Skip to main content

Want to learn to drag race the Dodge Demon? School is now in session

Bondurant Drag Race Program| Challenger SRT® Demon | Dodge
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.

Editors' Recommendations

Stephen Edelstein
Stephen is a freelance automotive journalist covering all things cars. He likes anything with four wheels, from classic cars…
Alpine sale: Up to $160 off speakers and subs for your car
alpine speaker sale crutchfield march 2024 car and amp setup on table

If you’re looking to kit your car out with some superior speakers or a subwoofer, Crutchfield is the place to go today. Right now, there’s a huge sale on Alpine subwoofers and speakers with nearly 50 different items forming the sale. As there are so many options, the best idea is to hit the button below to see what’s around. If you don’t know where to start though, read on while we take you through some great items in the sale.

What to shop for in the Alpine sale
Buying the best aftermarket car speakers are important for anyone who spends a lot of time on the road and is currently dealing with a mediocre sound system. One good starting point in the Alpine sale is the 2-way speakers for $104 instead of $130. You get two 2-way speakers with a polypropylene/glass fiber/mica woofer with a specialized rubber surround. There’s a one-inch silk dome tweeter with speakers able to handle up to 80 watts RMS with 240 watts peak power. The grilles aren’t included but the factor ones should be fine for most purposes.

Read more
Mercedes to trial humanoid robots for ‘low-skill, repetitive, demanding’ jobs
Apptronik's Apollo robot at work in an auto plant.

Humanoid robots have been coming on leaps and bounds in recent years, and some major companies are starting to take note.

Mercedes-Benz, for example, has just entered into an agreement with Texas-based robotics specialist Apptronik to collaborate on identifying applications for highly advanced robots that the auto giant could deploy. The deal will involve a trial that will see Apptronik's Apollo humanoid robot work alongside Mercedes' human workers on the factory floor.

Read more
Hyundai Ioniq 9: price, release date, range, and more
Hyundai Ioniq 9 Front

Hyundai has been at the forefront of EV development for a while now, largely thanks to the success of the crossover-sized Hyundai Ioniq 5. But the company is readying another new EV that could be even more popular than the Ioniq 5 -- or at least more desirable in the U.S., the land of big cars.

The upcoming Ioniq 9, previously set to be called the Ioniq 7, will be Hyundai's take on an electric SUV. It will be to Hyundai what the Kia EV9 is to Kia. It will have three rows and carry over design elements from the Ioniq 5.

Read more