Texas tuning firm Hennessey has given horsepower-hungry enthusiasts a new vehicle to put on their holiday wish lists: the prodigiously powerful Hennessey Jeep Grand Cherokee HPE800.
Whereas the stock Grand Cherokee SRT8 makes due with a punk 465 horsepower from its diminutive 6.4-liter HEMI V8, Hennessey bores the mill out to a full 7.0-liters for the HPE800 and adds twin turbochargers to achieve a tire-melting 805 horsepower. Torque rises a monumental 353 lb-ft for a total of 823 lb-ft of twist, necessitating fortifying upgrades to the five-speed automatic and its torque converter to prevent them from simply melting under full throttle.
All that motive force translates to a zero-to-60 mph time of just 3.1 seconds, while the quarter mile is dispatched in 10.9 seconds at a blazing 130 mph. The HPE800′s decelerative power is similarly impressive thanks to 15.1-inch cross-drilled rotors front and rear clamped by 6-piston calipers up front and 4-piston calipers at the back.
Should BMW X5 M or Mercedes-Benz ML63 AMG owners wish to seek out an HPE800 for a drag race, they’ll be able to tell Hennessey’s monster from lesser Grand Cherokee SRT8s by its lowered stance, custom 20-inch wheels and carbon fiber front splitter.
Only 24 HPE800s will be built, and each will feature a dash-mounted serial numbered plaque to go along with a special alcantara and leather interior treatment.
The price of corrupting power and extreme exclusivity? A cool $235,000.
