https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6fc_LZLWfI
This video, by Florida Car Culture claims to be the first public sighting of the new Dodge Demon making a pass in the quarter mile. Although this Challenger has a Demon hood and some Demon emblems, it's definitely not the real thing. You could say this is a close relative, as it is indeed a factory built race car much like the Demon.
What you see running a 9.5 second quarter mile at 148 mph is a Dodge Challenger Drag Pak. This is a factory built car like the COPO Camaro or Ford Mustang Cobra Jet and competes in factory stock drag racing classes. The Drag Pak actually has a smaller engine than the Hellcat and Demon at only 354 cubic inches compared to 367. It shares the same NHRA spec 2.9 Whipple supercharger as the COPO and Cobra jet and uses a GM TH400 trans and a Strange 9 inch rear end. Talk about the best of all worlds. The Drag Pack costs about $110,000 and is capable of 8 second quarter mile times.
You will notice right away that this Challenger has no fender flares, no black wheels with factory nitto drag radials, it has a roll cage like the Demon should, has no rear spoiler and the wrong front end. Really, the list goes on forever.
This particular Drag pak was being driven by Leah Pritchett who drives a top fuel dragster for Don Schumacher Racing. She is racing for charity against the owner of Papa Johns and his 2nd generation Camaro.
We all can't wait to see the Demon hitting up the track in the real world but this just isn't it. One interesting side note: The Drag Pak is not a street legal car but is a legal drag racing car due to a roll cage and other safety features specifically designed for NHRA rules. The Demon on the other hand is a street legal car branded a drag car that is banned from racing NHRA.
In the end there's only one thing to do, buy both.
Related: The Dodge Demon's incredible 0-60 time explained