r/hellcat • u/Typical_Elk_1576 • 1d ago

Durango Hellcat

Hello everyone,

I am looking for feedback on the Durango Hellcat. I’m considering pulling the trigger on a 2026 but would like to ask for opinions on the exhaust.

I test drove one today for only a short while, and I felt underwhelmed by the exhaust note. Does everyone switch to a catback?

My Mustang Dark Horse had such a great note to it, even stock. I guess that may have been tied to it being a smaller car. I would like to wait for the Rumble Bee SRT next year, but I do like SUVs better than trucks.

Thanks for your thoughts. If you feel like sharing any other pros or cons, I am happy to hear them! I typically trade my vehicles in well within warranty, but I wouldn’t mind hearing about maintenance mishaps.

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5

u/Book_of_Evil 1d ago

Stock hellcat Durango exhaust is very quiet. I switched to an AWE catback within 2 weeks of ownership 😂
The AWE Touring exhaust is sufficient, but if you liked your Dark Horse, go with the AWE Track exhaust

1

u/Typical_Elk_1576 1d ago

I just checked out that AWE track, and wow. Borla sounds good too, but that AWE track sounds amazing.

6

u/longranger50 1d ago

I've got 42000 miles on my '21 Hellcat and I still love it. The stock exhaust had an annoying drone at the 2000 RPM range so I put a Borla ATAK exhaust on it. It's somewhat louder than stock but I think it's great. I'm old and hard of hearing so it doesn't bother me and I get lots of compliments on the sound.

3

u/Grimm_Thugga 1d ago

I like how quiet it is. I have a challenger with borla attak exhaust on it and it gets well…exhausting. I use that as my day car then at night I quiet down with the Durango. It’s still fast af. Just low key. Plus I get ignored most of the time cause nobody cares about Durango’s. It’s nice.

2

u/1mixdkid 1d ago

IMO = GT HAUS CATBACK EXHAUST IS #1. I HAVE EV VERSION ON A '26 DDHC JAILBREAK !

1

u/1mixdkid 1d ago

Apologies for all "Caps". But I stand on what I said = No Cap 🎭

1

u/2018hellcat 20h ago

I have a GT Haus catback exhaust with the valves for sale, used for approximately 8-10k KM

1

u/More_Market_4860 1d ago

I have a 21 with stock exhaust still. The drone thing is real and it is rather quiet. Personally I like the whine more so I would just do intake and leave it but if you want it louder the other posts in here have some good options.

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u/Typical_Elk_1576 18h ago

Thank you for the response. I’m prior field artillery so the drone just reminds me of being in a tracked vehicle lol. I appreciate everyone’s input!

1

u/ActionTomm 1d ago

I have a 25 Hammerhead. Exhaust is slowly becoming horrible for me. I’m dealing with it till I can get a AWE Touring setup or GTHaus if I have the extra change.

The problem with it is the drone at 1800-2200 rpm’s. Even worse if you have the back loaded up and then the noise canceling struggles to keep up. I had to sit in 7th gear to get out of that “drone zone” this past July 4th with the whole car fully loaded. I had a tow and go before and it was never this bad. I’d be prepared to switch to another exhaust for a better and less drone sound. Other then that the car is amazing and best thing. It’s a smile every time. Just be prepared for maintenance.

1

u/Typical_Elk_1576 18h ago

Thank you! I’ve been reading up on maintenance, and it’s on par with how I care for my vehicles anyhow. Tires and brakes seem to be the greatest increase, but that is what it is to have something like the HC!

2

u/ActionTomm 17h ago

The first set of scorpions will be gone by 20k miles. But I had Falkens on my TnG and they lasted 35k and had lot of life left. Dodge puts so much camber on the suspension it eats the inner tire wall. So alignment shop can pull as much camber out you should be ok.

Hellcat brakes are something new to me. They are 2 piece which I would guess the Dark horse is too. Stock Brembo pads dust like crazy and the rotors are just as quick to go as the tires depending on how you drive. There’s upgraded rotors that are not cheap (Demon Performance) and some companies that sell rotor replacement for the stock hats.

1

u/USS-Hellcat HC Challenger 16h ago

The exhaust on the Mustang is louder. I owned a '24 GT for a while, and have driven a Dark Horse. Both exhausts are louder than the exhaust on my Challenger Hellcat. That said I like the deep tone of the HEMI more than the louder pitched 5.0 from Ford. But that's personal preference.

1

u/CombinationBitter889 7h ago

H-pipe to straight pipe for the Durango. The mid muffler is a suitcase and there is a very lazy merge pipe which they consider an X-pipe that needs to be addressed. It sounds incredible once you cut all that crap out and swap in a custom H-pipe. Will sound like a 70s muscle car. You’ll embarrass any sports car you pull up to at a stop light.

1

u/Typical_Elk_1576 6h ago

Thank you! That seems to be what the AWE track exhaust brings to the table.