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Ho ho horsepower! Durango SRT Hellcat V-8 coming to all 50 states
Posted by Talbot Payne on December 22, 2025
There might be a Hellcat in your stocking this Christmas.
Thanks to an easing regulatory landscape, Dodge has opened delivery for its iconic, fire-breathing, supercharged, 710-horsepower, three-row Durango SRT Hellcat SUV to all 50 states just in time for the holidays. Etched with signature twin stripes over its scooped hood, the Hellcat (and Hellcat Jailbreak) models add a V8-powered performance option to the Durango, which offers a V-6 as its base engine.
Dodge launched the sales campaign with a wild new video on its social channels featuring Santa Claus making a jail break, then taking to the skies in his supercharged Hellcat sleigh.
The Durango is the latest move by corporate parent Stellantis to lean into its Dodge and Ram muscle brands as government regulations have been dialed back. Ram has rearmed its 1500 pickup with a V-8 and the Dodge Challenger is now powered by a turbo-6 cylinder (after a detour down Electric Alley) with a V-8 expected soon.
The Durango SRT Hellcat’s availability had been limited due to strict regulations by the California Air Resources Board and other states, but federal legislation has throttled back those threats. Dodge said it updated its ordering availability (initially limited to 33 states) to account for the changing landscape.
“There’s no stopping the momentum the Dodge Durango is experiencing, including 14 straight months of sales growth, and now that the Durango SRT Hellcat is uncaged and running free in all 50 states, that momentum is going to keep growing,” said Dodge CEO Matt McAlear.
2026 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat Jailbreak options 10 million different feature combos. Stellantis, 2025 Stellantis
The 5,550-pound rhino in tennis shoes is the most powerful three-row SUV on the planet — and the fifth most-powerful, gas-powered SUV period, trailing only the 715-horsepower Ferrari Purosangue, 717-horsepower Aston Martin DBX S, 729-horsepower Porsche Cayenne Turbo E-Hybrid and 789-horse Lamborghini Urus SE exotics.
Starting at $82,585 — about double the $41,990 standard, all-wheel-drive, V6-powered Durango — but one-third the price of the $240K Lamborghini, the Durango will hit 60 mph in just 3.6 seconds (quicker than a Porsche Boxster T sports car) on its way to a 180 mph top speed.
2026 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat and Hellcat Jailbreak are now offered in all 50 states thanks to regulatory rollbacks. Stellantis, 2025 Stellantis
New for ‘26, the Durango SRT Hellcat Jailbreak edition offers Dodge’s signature Triple Nickel exterior color and carbon-fiber stripes — unlocking more than 10 million customization combinations. Other options include paint colors (Destroyer Gray, Diamond Black, Green Machine, Octane Red, Vapor Gray, B5 Blue, White Knuckle), six wheels, six exterior badge colors, five seat colors, six dual-stripe colors, four brake caliper colors, Alcantara steering wheel, sunroof, and a partridge in a pear tree.
“The Dodge Durango stands alone as the only three-row muscle SUV on the market, delivering unmatched performance, best-in-class towing, and available Hemi V-8 power — the perfect supercharged sleigh to help Santa on his mission,” McAlear said.
In the jailbreak video, Santa busts from jail (incarcerated for breaking and entering, naturally) with Mrs. Claus and takes the reins of his Durango SRT Hellcat Jailbreak sleigh:
They fired up the Durango, Hemi engine aglowAnd the guards stood there frozen, too stunned by the showWith a burst through the gates and thunderous crackHe shouted “This Christmas season the Jailbreak is back!”
Dodge has been at odds with tightening federal carbon dioxide emissions regulations as its Hellcat-powered Charger and Challenger lineup pumped out 592 grams of CO2 per mile, ranking the cars at 2 on the EPA’s 1-10 emissions scale. Despite being the most popular muscle cars in the U.S. market — outselling even the iconic Ford Mustang — the Challenger/Charger helped earn Stellantis whopping government fines of $711 million in 2022, nearly the cost of a new car program.
The cars were discontinued after the 2023 model year, but the Durango SRT Hellcat lived on.
“Federal emissions laws have arcane rules for cars, SUVs, and trucks, and they are biased towards big SUVs like the Durango,” said auto analyst and investor Anton Wahlman of SeekingAlpha.com. “Bottom line, Dodge was able to continue producing the Durango V-8.”
In addition to gob-smacking power, the 2026 Dodge Durango SRT Hellcat Jailbreak is an AWD, three-row daily driver. Stellantis, 2025 Stellantis
Yet, another layer of state laws led by California prohibited the Durango Hellcat’s sale in 17 states. That changed this year when Congress passed laws rolling back federal emissions fines and nixing exemptions allowing states to set their own emissions rules.
“On top of the EPA fines, California threw another wrench in the works,” said Wahlman, noting that states are counter-suing Congress. “Now that those rules have been repealed, Stellantis is taking the position that they have the green light to make what their customers want.”
In pursuit of “a lineup that delivers unrivaled performance in each of its segments,” Dodge said the Durango joins an all-new, gas-fired, twin-turbo inline-6-engine-powered, sedan/coupe Charger lineup that includes the $56,990, 550-horsepower Dodge Charger Scat Pack and $51,990, 420-horsepower R/T.
The Detroit News crowned the Charger its 2025 Vehicle of the Year earlier this month.
Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.