By Rich Truesdell

Automotive Traveler

Let’s get the negative stuff out of the way right up front. If you’re looking for an SUV or crossover that gets 30 miles to the gallon, look elsewhere. This isn’t it. And if you’re looking for a luxury SUV with the interior fittings of a Mercedes-Benz S-Class, then the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 is going to come up short in that department, too. But if you want a wickedly fast, reasonably priced vehicle (if any factory-built Jeep with a sticker price of nearly $50,000 can be so qualified), then your ride has arrived. Think of the 2010 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 as a bargain-basement alternative to the higher-priced Teutonic spreads, the Porsche Cayenne Turbo and the BMW X5 M. In fact, in almost every objective performance measurement, it’s the on-road performance equal of its esteemed rivals from Stuttgart by way of Leipzig, as well as Bavaria by way of South Carolina. Read More at Automotive Traveler.

By Rich Truesdell

Automotive Traveler

GM’s Bob Lutz is staking the Cadillac CTS-V against all-comers as part of General Motors “May the Best Car Win” advertising challenge. Automotive Traveler is up to the challenge and takes him up on his offer (as does Jalopnik, The Truth About Cars, Autoblog, and others!)

The Cadillac CTS is in the opinion of this reviewer, a world-class luxury car, a clear case where GM set the development bar high against its intended competition, and in most regards, exceeded expectations. Clearly, offering a class-competitive entry closer in size and power to a BMW 5 Series while priced closer to a 3 Series was a smart positioning move. This was followed by the introduction of the mammothly-powered CTS-V, with a 556-horsepower engine that would set at the time a production sedan lap record at the Nürburgring of 7:59:32 (anything under eight minutes is damn fast). The CTS-V clearly had the BMW M5 in its crosshairs and its time to tell the automotive world that America had finally came to play with the big dogs. Now, how to get this message across? Thus the CTS-V Challenge at the Monticello Motor Club 90 miles north of New York City. If GM invites us to the party where we plan to show up in a 2009 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8. Read more about our challenge, and the course layout at Automotive Traveler.

By Mike Musto

RideLust.com

Through the years, I’ve driven all manner of Jeep. From the old 80′s Cherokee Chiefs and Wagoneers to the 90′s Sports and Wranglers to the new generation of Liberties and Patriots–I’ve put down a lot of miles in these things, and why not? They’re great vehicles. Hell, my brother has a 1999 Wrangler 5-speed with 152k on the clock and the thing has never missed a beat.

As you know, in the past few weeks I’ve sampled a few of Chrysler’s new hot rods like the Challenger R/T and SRT-8. So when they asked me if I would like to give the new Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8 a try, there was no argument on my end. It rolled up to my driveway just as you see here–a big silver box with chrome wheels and a body kit. Hmmm, not really my cup of tea, but what the hell, it’s my job, so I grabbed the little key fob thingy and hit the road.

Continue reading "Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT-8: One Fast Box" »