Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk

Finding meaning in the world’s most powerful SUV

- Ash Westerman

IF YOU think the old “where do babies come from?” question brings a challenging conversation to have with a small child, give yourself an uppercut. It’s nothing compared to explaining to a curious kid the rise of the ultra-performance SUV.

Dad: “We’ve bought the world’s most powerful SUV, son. We’ve got 522 killa-whatsits under that hood...”

Boy: “Oooh goodie, so we can go camping?” Dad: “No, son. It’s not designed to go off-road.” Boy: “Oooh, so can we go to the race track?” Dad: “No son, it weighs two and half tonnes. That’s not so good at the race track.” Boy: “So what will we do with it, dad?”

Dad: “Umm…

” The correct answer is more like: “Silence, my child! Buckle up and prepare to have your tiny soul rearranged as I deploy seven hundred of Satan’s most unhinged horses!”

Okay, you may not speak in a God-like tone when kicking the Jeep Trackhawk where it loves it most, but I promise you will not sound like your regular self. Things change when you drive Jeep’s beast. Your walk will become a strut. Your head may wobble, just a little.

OUR drive starts by pointing the bluff, more air-hungry snout sedately towards the Interstate out of Maine, in the northeast corner of the USA. It’s a chance to see how well the Trackhawk can do the daily stuff, and what compromises come with the transition to the World’s Most Extreme SUV.