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The Challenger exited Dodge's lineup after the 2023 model year, but like someone who can't stop thinking about an ex, we keep encountering reminders of it everywhere. That's particularly true when we spot the two-door, Sixpack-equipped 2026 Dodge Charger Scat Pack Plus sitting in our test lot. Given the inevitable mental comparison, we decided to pit the new model's test figures against what we recorded from the 2019 Challenger R/T Scat Pack Widebody when it was still fresh.
The biggest change is obvious: Dodge muscle cars no longer come with a V-8. The Scat Pack version of the gas-powered Charger we evaluated uses a 550-hp twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six known as the Hurricane. The Challenger we're comparing it to ran a naturally aspirated 6.4-liter V-8 making 485 horsepower — the legendary 392 Hemi.
A successor posting worse results than its predecessor is never a headline anyone wants to write. Regrettably, that's the situation with the Charger Sixpack in some critical performance categories. On the skidpad, the Charger managed 0.90 g, compared to the Challenger's 0.96 g. Braking numbers told a similar story — stopping from 70 mph required 148 feet in the Challenger but 177 feet in the Sixpack.
The reasons become clear quickly. Dodge currently doesn't offer summer tires on the Charger Sixpack — oddly enough, they are available on the Charger Daytona EV. A company spokesperson told us stickier rubber will be made available on the gas car later this year, but that won't change the numbers we recorded. Add to that the significant weight gain: the Sixpack Scat Pack we tested tipped the scales at 4889 pounds, while the Challenger R/T Scat Pack weighed in at 4352 pounds. That's a 537-pound handicap on top of the all-season tire disadvantage.
In straight-line contests, though, the picture shifts. Despite carrying considerably more mass, the Charger Sixpack hit 60 mph in 3.7 seconds — two-tenths of a second quicker than the V-8 Challenger. The Hurricane-powered Charger also dispatched the sprint to 100 mph in 8.8 seconds, comfortably ahead of the Hemi Challenger's 9.3-second result.
The Charger Sixpack was equally faster in the quarter-mile — 12.1 seconds at 116 mph versus the Challenger's 12.4 seconds at 114 mph. That said, the Charger's quicker times rely more on outright power than responsiveness. The Challenger's Hemi was the more immediate engine: our 5-to-60-mph roll-on time was 4.2 seconds in the Challenger versus 4.8 seconds in the Charger.
The question of what constitutes a proper muscle car has fueled arguments since the segment was born, and everyone has their own answer. But almost universally, brutal straight-line speed is part of the deal. Whatever you may think about a turbocharged six replacing the Hemi, the new Charger Sixpack Scat Pack does beat its predecessor in a drag race. And for muscle car buyers, that counts for something.
