What If? 1987 Dodge Charger Hellcat

[Hagerty]

Welcome to What If, a new feature from imaginative illustrator Abimelec Arellano and Hagerty. We'll be taking you back in time-and possibly forward into the future-to meet alternative-universe automobiles. Even better, our time machine is working well enough to bring "short take" reviews along with the photographs and advertisements.
https://www.hagerty.com/media/what-if/what-if-1987-dodge-charger-hellcat/

[hyperv6]

Now there is a question no one asked!

Leave it with the Shelby version as that was enough. 

[Ajakeski]

With it’s typically missing floors, the L body Charger would break in two.

[JeffWeimer]

This is so spot on for the buff books back then (those numbers were *good* for nearly *any* car back in that day) it's eerie.

A 220 horse "Hellcat?" Yeah, 1987. Malaise hadn't really left yet. We were celebrating 225 Horse V8 Mustangs and Camaros as a new vanguard of performance that year. The GNX 276hp was almost inconceivable by itself, and only available that year.

[9lbhammer]

Where's my dodge rampage hellcat? Or even rampage with a neon ACR powertrain swapped in. I've got a sickness and the only cure is old mopar stuff that wasn't worth a damn the day it was built.

[CardiffGiant]

Put some white graphics on the Plum Crazy and I’ll take one!

[drm101]

I've been to Milan Dragway with Erich and worked with him on the Viper team. He is a heck of an engineer and a great person. As far as I know, he is still at Chrysler. I also owned an '87 Charger GLHS. I enjoyed the heck out of that car. It knocked down 30 mpg, would do 135 mph (I did that a couple times on I-75) and I put 90K trouble free miles on it. Bought it used in 1990 for $6500 and sold it around 2006 for $6000.

[Spookysgarage]

What a cool new column!

[Barrybvoyager]

I'd love to find one of these with the 2.6 Mitsubishi 4cyl. You can easily get 450 to 520 out of that motor with a turbo and stock cam .

[UnsungZero]

This car never came with the 2.6. You're confusing it with the Station/Conquest, which was a totally different platform.

[UnsungZero]

Autocorrect stinks. I meant Starion not Station.