Well, I've always been a big fan of Jeeps, and the SRT-8 Grand Cherokee always catches my attention. (6.1 Liter Hemi that outputs 420 horsepower 
). It also happens to be the fastest SUV on the market. But, the other day, someone was telling me the the SRT-8 model wasn't as good of an offroader as the Limited or Overland with the 5.7 Liter Hemi with 330 horsepower. I haven't looked at the specifications of either one in depth, but is this statement true? If it is true, how is this possible? I know the SRT-8 engine is fast...really fast, but I don't see how it could be inferior to the 5.7 Liter Hemi when it comes to offroading. Anyone know? I'm curious to know being a long time fan of Jeeps. 
The SRT8 has 20-inch wheels and a very low breakover angle. Both of those are going to make it pretty crappy off-road. Approach and depart are not great either. For your consideration:
SRT8
approach 15.8
departure 19.7
breakover 9.7
clearance 7"
Grand Cherokee
approach 20
depart 27
clearance 8.3
Forester
approach 22.3
depart 20.7
breakover 18.9
clearance 8.1"
Wrangler
approach 44.4
depart 40.5
breakover 20.8
clearance 10"
What it takes to be a good grocery-getter, long-haul people-mover, sports car, and off-roader are all
almost entirely mutually exclusive. You can do a hell of a lot better for $45000 than to get an SUV masquerading as a sports car.
One thing you gotta remember is that its not just the engine thats different in the SRT models, its also suspension, transmission, exhaust and a whole lot of other things you generally dont think about. Even in 1967, when the first R/T model came out (the coronet R/T) it had a whole lot more than just a bigger engine. It came standard with HD brakes and suspension as well as a special tac and the 426 hemi models came with torque boxes welded into the cars unibody to prevent the body twisting.
It does depend what you want: Speed or off-road capability.
Despite what these other guys here say, the grand cherokee does offer a very nice compromise between the two (and is extremely good at off-road racing)
I like the older style ones though.
Overall, I like it though. What else can accelerate and handle like a high-end sports car (and even better than a sports car when on a wet, dirt, sand, or snow surface), tow heavy trailers, have lots of cargo and passenger room, be large enough to do well in an accident, and be very luxurious?
Sorry about not replying in awhile. I've been really busy. Well, I never did look into those aspects of the Grand Cherokee SRT-8. I never thought the company would remove some of the capabilities of a normal Grand Cherokee when building the SRT-8 version. Sure SRT is meant for speed and racing ability, but I still don't see why the off roading capabilities had to be sacrificed.
So, ocalhoun, in real world performance, do you know how the SRT-8 would compare to the model with the 5.7 liter Hemi in off roading? What caught my attention was the fact that you have sports car performance, in what's potentially a pretty good off roader.
| william wrote: |
Sure SRT is meant for speed and racing ability, but I still don't see why the off roading capabilities had to be sacrificed.
|
Different suspension, different tires, different loading.
It makes sense, You cant have tires that will hold together at 220+km/hr and still grip well in soft mud/clay or whatever else you might want to cross. Same with suspension. Typically sports cars have stiff suspension with very little travel - really not suited to off roading.It would be interesting to modify the SRT8 to make a good off-roader that was still fast, but you would loose a good bit of the speed and handling.
In addition the the points mentioned above, putting larger tires would alter (probably in a bad way) your gear ratios (making for slower acceleration). Putting a lift kit on it would increase wind resistance and roll-over risk.
It isn't possible to have an excellent on-road racer that is also very good off-road, but the SRT8 is a good balance between the two. You won't be doing any extreme off-roading, but you won't be sweating a soft spot or mud puddle in the dirt road either.
