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C8 Corvette vs. Jeep Trackhawk Is a David and Goliath Drag Race

The guys at Hennessey Performance are currently working on both the C8 Corvette and a Jeep Trackhawk, so they decided to do a quick "street race." We can't think of a better pairing to exemplify the difference between power and traction.
C8 Corvette vs. Jeep Trackhawk Is a David and Goliath Drag Race 3 photos
Photo: Hennessey Performance/YouTube screenshot
C8 Corvette vs. Jeep Trackhawk Is a David and Goliath Drag RaceC8 Corvette vs. Jeep Trackhawk Is a David and Goliath Drag Race
The Corvette has always been affordable American performance, but moving to a mid-engined layout opens up a new world. The C8 is by no means a featherweight car, but by having the V8 right over the back wheels, it gets a much better dig.

Also, it does a very good job with the first few gears, and as a result, has shown to be far quicker than a car at this price point should be. We've already seen it drag racing a Dodge Demon, but that muscle monster really struggled to put down its power.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk has a similar engine to the Demon, but with less power and the added benefit of AWD for some impressive launches. It's probably not as good in the gearbox department, though.

But the question is: should you buy the performance SUV with lots of torque and AWD or the surprisingly affordable mid-engined machine? And we're obviously not talking about a Porsche here - it's also worth pointing out that the Corvette isn't completely stock.

Hennessey fitted it with their performance exhaust system, which should free up a little more horsepower. It's not much, especially compared to the twin-turbo setups that are out there. At the same time, the Jeep is currently completely stock, but arrived at the shop to be fitted with a 1,000 horsepower boost to the Hellcat engine.

The way this drag race plays out, you wouldn't believe these cars are separated by 200 horsepower. The two vehicles launch almost the same, and the tiny lead of Trackhawk is lost immediately. Scenes like this are playing out all over America; egos will be bruised and V8s will sometimes suffer failures.

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About the author: Mihnea Radu
Mihnea Radu profile photo

Mihnea's favorite cars have already been built, the so-called modern classics from the '80s and '90s. He also loves local car culture from all over the world, so don't be surprised to see him getting excited about weird Japanese imports, low-rider VWs out of Germany, replicas from Russia or LS swaps down in Florida.
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