 2015 from leaked dealership documents that the GT350 and GT350R production would be limited to 5,500 units per year. Even if the company grossly exceeded those planned numbers, they aren’t going to climb from 5,500 to 41,000 – so Ford couldn’t have sold more vehicles with 485hp than Dodge.

Finally, there is a long list of foreign vehicles with packages offering more than 485 horsepower, but none of those cars sell in numbers anywhere close to the 41,227 examples of the Challenger or Charger with at least 485 horsepower.

V6 Usually Outsells V8
In most cases over the past few years, the V6 versions of the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro and Dodge Challenger have outsold the V8 models. On an average year, the ratio seems to hover around the point of 60% V6 to 40% V8, but I did a piece back in 2015 about 2014 Camaro production.

Back in 2014, the Chevrolet Camaro was the bestselling muscle car in America and the bestselling sporty car in the entire world with 97,632 sold worldwide. Of those 97k+ Camaros, 71,481 units – or 73% - had the base V6 while the other 26,151 (27%) had a V8.

In other words, in the last year that the Camaro led the global performance market in sales volume, only 26,151 had a 426hp V8 engine while through the first 9 months of 2016, 41,227 Dodge Challengers and Chargers have had a premium V8 with at 485 or 707hp.

Dodge might not sell as many muscle cars as Chevy or Ford, but they sell far more high performance cars than any other automaker doing business in the USA while also offering the highest performance cars from an American automaker.