Project HELLCAT Reborn: Demon 170 Swap Brings Our Project HELLCAT Back to Life
After Years Of Issues We Replaced Basically Everything On The Car...
It’s no secret that our 2015 Dodge Challenger SRT HELLCAT project car has been a rollercoaster since day one. From the moment we picked it up, the car fought us every step of the way—electrical gremlins, supercharger issues, and a transmission that just couldn’t handle the abuse. Just when things finally started coming together, we ripped off a personal best of 9.48 @ 147 MPH… only for the stock 8HP90 to wave the white flag.
Like most project car nightmares, this one came with baggage. Buying someone else’s built car is always a gamble, and ours was packed with “surprises.” Last year, we scrambled to get it ready for Dragway Rush, Ontario’s first drag-and-drive event. The plan was to beef up our 8HP90 by swapping in internals from a spare 8HP95 we had lying around. But that plan quickly went south—turns out, the 8HP90 and 8HP95 cases aren’t interchangeable, which made the swap a dead end.
So, we pivoted. Out went the factory transmission, and in went a Turbo 400. But as we dug deeper, the real culprit behind years of headaches finally revealed itself: an electrical nightmare. What we uncovered was a patchwork of cut corners and questionable decisions—marettes twisting wires together, sketchy connections, and an overall lack of care. It was painfully clear that the only way forward was to tear it all out and start fresh.
A Clean Slate, a Demon Heart –
Instead of trying to salvage the hacked-up setup, we decided to go all in. The only thing worth saving was the shell.
At that point, we had two choices: stick with the 2015–2017 wiring harnesses, or step up to the 2018+ electronics and unlock everything we’d been missing—line lock, race cooldown, and more. You already know which path we chose.
What came next was months of hunting down parts and piecing together a plan. Without a donor car to lean on, figuring out how to graft a full Demon 170 electrical architecture into our HELLCAT was no small task. But the payoff? Absolutely worth it.
Out came the Turbo 400 and the tired old engine. In their place, we dropped in a freshly built 411 stroker topped with Thitek Bear heads, an OST Dyno Demon Plus camshaft, and our Whipple 3.8-liter supercharger feeding it all the air it could handle. Behind it, a freshly built 8HP90 paired with a Demon stall converter completed the new setup.
What’s Next? –
This isn’t just a build—it’s a revival. And we’re far from finished. Track testing, tuning updates, and maybe even a few surprises are still to come.
If you’re a Mopar fan, a drag racing junkie, or just someone who loves seeing high-horsepower chaos resurrected, you’ll want to stick around for this one.
Don’t forget to watch the video above, subscribe to our YouTube channel, and drop a comment to let us know—what would you do differently with this Demon-powered HELLCAT?
Project HELLCAT Reborn Image Gallery:
