A Dodge Demon takes on a Toyota Supra in an unusual drag race in the desert.
Drag races aren’t usually meant to take place in the desert. That’s mostly because sand is horrifically bad for both traction and cars in general. The grit can wear away paint, clog up air intakes, and even damage engine components over time. But worse than that, sand just slips between a tire’s cracks and prevents it from going anywhere fast.
Plus it’s just dirty. But some people like that.
Brooks from DragTimes recently got together with the Savage Garage Crew to have some fun in the desert. Specifically, Jean Lake Bed 30 miles outside Las Vegas. There, a bunch of car nuts brought their best rides to see how they perform in the driest parts of America.
And they also pitted a Demon against a Supra just for the hell of it.
On any surface other than sand, the Demon is the clear winner with over twice the horsepower as the smaller Toyota. But this is not a drag strip. It’s not even a road. It’s sand. And on the sand, drag radials are a detriment. What you want is big, chunky, off-road tires with tons of grip to push sand out of the way like a paddle. Flat rubber will just spin and spin without getting you anywhere.
Which is pretty much what happened. Despite having 840 horsepower and all the drag race technology that FCA could muster, the Demon mostly kept spinning its wheels. You can see the driver struggles to maintain control even well into the race. Meanwhile, the Supra shot off into the distance thanks to its lighter weight and all-season tires being a better fit for the environment.
Next up is a BMW E30, but it too falls to the Supra. There are others, but you can’t really see them through the cloud of sand and dust. These cars get filthy in the desert, and we can’t imagine why anyone would keep the windows down in such a place.
These guys are gonna need several showers and a car detailing after this vid.