Backbone of Drag and Drive Part 2: 900 whp, 4875 lbs and Low 10 Second ETs
A 10 Second Streetcar is fun, sounds great and will do as many burnouts as your heart can handle. Lately though, we’ve seen a move in coverage of cars that cover the quarter mile in 6-8 seconds getting the most ink. While it is very impressive to see such quick cars covering road miles, it is highly important to remind ourselves that a 10-13 second streetcar is possibly more fun. Our goal with the coverage of these cars is to shine a light on the cars that are the backbone of drag and drive, since the 10-12 second ET range makes up more than half the community of cars.
David Lipps owns and races one of those cars. David’s 2018 Dodge Charger Hellcat is the kinda ride that you might see at the gas station and say “that’s a nice charger”. You might roll up on the highway in your stock sporty ride with some modicum of confidence. Then you’d probably get the idea that those cars are nice, comfortable, and heavy. And you would be right. David would likely show you hazards if you snorted your exhaust at him with any aggression. You see David’s Charger is not your average big heavy comfortable car. And David is not your average fella on the road. He’s part of a group of drivers that go the extra mile to get the last bit of performance available while maintaining the comfort and reliability the platform offers. And that’s why we are talking to David about his DnD experiences and his beautiful car.
So, let’s find out about the next guy, and car, in our “Backbone of Drag and Drive” features….
What was the original inspiration to go racing?
My father. Between hearing his stories of running the streets in his 66 Chevelle and some competition amongst my friends the seeds were planted that brought us to this point. He hung on just long enough for my first 9 second pass in 2021.
When/where was the first pass?
The first timed run we ever made was circa 2001/2002 at the Airport in St Mary's PA - they would host drag racing 3 or 4 times a year in the summer. We ran on the runway itself. Grooved pavement & all.
What was first car owned and first car raced?
One car did both -1993 Eagle Talon TSi AWD - Most comfortable driver's seat EVER
What is a Bucket List Race or Event?
There's three big ones I haven't hit yet. Sick Week, Rocky Mountain Race Week and Big Sky.
Favorite Car Movie?
It’s not really a car movie per se but growing up was Days Of Thunder. Now I'm more of a Ford Vs Ferrari guy.
Favorite Road Snack?
Does C4 Energy count as a snack? Otherwise BEAVER NUGGETS hands down.
What was your first Drag and Drive event? Co-pilot?
It was supposed to be Hot Rod Drag Week 2023 but that's the only time the car ever let me down. We made it back for 2024 with my friend Dan Oaks.
Tell us about your race car (year make Model) and mods
It's a 2018 Dodge Charger Hellcat with a full rack of bolt-ons:
Legmaker Intake, Nick Williams TB, Jokerz Max Effort Ported Blower & Bearing plate, FIC 1200cc Injectors, Twin Ti285 fuel pumps, Texas Speed Headers, Solo Performance Exhaust, IC Chiller for cooling, CCI Driveshaft, P4D DIRS Diff Brace, Full AAD Rear Suspension minus toe rods, Cradle & Diff Lockout kits, Forgestar D5 Beadlocks with Mickey Thompson ET Street R 315/50/17's & then some. 100% stock sealed motor Valve covers to Oil Pan - Tuned by Curt Dusterhoff at Dusterhoff Racing - we currently have about 35k miles on this setup making North of 900whp since 2019!
What was it you feel you did “right” at HRDW 2025?
We learned how to set up the launch to compensate for different conditions. This made staying consistent a lot easier.
Can you tell us about 1-2 struggles that week?
Our biggest and only real struggle was fighting a failing thermostat after Day 2 at Numidia. The mountain drive really brought us to the brink. We ended up finding a 185 thermostat for a hemi at a parts store in town and swapped it in the hotel parking lot at 11pm.
Why Street MAchine Eliminator class?
We initially planned on making sure we were 100% legal for sub-9.99 times as this were a real and distinct possibility if we ran our smallest pulley…but this would put us in a class in which we would've been at a serious competitive disadvantage - Running Street Machine Eliminator allowed us to massively simplify our daily routine by shedding parts & tools we wouldn't need to carry as well as decreasing wear & tear on both us and the car.
(One thing to note of the SME Class, most racers are concerned with being in the Top 32 of the Class to qualify for the SME Bracket Race on the final day. So, David could have laid up one day and still made the race.)
Would you reveal any secrets to consistency?
Data & Routines. Do the same thing every time from how you set up to how you tear down. Make sure you have access to the data and historical performance to allow you to make educated decisions.
How did it feel to get the win?
This one may ruffle a feather or two. It felt GREAT to take home the award for Quickest Street Machine Eliminator. We Dropped a 10.027 on day 1 and never looked back on the way to a 10.0508 event average which puts us 6th on the all-time list. Started in 1st. Ended in 1st. BUT - The overall Street Machine Eliminator Winner is actually the winner of the final day post-average 32 car shootout. This is the 2nd year in a row we've exited the first round of that shootout. Since points standings are based on event averages we technically secured the “win” as the #1 Qualifier for that shootout. Our only goal for HRDW 2026 is to qualify again and go rounds this time.
(Additional Notes: David is one of just six racers to run 10.0xx every day of Drag Week SME history.
HRDW 2025 Day 1 10.027, Day 2 10.046, Day 3 10.075, Day 4 10.046, Day 5 10.060 = Avg 10.0508. The 10.0508 Average is the Sixth Quickest Average in the Class! In a class with more than 1330 racers, this may one of the coolest feats in the class.)
Plans for events this year?
We are scheduled for 3 national level events and 3 regional events. Catch us at The Circuit, Back to the Streets, Sick Summer, Buckeye Skips, Hot Rod Drag Week and Southeast Street-N-Yeet!
In what vehicle? Any changes/upgrades
Barring any extenuating circumstances we'll be bringing the hellcat back to all 6 to try and make another run at the Drag & Drive World Championship in the 10.0+ class.
If you could have any one person co-pilot with you ..who would it be?
That's a long list of people to be perfectly honest. The short list includes Goldstone, Dunphy, Vanderhoof & Davis, LaSala, Steve Morris & others…because the benefit of that kind of experience and knowledge (not just from seat time) is immeasurable when things get tough and pressure is on.
In all reality though. If it were possible to wind it back and get involved in this earlier? I'd take Dad one time. He never got to see me under the lights. He'd absolutely love it out here.
Imagine throwing a dart and putting it 1/32 off the absolute center of the bulls eye. Now imagine doing that every day for five days straight. At a different place and at a different dart board. That achievement would be similar to what the racers that pull off a string of passes with deviations counted in the .00somethng column do. A good car is key, however…. the guy/gal behind the wheel, and often the one tuning (whether that’s a keyboard or a flat head screwdriver) are just as critical. Consistency is something that you gotta want. And bad! While lots of us are just hoping for a pass that doesn’t end with something broke. Or hoping for a solid run so we can head for the first checkpoint, there are folks like David hanging round to make as many licks as it takes to get to the center of the “that’s dang near perfect” tootsiepop. Commitment is standard equipment for these folks. And it starts long before they gas up, load a trailer, buy the energy drinks and beef jerky, and head for tech day. When a fella takes a 4875 pound car, sticks it in the 10.00’s every day, while driving hundreds of miles, enjoying the sites of this beautiful country, and the freedom we are so blessed to have, you can call him slow if you want to, I call him “a bad man”...
David Lipps’ Hellcat checks every box that defines the backbone of drag and drive: street miles, consistency, and performance that holds up for five straight days. A 4,875-pound sedan running low 10s while driving the same roads as everyone else is exactly the kind of car that fills the staging lanes at these events. These are the cars that keep drag and drive alive. In the next installment of Backbone of Drag and Drive, we’ll take a look at another racer proving that the heart of this sport lives in the 10-second time slip.
Article by: Rodney Reeves, David Lipps, Michael Narx
Photos by Go Fast Photography and David Lipps
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