Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk to electrify
The days of an iron-block 6.2-litre blown V8 are numbered, but performance still paramountGlobal Jeep boss Christian Meunier has revealed that flagship SRT and Trackhawk versions of the incoming fifth-generation Jeep Grand Cherokee could switch to high-performance hybrid powertrains.
There’s no suggestion at this stage that V8s are about to be retired in the name of reduced emissions, but the current 520kW-plus 6.2-litre Hellcat supercharged engine (and others like it) used in top-end Jeep and Dodge models is on the way out.
Dodge chief Tom Kuniskis told CNBC in the US recently that “the days of an iron-block supercharged 6.2-litre V8 are numbered”.
“They’re absolutely numbered because of all the compliance costs. But the performance that those vehicles generate is not numbered,” he said.
In an interview with Australian journalists, Meunier similarly made it clear that electrification offers “limitless access to performance” and that the company was evaluating “a lot of different plans and ideas” for its flagship performance models.
This includes the 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT pictured here in unofficial renderings by KDesign AG.
“There are so many things we can do with electrification: it’s a new world that’s opening to us,” Meunier said.
“Electrification is not boring, it’s exciting. I won’t give you more details than that but I think the sky is the limit with electrification. We can do a lot of different things, and really exciting things that would meet the [high-performance] Jeep DNA, if you know what I mean.”
Meunier added that “there are a lot of different plans and ideas in the pipeline”.
“And at the end of the day I think these very, very specialty products are part of the DNA of Jeep and we will continue to do it,” he said.
“Are we going to do it the same way? Maybe, maybe not. But there are a lot of different options we have [available] to get on the exotic side of the brand, and we will continue to do that.
“Is it a Trackhawk, is it an SRT, is it something else? I don’t know yet. Well I do know, but I can’t say anything!
“I think with electrification there is limitless, limitless access to performance,” he enthused.
While diesel engines are out, V8 petrol power – at least in 5.7-litre HEMI guise – has already been confirmed for the new-gen Jeep Grand Cherokee due to launch in Australia in late 2021.
A plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) powertrain with twin electric motors and a turbocharged four-cylinder engine is also on its way, bringing V8-like towing capabilities.
The big question now is exactly when, and how, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) – parent of Jeep and Dodge – will apply electrification to models such as SRT and Trackhawk.
But a safe bet would be a hybridised 5.7-litre HEMI.
The current Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT (priced from $92,450) is powered by a naturally-aspirated 344kW/624Nm 6.4-litre V8, while the Trackhawk version (from $139,950) is propelled by a blown 6.2-litre V8 that delivers 522kW/868Nm.
The latter makes the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk one of the quickest SUVs on the planet, rivalling $400,000 weapons like the Lamborghini Urus in terms of straight-line speed with its scintillating 3.7sec 0-100km/h acceleration.
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