If you had heard the words "SUV land missile" back in 2018, your mind would have immediately raced to the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk and no other. Sadly, it went the way of the dodo only three years after it launched, but its legendary performance is alive and well, even to this day. However, the Trackhawk we're looking at makes the former SUV world champion seem like a Dacia Sandero.
The 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk wowed the entire automotive world as the fastest SUV on God's green earth and for a good reason. The ferocious land missle was not designed for tearing up mud but asphalt. This was made clear by the newly developed aerodynamic package along with the lower ground clearance and quad-exhaust system that gave the car a more menacing look than any of its siblings.
Under the hood, it was armed with a 6.2-liter supercharged V8 Hemi powerplant borrowed from the high-performance Dodge Challenger Hellcat. The V8 delivered 707 hp and 645 lb-ft or 874.5 Nm of torque. The 8-speed automatic gearbox sent that power to all four wheels, which made the Trackhawk hit 62 mph or 100 kph in just 3.6 seconds. The top speed was nothing to scoff at either, rated at 180 mph or 290 kilometers per hour.
As a comparison, the Lamborghini Urus puts out 641 hp with 627 lb-ft (850 Nm) of torque, and the higher grade Performante version produces 657 hp, although the torque stays the same. However, the 0 to 62 mph (100 kph) times are technically faster than the Trackhawk, at 3.3 seconds, with a top speed of 190 mph or 306 kph. One cannot help but wonder how a 2024 Trackhawk would have performed against a current-day Urus or even against a Ferrari Purosangue.
Photo: Officially Gassed
History lesson aside, let's see how this 2018 Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk compares to the stock version. For starters, it comes with a 7.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 mill aided by a 3.0-liter Whipple supercharger that produces a whopping dyno-tested 1,200-wheel horsepower. It also has nitrous (N2O), which helps push this 5,075-lb. or 2,302-kilogram (driver included) titan forward with haste.
Two years ago, that powerful combo made the Trackhawk pull an 8.89-second run down the quarter-mile at 157 mph or 252.6 kilometers per hour. According to the owner, no one had gone into the eights before in a Trackhawk, making this model a world premiere, as they say.
However, after bumping the nitrous to a 250 (hp) shot, the Jeep scored its current 1/4-mile best, 8.72 seconds at 165 mph (265.5 kph). Aside from the engine, supercharger, and N2O, the Trackhawk also has a newly built transmission, transfer case, and Billet 9-inch rear end, with the drivetrain also going through heavy modifications so it can handle the massive power increase.
This thing is so fast, it raced a Tesla Model S Plaid two years ago and made it eat its Grand Cherokee dust. The maxed-out twin turbos still limit the SUV, but the owner is expecting an even beefier turbo setup soon, making it even more powerful. Luckily, the twin parachute combo will keep it in check.
Photo: Officially Gassed
The car didn't go through "surgery" just under the hood, but inside the cabin as well. If the stock model came with cozy high-bolstered front bucket seats adorned with "Trackhawk" embroideries, this monster had everything ripped out and replaced with a roll cage and four ugly and uncomfortable-looking racing bucket seats. Even the door panels were completely changed to keep things lightweight.
Jamie from the "Officially Gassed" YouTube channel climbed in the passenger seat to experience what a truly powerful ICE lift-off is all about, and you can tell how amazing the Trackhawk feels from his facial expressions and maniacal laugh at the end.
This is no small feat, because few people from the UK are more used to extremely powerful tuned cars than Jamie. It's also important to note that it was carrying four people, so it weighed 5,732 lbs. or 2,600 kg, slightly slowing the acceleration time. Too bad they didn't time it. Hopefully, we'll hear more about this SUV when the new gear gets installed.
Codrin just loves American classics, from the 1940s and ‘50s, all the way to the muscle cars of the '60s and '70s. In his perfect world, we'll still see Hudsons and Road Runners roaming the streets for years to come (even in EV form, if that's what it takes to keep the aesthetic alive). Full profile
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