If you can hear a distant rumble coming from Michigan, don’t worry — it’s not thunder, it’s Dodge. And they’re bringing the storm to MotorTrend Presents Roadkill Nights Powered by Dodge this August 9, where horsepower is a language and Woodward Avenue is the dialect.

This isn’t your local cars-and-coffee. This is the 10th anniversary of Dodge’s biggest street-legal horsepower party, and they’re bringing more octane, more noise, and more tyre smoke than a drift competition held inside a fireworks factory.

The Calm Before the Burnout

The festivities kick off Friday, August 8, with Dodge revealing its newest muscle weapon. No one’s saying exactly what it is, but you can bet it’s going to be loud enough to scare squirrels in the next county. And for those who can’t physically stand in Pontiac and breathe in the premium-grade exhaust fumes, Dodge will be livestreaming the whole thing from 11 a.m. ET on YouTube.

Meet the Badassadors

In a move that sounds like something from a 90s rock tour, Dodge is unleashing their first-ever Badassadors. These are the brand’s hardcore, grease-under-the-nails superfans, armed with cameras, social followings, and enough passion for Mopar to power the grid. They’ll be on-site all weekend, mingling with fans, shooting content, and reminding the world that subtlety isn’t a Dodge personality trait.

The roster includes ex-Marines with Demon 170s, vintage car collectors, YouTubers with millions of views, and people who think swapping Hellcat engines into literally anything is a perfectly reasonable hobby.

Stars, Strips and 12,000 Horsepower

Tony Stewart, Leah Pruett, Matt Hagan, Ida Zetterstrom — basically the Avengers of NHRA — will be there, signing autographs and then promptly melting everyone’s retinas with 12,000-horsepower burnout runs. Yes, twelve thousand. That’s roughly the power output of a nuclear submarine, except this one has a blower the size of a microwave.

Also on the bill: the Direct Connection Grudge Race, the Ram 1500 NASCAR concept, the Raminator Monster Truck, Kenny Wayne Shepherd shredding the national anthem on guitar, and enough food trucks to feed a pit crew for a month.

Drag Racing in Dodge’s Backyard

This is the only legal time you’ll see quarter-mile drag runs on historic Woodward Avenue — a stretch normally patrolled by local cops with zero sense of humour about burnouts. Big Tire, Small Tire, cash prizes, and a walkable pit area so you can get up close and personal with the racers. And if you’re lucky, smell like racing fuel for the rest of the week.

For the Ones at Home

Can’t make it? No problem. From 4 to 9 p.m. ET, you can watch the madness online via MotorTrend, Dodge, and Dodge Garage YouTube channels. Not the same as feeling the shockwave of a Top Fuel burnout in your chest, but close enough that your neighbours might still call the noise complaint in advance.

Source: Stellantis