Dodge Challenger R/T V8: the HEMI rumble restored, the exhaust system guide
The Challenger R/T is a muscle car in the purest American tradition: a long bonnet, rear-wheel drive and a 5.7-litre naturally aspirated HEMI V8. You expect a car like this to rumble. Yet on the 2016 to 2022 model years, the factory exhaust keeps it surprisingly well-behaved. This guide sets out the ROG exhaust options that give the HEMI back the character everyone expects of it.
Written by ROG Motorsport · Updated
Your ROG exhaust for the Dodge Challenger R/T V8
From €2,490 in stainless steel, €2,990 in titanium
Configure my exhaust- Vehicles
- Dodge Challenger R/T V8 5.7 (2016-2022)
- Engine
- 377 to 380 hp · 542 to 556 Nm, depending on the version
- Exhaust
- Valved cat-back, built for your VIN
- Material
- 304 stainless steel or titanium
- Front section
- Optional: catted manifolds with 200 or 100 cells, or decat
- Valves
- ROG remote, or factory control if your vehicle has it
- Lead time
- 20 working days from order confirmation to delivery
- Warranty
- 3 years, parts and workmanship
Closely related versions have their own guide: Dodge Challenger R/T V8 5.7, Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat V8 6.2.
The 5.7 HEMI: the naturally aspirated V8 at the heart of the Challenger R/T
The Challenger R/T's HEMI is a 5.7-litre naturally aspirated V8, built to a typically American recipe: a single central camshaft, pushrods and a cross-plane crankshaft. Its strength is generous torque available from the very first revs. No need to chase the top of the rev counter: the Challenger pulls hard as soon as you press the throttle, with the ease of a big-displacement engine.
On a V8 of this displacement, the exhaust makes up most of the sound personality. The factory exhaust on the R/T was tuned for everyday use and keeps the engine surprisingly discreet for a muscle car. The valved ROG exhaust replaces it: with the valves open, the HEMI regains its rumble; with the valves closed, you drive in peace. The engine and ECU stay as they left the factory.
How the exhaust on your Dodge Challenger R/T V8 is put together
An exhaust system is best understood in two parts. Here is what each one does, and what ROG replaces.
The cat-back is the complete exhaust system
It is everything you can see under your Dodge Challenger R/T V8, from the outlet of the front section to the tips: pipes, silencer, valves. This is where our research and development is focused, and it is what shapes the sound. On its own, it changes the character of the car.
The front section, where the catalytic converter sits
On your Dodge Challenger R/T V8, these are the manifolds, which collect the gases as they leave the cylinders. The factory catalytic converter is built into it: the second restriction in the exhaust, after the silencer. Replacing this part is optional: it frees up the flow, and an ECU remap is what turns that into power.
Your Dodge Challenger R/T V8 in figures
On a modern car, an exhaust system first changes the voice, the breathing and the weight at the rear. Power, on the other hand, comes from an ECU remap.
Power
Torque
Published manufacturer and Stage 2 figures, converted from US units. Factory figures vary by version; Stage 2 figures published for the 380 hp version.
Our exhaust systems work perfectly with or without an ECU remap. On your Dodge Challenger R/T V8, however, we recommend one at an approved tuning centre: it is what lets the engine deliver its full potential.
On a naturally aspirated V8 such as the HEMI, a Stage 2 remap does not transform the car: it refines the mapping and response, for more modest gains than with a forced-induction engine. The ROG exhaust complements it, letting the V8 breathe and express itself freely.
Configuring your exhaust, step by step
4 choices, in the same order as the product page configurator.
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Step 1 of 4: Material: stainless steel or titanium
For your Dodge Challenger R/T V8, the exhaust costs €2,490 in stainless steel and €2,990 in titanium.
304 stainless steel
2 490 €
- Weight
- Baseline
- Sound
- Full and rounded
The benchmark for high-end exhausts: tough, corrosion-proof, with a full, rounded sound. The choice of most of our customers.
Titanium
2 990 €
- Weight
- Around 40% lighter
- Sound
- Metallic, crystal-clear
Around 40% lighter than stainless steel for the same design, with a more metallic sound that turns crystal-clear at high revs. Its finish ranges from brushed to blued tints.
Over time, both hold up: 304 stainless steel stands up to winter salt and damp, and titanium does not rust. Stainless steel or titanium: what really changes.
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Step 2 of 4: Front section: manifolds and catalytic converter
Optional: the manifolds on your Dodge Challenger R/T V8, with their catalytic converter. Sound intensity is rated on our scale of 0 to 10, valves open; the factory exhaust scores 3.
Cat-back only
Included
7/10Factory emissions control
The factory catalytic converter stays in place. The starting point and, for many of our customers, more than enough.
200-cell sports catalytic converter
+540 €
8/10Road use and French MOT
Emissions control is still very much there, and flow improves noticeably. The choice for everyday driving.
100-cell sports catalytic converter
+540 €
9/10French MOT pass not guaranteed
Half as many cells: flow comes close to a decat and the sound gains real aggression at high revs.
Decat
+340 €
10/10Track use only
No emissions control: maximum flow, raw sound, the sharpest revving.
Sound intensity, on a scale of 0 to 10
- 10/10Decat manifolds + ROG cat-back
- 9/10100-cell sports catalytic converter + ROG cat-back
- 8/10200-cell sports catalytic converter + ROG cat-back
- 7/10ROG cat-back only, factory catalytic converter retained
- 3/10Factory exhaust, for comparison
Valves open. With the valves closed, every configuration becomes discreet again.
What about the engine warning light? A sports catalytic converter can trigger it: the oxygen sensor after the catalytic converter detects less cleaning than with the factory unit. It is not a fault. An ECU remap recalibrates the sensor, and a session with a diagnostic tool clears the fault code. With a decat, the warning light is almost certain without a remap. If it happens to you, call us and we will point you in the right direction. Passing the French MOT with a sports exhaust.
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Step 3 of 4: Valves: ROG remote or factory control
Two ways to control the valves on your Dodge Challenger R/T V8.
ROG remote
A small control unit fits in the boot. Two buttons, open and closed: the valves respond at any moment, whatever the drive mode. Simple to fit, and we stay on hand throughout the installation.
Factory control
- Only for vehicles fitted with factory valves
- Controlled by the drive modes
If your vehicle is fitted with factory valves, the exhaust keeps their existing control. The drive modes decide, just as they did from the factory, with no added electronics.
On the motorway, with the valves closed, the gases pass through the silencer, designed for cruising: no drone at a steady speed. You open up when you feel like it, not when the motorway decides for you. More about exhaust drone.
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Step 4 of 4: Tips: the visual signature
Match the tips to the style of your Dodge Challenger R/T V8, understated or bold. A particular finish in mind? Send us a photo and we will look at it together.
- Stainless steel
- Black
- Carbon
- Blued titanium
The ROG sound signature on the Challenger's HEMI V8
The cross-plane crankshaft gives the HEMI V8 its uneven rhythm, the lumpy burble at idle that became the soundtrack of muscle cars. On the Challenger R/T, the factory exhaust keeps its outline but erases its depth: you sense the V8, but you do not feel it.
With the ROG exhaust and the valves open, the idle gains depth and every acceleration releases a deep, full growl that swells with speed. With the valves closed, the Challenger becomes more discreet, for driving through a residential area or covering long distances on the motorway.
From order to fitting
-
Configuration
You choose your exhaust and enter your VIN, found in box E of your registration certificate.
-
Check
We check compatibility with your VIN before manufacturing begins.
-
Manufacturing
Your exhaust is made to order, for your car.
-
Delivery
Free in Europe, insured to your door, tracked from dispatch.
-
Fitting
No welding or cutting: clamps and gaskets, around two hours on a lift.
20 working days from order confirmation to delivery
- Warranty
- 3 years, parts and workmanship, from the date of delivery
- Payment
- In instalments with Klarna
- Installation
- At the garage of your choice
What about the manufacturer's warranty on your Dodge Challenger R/T V8? In Europe, a manufacturer cannot refuse warranty cover simply because a part from another brand has been fitted: it has to prove that the fault comes from that part. Our article on the manufacturer's warranty.
Our recommendations for your Dodge Challenger R/T V8
-
Daily driving
2 490 €
- Stainless
- Cat-back only
- ROG remote
Your Dodge Challenger R/T V8 stays easy to live with, the factory emissions control is retained, and you open the valves when you decide.
View this configuration -
Fast road
3 530 €
- Titanium
- 200-cell manifolds
- ECU remap
More sound, more breathing, and a car you can still present at the French MOT.
View this configuration -
Track
3 330 €
- Titanium
- Decat manifolds
- Stage 2
The most extreme configuration, for track use only.
View this configuration
And if you are still unsure, that is perfectly normal: it is exactly why we answer the phone.
Dodge Challenger R/T V8: your questions
How much power does an exhaust add on the Dodge Challenger R/T V8?
As standard, the Dodge Challenger R/T V8 produces 377 to 380 hp and 542 to 556 Nm, depending on the version. An exhaust system on its own mainly changes the sound, the breathing and the weight; power is gained with an ECU remap. With a Stage 2 build, the published figures for the 380 hp version reach 456 hp.
Stainless steel or titanium: which material for the Dodge Challenger R/T V8?
For the Dodge Challenger R/T V8, the ROG exhaust costs €2,490 in stainless steel and €2,990 in titanium. 304 stainless steel is tough, rounded in tone and the most popular choice; titanium is around 40% lighter for the same design, with a more metallic sound at high revs.
Do you need to replace the catalytic converter on the Dodge Challenger R/T V8?
No. On the Dodge Challenger R/T V8, the cat-back alone carries the valves and already transforms the sound. Replacing the manifolds is an option for going further: with a 200-cell sports catalytic converter for the road, 100-cell or decat for more radical use, with an ECU remap to turn it into power.
Does the Dodge Challenger R/T V8 pass the French MOT with a ROG exhaust?
With the cat-back only or the 200-cell sports catalytic converter, emissions control is retained: present the car with the valves closed. The 100-cell converter no longer guarantees a pass, and the decat fails the emissions test.
How is the ROG exhaust fitted on the Dodge Challenger R/T V8?
No welding or cutting, using clamps and gaskets. Allow two hours on average for a well-equipped mechanic. The exhaust is built for your VIN, which guarantees compatibility before it ships.
What price and lead time for a ROG exhaust on the Dodge Challenger R/T V8?
From €2,490 to €3,530 depending on the configuration. Allow 20 working days from order confirmation to delivery. Free delivery in Europe and a 3-year warranty.
Unsure about your configuration? Give us a call.
Stainless steel or titanium, cat-back only or the complete system: the right choice depends on how you use your Dodge Challenger R/T V8. We take the time to talk it through before you order, with a reply within 24 hours. We are not here to sell to you over the phone: we help you choose, even if that means a cheaper option because it suits the way you drive.
RogMotorsport is a French brand built on one conviction: with an exhaust system, the support matters as much as the product. More than 500 exhaust systems fitted and a rating of 4.9 out of 5.
Further reading
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