New York Motor Show: Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk revealed

It’s a crazy world we live in. Jeep has revealed the Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, the world’s most powerful factory SUV, ahead of its public debut at the New York Motor Show.

Powered by the 6.2-litre supercharged Hemi V8 from the Dodge Challenger and Charger Hellcat, the Trackhawk produces 527kW at 6000rpm and 874Nm at 4800rpm.

Fed through a toughened version of the Grand Cherokee SRT’s eight-speed automatic and Quadra-Trac four-wheel drive system, the 2433kg Trackhawk fires to 100km/h in just 3.6sec, knocking off the Bentley Bentayga as the world’s quickest SUV and giving it a two-fingered salute in the process.

This speed is partly down to the new Torque Reserve launch control system, which allows the engine to build boost while stationary and bolt off the line on its way to an 11.6sec standing quarter mile time and a 290km/h top speed.

Attempting to arrest this behemoth are giant Brembo brakes, consisting of 400mm discs with six-piston calipers up front and 350mm discs with four-piston calipers at the rear, which Jeep claims can bring the beast to a halt from 100km/h in just 36 metres.

As standard the Trackhawk wears 20 x 10-inch wheels wrapped in 295/45 ZR20 rubber, while lightweight rims of the same size and Pirelli P Zero tyres are an option. Suspension is A-arm front and multi-link rear with Bilstein adaptive dampers at both ends.

The specification is all very exciting, but is it coming to Australia? Local enthusiasts have been denied the Charger and Challenger Hellcat through official channels due to the lack of right-hand drive compatibility, however there are no such issues with the Grand Cherokee.

Frustratingly, Jeep is keeping tight-lipped about the prospect, but we can take encouragement from the words of Fiat-Chrysler Australia CEO Steve Zanlunghi, who told MOTOR he’d be “jumping up and down” with “two hands up” for the Trackhawk, and this was before it was officially confirmed.

In the meantime, if you’re keen on the idea of an SUV with 707 old-school horsepower, you’d best get down to your local Jeep dealer and start making some supercharged V8 noises.