Does the Demon stop faster than the Camaro ZL1?

Critics of the 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon insist that it is nothing more than a drag car, and some claim that the smaller Brembo braking package will cause this supercharged Challenger to offer worse braking performance than the Hellcat cars.

The 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon comes with 14.2 inch rotors and four-piston calipers up front, and 13.8 inch rotors and 4-piston calipers out back. For comparison, the Hellcat Challenger has similar brakes in the rear, with 6-piston calipers and 15.4 inch rotors up front.

This smaller front brakes led critics to say that the Demon won’t stop as well as the standard Hellcat, but that doesn’t take tires into account. The Demon went from the normal Hellcat’s 275 mm wide performance tires to 315mm wide drag radials, so it has more contact with the road and much stickier rubber, resulting in incredible stopping power, even with the smaller front brakes.

In tests, the Demon stopped much more quickly than the Hellcat Challenger – and more quickly than the new Chevrolet Camaro ZL1, which is billed as an all-around performance car.

The standard industry test for stopping is measured from 60 miles per hour down to a complete stop, and the 2018 Dodge Challenger SRT Demon is able to get stopped from 60 in just 97 feet.

That sounds impressive, but consider the stopping distances of some other high performance vehicles. According to Chevrolet, both the 2017 Camaro ZL1 and Camaro SS 1LE take 107 feet to get stopped from 60; the Ford Shelby GT350 Mustang takes 102 feet, the Dodge Viper GTS takes 99 feet, and the previous Camaro Z28 took 100 feet.

That means the new Dodge Demon – the car billed at the “one trick pony” by so many critics – is able to stop more quickly than the most powerful Camaro (ZL1 1LE braking distances have not been announced yet).

The 2016 Porsche 911 GT3 RS and Shelby GT350R Mustang each take 96 feet to stop, so the 4,280lb Demon only takes 12 inches further to stop than those two lightweight track machines.

So, for those who insist that the Demon is too heavily equipped for track use to be a daily driver, keep in mind that the 840hp, 9-second car will stop from 60 more quickly than almost any car sold in America, including the supercharged Camaro ZL1.