Saturday 15th April 2017

Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk - official!

707hp, 11.6-second quarter-mile and 180mph - who wants a Range Rover SVR anyway?

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You want to know about the numbers, don't you? With any Hellcat-engined product, it's the numbers that matter first. This Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk does indeed pack the same 707hp as its Challenger and Charger stablemates plus, with an automatic gearbox and four-wheel drive, it's actually the quickest too. 60mph is dealt with in 3.5 seconds, before crossing the quarter-mile in 11.6 seconds at 116mph and a 180mph top speed. Peak torque is 645lb ft.

707hp and 4WD means 0-60 in 3.5 seconds...

You want more? Good, as there's plenty. The Trackhawk boasts the largest brakes ever used on a Jeep product, the front discs a gigantic 400mm in diameter. They help stop the car from 60mph in less than 35m. The maximum boost pressure of the supercharger is 11.6psi and has a maximum speed of 14,600rpm. The peak cornering g-force is 0.88g on the standard Pirelli P-Zeros. In case you hadn't guessed, this is a very, very serious Jeep.

"The new Grand Cherokee Trackhawk delivers astounding performance numbers, backed by renowned SRT engineering" says Head of Jeep Mike Manley (and yes, that is his real name). To that end the Trackhawk features a raft of tweaks allowing it to contain that rampant power. The rear drive shaft and the axle it connects to are stronger, there's a new transfer case that's again said to be more durable and an overhauled automatic gearbox. In addition to containing the power, it's said to deliver quicker, more precise and more consistent shifts.

A Bilstein adaptive damping system keeps the body in check (good luck finding a kerbweight so far), with the suspension also revised and featuring aluminium control arms, aluminium knuckles and new hollow anti-roll bars. However, despite the performance focus, the Trackhawk can apparently still tow 7,200lb, or 3,265kg. Which is handy.

Who cares about inside with a supercharged V8?

Allowing the driver to exploit all that hardware is a Selec-Track drive mode system, with five modes: Auto, Sport, Track, Snow and Tow. As is usual for these, it controls the behaviour of the 4WD, the transmission, the suspension and the power steering. Interestingly there's nothing mentioned yet of its influence on the engine. Beginning from a 40:60 front-to-rear torque split in Auto, the Trackhawk can go as rear biased as 30:70 in Track mode; that setting also reduces gearshift time to 160 milliseconds and all driver aids are configured for "ultimate track performance". Tow is exactly as you might expect, with a different torque delivery off the line and a front biased torque split. See, it's an entirely legitimate tow car. At about 10mpg, presumably...

Intriguingly the Trackhawk also has a Custom mode - see the dash pic - which allows the driver to pick and choose their preferred dynamic settings. There's even a Valet setting for when it's in, shall we say, less trustworthy hands, enabled via a pin code and reducing maximum power. It also limits the revs to 4,000rpm, locks out first gear, disables launch control and puts all the driver aids in maximum nanny mode. You've been told!

Marking out the Trackhawk from your puny non-supercharged V8 Jeeps are a selection of 'supercharged' badges - but of course - as well as yellow calipers for the new brakes, 20-inch wheels, cooling ducts where the foglights used to be (always a nice touch), four big exhausts and some wider arches. The wheels seen here can also be replaced with optional forged aluminium rims, saving just over 5kg a corner in unsprung mass. Paint colours include 'Rhino', 'True Blue', 'Granite Crystal' and 'Redline 2'.

'MURICA

Inside the Trackhawk is, well, how you might expect a Jeep Grand Cherokee interior to be actually - Cayenne customers need not worry on that front. It does however feature a steering wheel with "a bevy of comfort, convenience and connectivity controls" as well as a 19-speaker, 825w Harmon Kardon stereo with two subwoofers plus the 'Performance Pages' in the centre screen that can display temperatures, timers and an instant dyno readout. More interesting than instant mpg at least.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk makes its debut at the New York show this week and, as a 2018 model, should be on sale soon. UK sales seem very unlikely at the moment, but then so did the very prospect of Dodge selling 707hp cars with warranties not all that long ago. Fingers very firmly crossed...

[ZX10R NIN]

Love this I'm not one for SUV's but I could happily own this.

Who said fuel consumption

[Phil Dicky]

Be a good used buy in 4 years if they were coming to the UK

[defblade]

ZX10R NIN said:

Who said fuel consumption

The 7,200lb towing is for a separate fuel tank, in case you want to go further than the local shops

This has just gone on my Euromillions list!

[XFRFred]

Can't wait for something like this to hit our roads.
Was a fan of the original SRT8 Jeep, but the tacky plastic inside put me off buying one.

This looks far far better and, finger crossed, they will be selling them over in the UK too.

[alpha channel]

If I was in the market for a loony 4x4 that'd be it. Looks more distinctive than the RR SVR which just blends in with the morass of Range Rover/Land Rover range (they should really avoid going down the German route of scaled up/down design language).

[Aeroresh]

I love my new regular grand Cherokee SRT, I can only imagine the Trackhawk is epic!!

Please, please Mr Chrysler importer, please bring this to the Uk!

[bitchstewie]

Article said:

There's even a Valet setting

Guess Jeep have seen Ferris Bueller's day off.

[Kenny Powers]

Wow. That is certainly a distinctive looking beast! And of course thunderous performance. Given the choice, I would take that over anything that trundles out of Solihull

[gwc1997]

3.5 seconds to 60 in an SUV. WOW.

[Krikkit]

The perfect machine for the guy who tows a Viper ACR to track days. What a machine.

[spencermit]

Mmmmmmm.......

[Zetec-S]

Yes please

[rtz62]

I'd happily buy one of these just to fk off Sadiq Khan; I'd sit outside his house, rev the bks off it whilst smiling and shouting 'and that's what you can do with your congestion charge!'.
Back in the real world, what's not to like other than the presumably appalling mpg (hush my mouth, this IS Pistonheads after all !)
I'm sure some Premiership divers, sorry, footballers, will find a way to personally import one and then cruise around, showing off their purchasing power to us lesser mortals. Knobbers!

[driverrob]

One of the only gripes I had with my 2006 SRT8 was the low geared steering. If they've corrected that I'll start saving for this one; from fun to utter madness.

[Ho Lee Kau]

Macan Turbo is much slower, Cayenne Turbo S is slower. X5M, GLE63S AMG, GL63AMG...they all ride better I am sure....but here we have a proper iron with a macho image! Only G-Class can compete.

[David87]

I'd love to buy one and then sign up for the 4x4 Response thing (one eye open and all that) and some track days. There's not many cars that can do both.

[hammo19]

My wife and I were saying we should change our 2013 3.0 Grand Cherokee for a SRT8, think we might have to re think after this beauty has been rolled out.

[Yipper]

An ugly car but an epic engine. With a remap, that will be worrying supercars.

[btchudson]

Yipper said:

An ugly car but an epic engine. With a remap, that will be worrying supercars.

You can't be serious... remap to what? 1000 BHP? lol

It's got 707hp and 3.5s to 60mph... if that's not supercar worrying for an SUV i don't know what is!

[Helicopter123]

Interesting to contrast the love for this with the hate for the SQ7...