1000-bhp Exorcist Camaro set to scare Dodge Challenger Demon

Renowned US-based tuner Hennessey will ensure the Camaro checks-out in style, with this all-guns-blazing salute to Chevrolet’s legendary muscle car.

With Halloween on the horizon, it’s fitting that today’s brawling brute shares a title with one of the most frightening horror movies of all time: The Exorcist.

It’s certainly a daring name, but if ever there was a car deserving of such a fearsome moniker, it’s this one.  

For those of you who missed it, after 57 years as Chevrolet’s eminent muscle car, the Camaro is soon to be retired. Hennesey took this news personally, creating the Exorcist as one last-ditch effort to ensure the all-American V8 doesn’t go quietly into that good night.

1000 bhp. 966 lb-ft. 0-60 mph in just 2.1 seconds. Need we say more? There’s no debating that this run-out special is not only frighteningly fast, but also the quickest production Camaro ever. For some context, clocking the quarter mile in 9.5 seconds means the Exorcist will reach the end of the drag strip before Ferrari’s La Ferrari, Porsche’s 918 Spyder, Koenigsegg’s One:1 to name a few. 

To generate these nigh-on painful levels of acceleration, Hennessy’s tuning wizards took the standard Camaro’s already obscenely potent 6.2-litre LT4 V8 and then added the power of a VW Golf R into the mix. Oh, and another 35 bhp for good measure.

Obviously, achieving such ludicrous figures meant altering much of the old V8. In fact, fans of 1980’s UK sitcom, Only Fools and Horses, will understand that the new motor is a bit like Trigger’s broom: so much has changed, none of the original remains.  

Lift the hood and you will find a larger high-flow supercharger, a high-flow air induction system and upgraded auxiliary fuel system, new fuel injectors, a new fuel pump, ported cylinder heads, uprated cams, valves, lifters… you get the picture. It’s a serious bit of kit.  

Ah, but surely it will blow itself to pieces with all the components stretched to those extreme levels? No, actually. And, impressively, the otherworldly performance is also underwritten by Hennessey’s comprehensive 3-year / 36,000-mile warranty.  

You might also question whether sending all that power exclusively to the rear wheels is a waste of time. But you’d be surprised. According to Founder and CEO, John Hennessey, “The chassis, suspension, and powerplant work seamlessly together, so all the driver experiences is raw, unbridled horsepower.”

In practice this means especially wide rear rubber is used to maximise the contact patch. Sized at 325/30/19, the Michelin Pilot Sport 4 S tyres should provide astonishing grip, but interestingly, are not the most track-focused set that Hennessey could have fitted. We surmise that the 4 S was chosen for its exceptionally versatile nature, with strong grip and feel regardless of weather conditions.  

That leaves just one question: is it faster than Dodge's Challenger Demon 170? That all depends on which metric you use. Up to 100 mph the Demon should have the edge, but if you can find a straight long enough, the Camaro should eventually come past with a 217-mph top speed – 2 mph more than the Challenger. Let’s be honest though, at that sort of velocity both will destroy almost anything without wings. 

Just 57 Exorcists will make it to production – one for each year the Camaro has been in service – and the cost of conversion is still yet to be confirmed. Although can you really put a price on 1000 bhp and a name which excites your inner 10-year-old? You decide.  

Hero image credit:  Hennessey