The night is cold and quiet, save for the distant rumbling of a far-off beast. The guttural roar inches closer by the second, causing your eyes to widen and your toes to curl. No need to be wary of hungry carnivores, though, because in the concrete jungle, booming muscle cars are king. And unlike their meat-eating brethren, they crave only gasoline and rubber. That, and the occasional speeding ticket.
This dynamic has never been more apparent than in Dodge’s latest ad, titled “Predators.” In the short, 90-second film, the brand highlights its ferocious muscle car lineup that includes the Challenger Hellcat, Charger Hellcat, and of course, the Viper. The Miami-based clip is definitely a keeper, if not for the atmosphere and tire smoke, then for the amazing soundtrack. Who would have thought Phil Collins and pushrod engines sounded so great together?
The American automaker has been killing it with its advertisements lately, further proven by the brand’s “Dodge Brothers” series.
The campaign loosely follows the journey of John Francis Dodge and Horace Elgin Dodge, siblings who started making bicycles in the late 1800s before moving to cars in the early 20th century. It’s recommended viewing for history fans and gearheads alike, as the aforementioned Hellcat twins make several memorable, tire-shredding appearances throughout.
The effects of these advertisements have been tangible for Dodge. According to a report by Automotive News, the manufacturer has substantially increased production of the 707-horsepower supercharged V8 that comes with the Hellcat badge, making it the third time that high demand has driven an output increase.
“We’re going to build more [Hellcats] for 2016,” said Tim Kuniskis, president and CEO of Dodge. “We stopped taking all Hellcat orders months ago so that we could catch up to that demand, and then we will launch the 2016s.”
