How do the Durango SRT Hellcat and Durango SRT 392 compare?

By the numbers, the Durango Hellcat is (unsurprisingly) quicker than the Durango 392. The Hellcat accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds and on through the quarter mile in 11.7 seconds at 117.3 mph. The last Durango 392 we tested needed (a still-quick) 4.6 seconds to hit 60 mph and 13.2 seconds to run the quarter mile at 103.5 mph.

The new Durango Hellcat also has the lead in handling tests, lapping our figure eight in 25.0 seconds while averaging 0.77 g, versus the Durango 392's 25.5-second at 0.75 g performance. The gap, however, does narrow some on the skidpad and in braking tests. The Hellcat averages 0.90 g around the skidpad to the 392's 0.89 g average, while the 392 and Hellcat both need 110 feet in our 60-0-mph test.

Neither Dodge is particularly efficient. The Durango 392 is EPA-rated at 13/19/15 mpg city/highway/combined, while the Hellcat nets 12/17/13 mpg.

In reality the two Durangos feel pretty similar if you've got a light right foot. Both offer up quick, direct, and well-weighted steering, firm but not punishing suspension tunes, and not quite enough brakes for the speeds they're capable of on a world-class driving road like Los Angeles' Angeles Crest Highway.

When you stomp on the throttle—and really, how can you resist?—the differences really reveal themselves. The Durango Hellcat's power is truly next level, with an endless, effortless wave of power as the transmission quickly works its way through its eight cogs. The Hellcat may just do one trick, butmandoes it do it well.

Although it's been a few years since a Durango 392 last made its way through the L.A. fleet, technical director Frank Markus in our Detroit office had the opportunity to drive the two Durangos back to back recently on a track. "On the face of it, the Hellcat's a screaming deal, delivering 49 percent more power and 36 percent more torque (good for a quarter-mile performance improvement of about 13 percent) for only 28 percent more money than the SRT 392 (which starts at $64,490)," he wrote. "Then again, the SRT 392 sounds nicer, it's around 10 to 15 percent more fuel-efficient, and it pretty much shares the Hellcat's suspension, tires, and optionally (for $1,295) its brakes.

"The SRT 392 I hot-lapped lacked the optional two-piece front rotors, and as such, I never found the confidence to dive deeply into turns. Its lighter-duty 8HP70 transmission also shifted less firmly, inducing a slight shudder to the vehicle on each upshift. We're told the Hellcat is about 1.5 seconds quicker around a 2.5-mile road circuit."