The Dodge Challenger SRT Demon was built for the drag strip, but that’s not a place many car buyers are comfortable with. Having 840 horsepower on tap can be intimidating enough, let alone learning the procedures for properly staging and launching a car at the strip. But Dodge has thought of that.
Dodge Demon owners can now get professional training through a new drag-race course at the Bob Bondurant School of High-Performance Driving. It’s an extension of a previous partnership between Dodge parent Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Bondurant that already offers classes for owners of various other FCA performance cars. But perhaps best of all, people who don’t own Demons can sign up for the drag-racing course as well.
The course is free for Demon owners, anyone can pay their way in for $1,999. Owners of non-Demon Dodge performance models, who get a free day of road-course instruction, can add the drag-racing class for $999. It includes a full day of instruction at the NHRA drag strip at Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park in Chandler, Arizona, with about two hours of classroom instruction and 22 drag-strip passes. In addition to the Demon, students get seat time in the Challenger SRT Hellcat, Hellcat Widebody, and SRT 392.
“With great power comes great responsibility, so we want our enthusiasts to respect the full capability of their machines,” FCA passenger-car boss Tim Kuniskis said regarding the rationale for the Bondurant classes, adding, “Where else can you drive a Demon without having to buy one?”
Classes like this can help owners get the most out of their performance cars, or least help keep them from crashing. A person may have the money and the desire to buy a fast car, but they may not have the skills to simply hop in and turn quick lap times. Dodge and other automakers have caught on to his, and driving classes aimed at owners have become more common over the past few years.
Preregistration for the Dodge/Bondurant drag-racing school is now open, with the first class scheduled for March 9. Dodge owners can register through a special concierge line at 800-998-1110 that requires a vehicle identification number. All other can register through the Bondurant website.
