Scorched Earth
Jeep has done a twist and tweak to the SRT8, now featuring new front and rear lights, a bolder grille, a larger central touch screen housing audio and controls display and new gear lever. Underneath, the gearbox has another two ratios, from six to eight. And then towing capacity is also vastly upped to 3 265 kg.
The looks are very macho and the vehicle is rather huge, so presence on the road is everything. The hot air outlets on the bonnet really do! You could use them to heat up your lunch.
Under the hood
Good ol’ American V8 muscle is at the heart of the SRT and as all Americans will tell you, it’s all about cubic inches. All 390 of them, or 6,4 litres. The engine is a bit lumpy at idle when cold. This merely adds to the racy character. Thereafter, there are bags of torque coupled to a soundtrack only possible from a genuine V8. This one can rev, though, and the sound is not the low-down rumble of a Galaxie or Pontiac. It can scream, but having said that, it’s not excessively loud.
To test the acceleration abilities we have one of the best launch-control systems in the business: foot on brake, push the launch button and plant it. Acceleration to 100 km/h comes up in a shade over five seconds. In fact, this eight-speed version was slightly quicker than the five-speed we tested in 2012, especially above 100 km/h. The new eight-speed transmission is overkill and the vehicle will jump down a number of gears if you need rapid acceleration. Still, the changes are smooth and quick.
The new T-bar gearlever is set rather close to you and has an extremely short gate movement so you have to visibly make sure that you have selected the position you intended.
Inside the cabin
As far as detail trim and build finish is concerned, we are a bit concerned. The front seats are both heated and cooled but make a crinkly noise when squeezed. Wire-loom protective wrapping under the seats was not properly finished off and one of the rear plastic clip-on wheel-arch spats came loose. Legroom all round is great and remember that there is seating only for five together with a decent sized boot.
Information overload
The previous models had a great instrumentation display with lots of clear info packed into a compact package. Now this has been further improved. Included info is tyre pressure, engine and transmission oil temperatures, a G-meter with recorded maximums and a sprint acceleration time readout. Otherwise, the sound system is great and includes AUX, USB and SD ports with a CD player stashed away under the centre armrest.
Race-inspired
The suspension is not pneumatic as with other models and is set up, not for softening the blows of rock crawling, but rather for racetrack-style belting it. Now you may ask, who is going to go a track day with an SUV? Maybe no-one, but that’s what the SRT is all about. With that 6,4-litre V8 engine, you can use the power and not have to over-use the large anchors before the corners. If it’s the likes of Richtersveld-type terrain that beckons you, opt for the enchanting V6 diesel. We took one there not so long ago and had a great trip.
The 20-inch wheels are very American with highly polished aluminium “bling” finishes – and it suits the image perfectly. They do get dirty quickly, of course, due to dust deposits from the large brakes. To cement the Italian connection (Fiat and the Chrysler group being one) the brakes are Brembo and tyres Pirelli Scorpions Verde.
Summary
A brawny V8 that will show most other cars a clean set of tailpipes, full specification that counts heated and cooled seats, a sunroof, Nappa leather and suede covering included in the list price this is quite a car! But there is a downside to this otherwise fun package: fuel consumption. Well, there has to be at least one. The SRT8 averages around 17 L/100 km if you drive fairly carefully and much more if you don’t!
SPECIFICATIONS:
Price: R899 990
Engine: 6,4-litre V8, petrol
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Power: 344 kW at 6 250 r/min
Torque: 624 N.m at 4 100 r/min
0 to 100 km/h: 5,08 sec
Fuel consumption: 16,8 L/100 km
CO2: 327 g/km
Top speed: 257 km/h
Maintenance plan: 3 years/100 000 km