{"id":65568,"date":"2022-10-12T09:09:43","date_gmt":"2022-10-12T13:09:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.dodgegarage.com\/news-api\/?p=65568"},"modified":"2024-03-25T11:20:16","modified_gmt":"2024-03-25T15:20:16","slug":"challenger-scat-pack-1320-goes-on-a-diet","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/test.api.dodgegarage.com\/news\/owners-clubs\/2022\/10\/challenger-scat-pack-1320-goes-on-a-diet.html","title":{"rendered":"Challenger Scat Pack 1320 Goes on a Diet"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

If you\u2019re looking to go fast in your ride, then weight is the mortal enemy. It\u2019s basic physics, it takes more energy to propel a heavy object than a lighter one. Whether it\u2019s NASA\u2019s space shuttle or your street car, you just can\u2019t argue with math and science. Now, the SRT\u00ae<\/sup> engineers that gave us some heavy hitters (pun intended) for drag strip action, like the mind-blowing Challenger SRT Demon and Challenger Scat Pack 1320, created some unique options that helped to reduce unneeded pounds. With front passenger seat delete and rear seat delete available on both of these unique Challengers, it helped to shed some of those unwanted pounds off the already hefty Challenger for owners who checked the box to not have these seats installed in the car when it rolled off the Brampton Assembly Line. But, some owners took their weight reduction plan even further. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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That\u2019s what Chris Ulanowicz from north Dallas was attempting on his 2020 Challenger Scat Pack 1320<\/a>. The software engineer was on a mission to make his 1320 one of the fastest in the land in basic stock form but with simple mods and weight reduction. Now he may live in Texas, but Chris grew up on Detroit\u2019s eastside, where some of the Mopar\u00ae<\/sub> DNA was brewed from the old Chrysler plants like Hamtramck\u2019s Dodge Main and Lynch Road that produced many Mopar muscle cars back in the day. It was that vibe that got into Chris\u2019s blood stream. It probably didn’t hurt that his dad worked for Chrysler as a pipefitter at the Warren Stamping Plant from 1972 up until his retirement in 1996. Chris also had several uncles and other family members that worked for Chrysler while he was growing up in the Motor City. “Oddly enough, though, no one in my family was actually into cars or racing as a hobby,” said Chris. “My dad taught me some of the basics of car maintenance but that’s about it. Even so, I just always had this passion for not just cars but also going fast.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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When it came time for Chris to purchase his own personal Mopar muscle car, he did a lot of research and contemplation. \u201cI’ve always wanted a rear-wheel-drive V8 Mopar, that’s why I always drove and raced Dodge Rams, since that was the only V8 RWD option for a long time. But when the LX platform came out, I wasn’t in a position financially to buy one. Then the Challenger was released, and I fell in love with it immediately, but still wasn’t financially able to afford one,\u201d noted Chris. \u201cAs the years went on, they got more and more expensive and out of reach. Then the Hellcat came out, putting it even further out of reach. Even if I could have afforded an R\/T model, I knew I wouldn’t be happy with it knowing something like the Hellcat with its 707-horsepower HEMI\u00ae<\/sup> was out there. I won’t even talk about the Challenger SRT Demon as those were just a pipe dream for me.\u201d For Chris, he loved drag racing and that\u2019s where his head was at when it came to shaping the decision for what his new ride should be. \u201cI missed going to the dragstrip and racing. It was the one place that when I went, I felt at peace. The smell of burning rubber or the exhaust of a big V8 burning race fuel just gave me solitude. It felt like home, and all of life’s worries would just disappear. Then Dodge announced the Challenger Scat Pack 1320. The quickest naturally aspirated muscle car ever that was made more for the grassroots drag racer and was more affordable. I truly felt that car was made just for me. It was a car that may not be at the performance level of a Hellcat or Demon, but there was just something else about it that made the Challenger 1320 special.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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With Chris\u2019 passion for drag strip action, he just knew he had to purchase a new Challenger 1320. \u201cIt wasn’t until after the 2019 model year was wrapping up, though, that I finally got established in my new software career enough to be able to afford one. By this time, Dodge announced the Challenger 1320 was coming back for 2020 but hadn’t opened up ordering for it yet. For months, I would check all the Mopar news sites every day for any news about orders opening up on the 1320. Then on the morning of February 20, 2020, news broke that 1320 ordering was now live, and that same afternoon, I was at the dealer placing my order. Then COVID hit and my car never made it into production before the shutdown. I had to wait a while longer, but then finally on June 22, 2020, I took delivery.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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When it came to ordering his Challenger 1320, Chris already had the color and options in mind before he set one foot into the dealership. \u201cI loved the new Hellraisin color and the only options I order for my 2020 Dodge Challenger 1320 were hood pins and the front passenger and rear seats as they\u2019re only $1.00 each. I needed a full interior for my wife and daughter, although now I regret not getting a single seater since they never ride in it,\u201d laughed Chris. When it came to performance mods, Chris kept it very simple. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\u201cI added the Mopar Cold Air Intake that comes stock on the Challenger T\/A. I also heat-wrapped the air box to help keep the engine bay heat off. I also installed an oil catch can early on, but that has nothing to do with performance. The rest is all weight reduction besides the drag wheel\/tire setup. The 392 HEMI V8, its tune, transmission, driveline, suspension is all still stock exactly as it came from the factory. Even the exhaust system is stock with the exception of the Z-Automotive active exhaust deletes, which just allows me to keep the valves in the wide-open position at all times. Other than the aftermarket Billet Specialties Wheels<\/a> and Mickey Thompson Drag Radials<\/a>, my Challenger 1320 is as stock as it gets.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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With the limited mods done, Chris began to put his Challenger 1320 on a crash diet as nothing was left unturned or off the table. Unless it had a specific function, it was coming out. \u201cIf it’s not necessary to drive the car, it’s getting unbolted and coming off,\u201d laughed Chris. He did leave the A\/C unit intact; as he puts it, \u201cIt gets hot in Dallas and just this past summer we saw almost 50 days of 100-degree-plus heat, and since I drive my car daily, I didn\u2019t want to deal with the high humidity and insane temps.\u201d Regarding the items Chris has removed from his Challenger 1320, it varies from minor nuts and bolts to major interior trim pieces, items like seats, door panels and even dashboard trim. “It all adds up, so people may shake their heads when I remove something that only weighs a few pounds, saying it won’t affect anything, but keep removing a bunch of those little things and they quickly start to add up like dollars put into a savings account.\u201d The parts Chris has removed from his Challenger 1320 is like a laundry list of items one would need if they were restoring a car. These items include: <\/p>\n\n\n\n