San Francisco Chronicle

Trackhawk down: 707-HP Jeep priced from $86,995

- By Greg Fink

You can buy a track; you can buy a hawk; or you can buy a Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk. With a starting price of $86,995, Jeep’s 707-hp mid-size SUV is far cheaper than your average track, but a good deal pricier than a hawk.

Unlike a hawk, though, which needs to grub on mice and insects, the Trackhawk simply asks for a steady diet of 91-octane fuel to power its supercharg­ed 6.2liter V-8. The pushrod eightcylin­der engine is the same unit found under the hoods of the equally powerful Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat and the Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat. Whereas the Dodge duo have rear-wheel drive, the Trackhawk powers all four wheels. An eight-speed automatic transmissi­on with chunky steering-wheel-mounted paddle shifters serves as the intermedia­ry between the engine and the axles.

Jeep claims the Trackhawk is able to channel its power into a 3.5-second zero-to-60-mph time and an 11.6-second quarter-mile at 116 mph. For perspectiv­e, the last Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat with an eight-speed automatic we tested hit those marks in 3.6 seconds and 11.7 at 126 mph. Meanwhile, a $285,114 Bentley Bentayga notched times of 3.6 seconds and 12.0 at 117 mph.

Sure, those looking to save money can pick up a 475-hp Grand Cherokee SRT for $67,990, but why settle on a 5000-pluspound high-performanc­e SUV that needs 4.4 seconds to reach 60 mph and 13.0 seconds to cross the quarter-mile mark when you can wipe the smile off a Bentley Bentayga driver’s face with an $86,995 Trackhawk?

 ?? PHOTOS BY JEEP ??
PHOTOS BY JEEP
 ??  ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from United States