Ron Perry’s 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8 Driving Impressions:
How many of us really need a 420-horsepower SUV? Me, for one, if I could afford the gas. In fact the 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8 might be the only SUV I would consider buying. I am not a fan of SUVs, but the Jeep SRT-8 has the power of a hot rod, the looks of a custom, and it corners like a car, not a truck. Driving the Jeep SRT-8 makes you feel like the king of the road and outside of tricked-out rice rockets and exotics, you are! The Jeep SRT-8 does 0-60 mph in less than five seconds and is quicker than a Porsche Cayenne Turbo. Those are bragging rights worthy of flaunting. The Jeep SRT-8 does a good job of keeping the ride smooth but the bumps remind you that this rig is set up for appearance and cornering. Touch the brakes and the Brembos grab instantly without jerking or leaving you wondering what’s happening. I really applaud the brake feel. Steering is taut but not heavy as expected in a setup like this. The best part of the Jeep SRT-8 is that it drives and corners like a car. There is no top-heavy feel and slowing to a crawl on freeway ramps isn’t necessary. Just turn in and throttle steer. It really is a lot of fun.

Christian Wardlaw’s 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8 Driving Impressions:
I almost hate to admit that I like driving this 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8 more than its Chrysler 300 and Dodge Charger stablemates that use the exact same drivetrain. There’s just something sick and twisted about a Jeep that accelerates and sounds like this SRT version, and I like that. Plus, the Chrysler and Dodge suffer an aggravating shake in the steering column that causes the wheel to dance in the driver’s hand. This Jeep feels solid, planted, and stable going down the road.

Get it onto a twisty two-lane, however, and the fun is pretty much over. The Grand Cherokee SRT-8 is more capable than just about any other SUV I’ve flung down my favorite mountain pass, but once the novelty of defying death in a 5,000-pound truck subsides, you’re left with a task to perform rather than an opportunity to enjoy. The stability control system is quite intrusive, and though you can shut it off, I had no desire to tempt fate and lived with the constant metallic sounds coming from the braking system as the Jeep’s software tried to figure out whether I wanted to die or knew more about vehicle dynamics than the typical American driver.

In any event, this Jeep is best launching from a stop to the astonishment of every motorist within view or earshot. This mofo moves. Of course, you drain the tank of premium fuel at a rapid rate – I averaged about 13.5 mpg in city, highway, and mountain driving – but Jeep sure makes it fun to waste the world’s remaining oil reserves. Cruising on the highway, the JGC SRT-8 generates lots of drivetrain noise, so it’s not of much use as a long-distance driver.

So, you can’t take it on a road trip, and you can’t carve a canyon with it, and you can’t tow much of anything, and you can’t go four-wheeling, and those performance Goodyears are virtually worthless in the snow. So what’s the point of the 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8? Exclusivity and all-American cubic inches, baby. There’s no other reason for its existence.

Thom Blackett’s 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8 Driving Impressions:
Lead me not into temptation. It’s a popular mindset that many attempt to live by. If you’re one of those people, stop reading here because this tire-smoking beast is one of your best chances at getting on the wrong side of a local Barney Fife, forcing the family to scream “SLOW DOWN!” as you race to the park possessed by a Hemi god, and forsaking work to spend the day revving your Jeep, just to hear the throaty burble of that V8. Evil. Pure evil.

If you are, on the other hand, a person who believes that a little temptation never hurt anyone, the 2006 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8 delivers a helluva package. That 6.1-liter Hemi packs tons of power, though there’s a slight delay before the rpms climb and all 420 horses are set free. Stomp on the throttle and it’s more about launching than accelerating, with the traction control system forcing the tires to grip rather than roast. A feather’s touch of the gas pedal keeps the SRT-8 rolling along on the highway at 80 mph, and the transmission is usually smooth unless you goose the throttle – at that point the focus turns to going fast and not seamless shifts. A manual mode, used by tapping the shift knob to the left for a downshift and to the right for an upshift, adds some fun and allows the driver to hang out near redline and fully exploit the exhaust tuning.

Oodles of power is great, but the SRT experience is about more than a big motor. As such, this Jeep offers excellent brakes free of fade, yet the pedal can be a little touchy. Handling is exceptional for an SUV, able to tackle corners at high speeds with no worries and limited body roll. Gas it coming out of a turn and the outside rear tire digs in instead of hinting at coming loose, much like when the SRT-8’s accelerator is pummeled from a dead stop. The steering system provides a decent amount of road feel, but it’s a bit too light at higher speeds, and the ride is decidedly stiff. During one 70-mph run along a rough freeway, the SRT-8 shifted and danced over bumps rather than absorbing them, quite unnerving in five lanes of traffic.