One thing we know for sure is AUOart can execute American muscle. Some past successes that come to mind are the early Corvettes, the C1, C2, C3 are some of our absolute favourites. The is also the Dodge Viper SRT-10, we still believe this one of their best representations to date.
Recently released under the same theme is the 1:18 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody. There is a laundry list of colours coming to market, if you’re looking for something unique, we suggest the Sinamon Stick exterior with Black dual strips center. This might be easier said than done as this is slowly becoming AUTOart classic.
This 4th generation Challenger isn’t for the faint of heart. 700+ horsepower and even more torque, 800+ are numbers to surely give the edge to Dodge in the horsepower wars. The widebody stance isn’t for looks, it’s there to accommodate some massive rollers, 11 inches wide, 305 rubber riding on 20 inch wheels. And this still isn’t enough ammo to tame the beast!
Out of the box, the exterior of the Sinamon Stick exterior is absolutely gorgeous! The paintwork is flawless from all angles. We hope the photos do it justice. The Black dual centre stripes and wheels work in harmony as well as the accompanying Black accents bits. In short, this car looks BADASS!
Stepping back, the exterior lines are definitely on point here. AUTOart does capture the shape and original design extremely well. This is a full 360 access replica, so we need to address the shut lines and panel gaps. One word, excellent! We might add the best we’ve seen from the team to date.
One thing that is surprising is the weight. This model is longer and sits taller than the AUTOart Pagani Huayra Roadster (each arrived at the same time) but is significantly lighter. Did AUTOart abandon the inner diecast shell? This definitely won’t sit well with collectors who consider weight as a quality metric.
The nose of the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody is nothing less than intimidating. AUTOart’s attention to detail is served well. All grille work is executed with metal grilles. Hellcat badge is accurate and intakes secondary lights are worth the price of admission. These are functional too, designed to send air into the supercharged beast inside.
The upper cooling vents on the hood are all metal. The shut lines here are so tight we had to carefully use the centre scoop to prop open the hood first. Once inside you will notice the crafty hinge work with struts supports, something AUTOart continues to do well. Also, the action of opening the hood (this applies to the rear hatch too). The up and forward motion is truly authentic. Lovely touch!
Engine detail is elevated somewhat from recent releases. The use of colours, layers and texture evident here. Though, one detail AUTOart missed is the Hellcat logo front and centre on top of the supercharger’s intake. Engine detail does continue to the underside of the model, AUTOart does complete the front and rear with complete exhaust with multiple heat shields. The results here far exceed those on the resin variety but the overall effort falls short from their past American selection mentioned earlier.
Rear fueling is static and does not offer the ability to open. Though the overall look and the addition of FUEL are a nice touch.
The rear section of the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody leaves nothing to spare. Quality taillight nicely aligns with their adjacent parts. The Badging centre and on spoiler are metal bits too. Once inside the rear storage, the cargo capacity could house a couple of large adults lol. Inside the quality flocking is wall to wall. Note the neat hinges with supporting struts.
Wheels on the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody are painted in semi-gloss Black finish. Five bolts painted in Silver with supporting SRT logo in the centre. Tires have fashionable branding and are correct to feature Pirelli rubber here. In behind the cross-drilled rotors are mated to Black Brembo calipers front and rear. The results look great, but something is missing when compared to the original, I just can’t put on finger on it…
The interior continues with the great quality flocking found in the back. Overall we have a typical generic AUTOart appearance with the flat Grey/Black theme, the only colour is provided via the Red dials and starter button. Colour aside, all the components are here, and the results are more than adequate. This includes door cards, dash and centre console. There are even grab handles in the roofline. Rubber seatbelts complete the seating in front and rear.
AUTOart does serve the family of American cars well with their latest Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody. The exterior paint is absolutely a gem, with the transitional elements of Sinamon Stick and Black decal work in perfect harmony. It exceeds in all the right areas on the exterior end, even the motor is ahead on recent efforts. Where it falls moderately short is the undercarriage definition, too plastic looking and the interior follows suit. Overall, this is a great representation of the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat Widebody, and the only one offering full 360 to date. We’re looking forward to others in the series. Enjoy the pics!
It is a nice model indeed, but I have some gripes with it. A small one would be that the lines don’t align properly between hood and front. Then the use of rubber seatbelts. But the biggest one is how cloudy the headlamps look, when the real car has them so distinctively clear with a prominent halo ring. On the other side, the paint is amazing, the shutlines definitively an improvement, and I personally applaud the decision of making them lighter, it’s better for the wheels and less scary for the glass displays. When modifying my Huracan LB, I was surpriseed to find there were counterweights inside! I left them out obviously. They should offer two versions of each car, the lighter, counterweight-less, and thus cheaper one, and the other with the big metal blocks inside for the folks who like them heavy hahahah.
LOL, you are one of the rare collectors that wants a lighter model. In all honestly, it really shouldn’t matter what the panels are made of. The most important thing is the end result, here AUTOart did well.
I mean, I guess if they weight more they mught feel “less like toys”, but other than that I never really understood the fuss for heavy models. Whith how delicate some wheels are (specially if you swap them), and when you have 7 or more models wide per glass shelf, I’d say that the less they weight, the better. I have relegated some cars to the wooden or bottom shelves due to how heavy they are, for example LCD’s Huayra.I think some people forget that Autoart did plastic models before the “composite” trend, or that most high detail kits in any other scale is plastic too. My only problem with it (if we forget that some cars might loose colour, but that was in older models) is that they promised us higher quality and lower price, but we’ve seen quite the oposite. And they KNOW how to make great models, it just looks like they don’t bother anymore. This Challenger shutline’s is a great example of the quality they can achieve.
Yes, they definitely can make great models. Though, it is more that they have become complacent. We do know for the fact the Canadian AUTOart distributor sent a note about our review on the LCD Models McLaren 600LT, let’s hope this ignites a fire of sorts!
Yep, compacent is the word. Good news on that, but now more than a fire we need something akin to the Australian wildfires…. Some of their models are plainly insulting, and we have part of the fault as buyers. When they released the new r390s, leaving out most of the carbon and asking twice the price, instead of complaining, we thanked them for “going back to the roots”. smh…
I want thhhhhaaaaat that’s so fucking dope how much is that orange Challenger
I need one how much is an orange one of those its so fucking 🔥
Check with our sie sponsors if still available. This colour was in HOT demand!
I usually prefer their older metal cars, but it’s hard not to love this one!
Facts my guy i know it probably not high quality metal but its so fucking 🔥
The exterior is executed in composite material, in short plastic.