The Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, injected with 522 kW of raw power courtesy of the supercharged 6.2-liter V8 engine taken from the Dodge Hellcat, is now the most powerful and quickest production SUV on the planet … and it is now available locally for a cool R2,2 million.
With such potency, combined with 881 Nm of torque, it is no wonder the blown engine in the Grand Cherokee Trackhawk is so strong that it can withstand firing pressures of nearly 110 bar (1,600 psi) – the equivalent of five family sedans standing on each piston, every two revolutions.
The mighty engine is combined with a TorqueFlite eight-speed auto transmission and Quadra-Trac on-demand four-wheel-drive system that includes an electronic limited-slip rear differential, strengthened rear drive shaft, and a single-speed active transfer case to channel all that power to the road.
With Launch Control (fitted as standard, of course) and Track-mode in Selec-Trac chosen – it also has Auto, Sport, Tow, and Snow modes – the Trackhawk reaches the ton in a supercar-crunching 3.5 seconds and can accelerate up to 290 km/h. Goodbye, all AMG, RS, and M marked SUVs …
Huge yellow Brembo brakes brings it to a stop from 100 km/h in 35 m and it rides an inch lower on its 20-inch Pirelli tyres than non-SRT models. Oh, it has all the expected luxury amenities inside as well, including standard Nappa-leather seats, a seven-inch driver information display (DID), and new 8.4-inch Uconnect touchscreen with Trackhawk-exclusive pages.
– Ferdi de Vos
