2009 Jeep® Grand Cherokee SRT8®: Four-wheel-drive SRT Performance in Quickest Jeep Ever

Auburn Hills, Mich., Sep 1, 2008 - Chrysler Street and Racing Technology (SRT) organization has demonstrated it knows no boundaries when it created the first four-wheel-drive SRT vehicle, the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8®. It's the quickest, most powerful Jeep vehicle ever created, offering astonishing on-road and all-weather ability and power.

With a 0-60 mph time in under 5 seconds - in wet or dry conditions - it's quicker than competitors such as Porsche Cayenne Turbo and BMW X5.

Powered by a 6.1-liter HEMI® V-8 producing 420 horsepower (313 kW) and 420 lb.-ft. of torque (569 N•m), the 2009 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 delivers a complete performance package, with exceptional ride and handling, world-class braking, race-inspired interior appointments and functional, performance-oriented exterior enhancements.

WHAT'S NEW FOR 2009

EXTERIOR

• New exterior colors Modern Blue Pearl Coat and Brilliant Black Crystal Pearl Coat replace Steel Blue Pearl Coat and Black Clear Coat
• Rear-window opening added to key fob

INTERIOR

• Performance Pages reconfigurable display (can display performance information including longitudinal and lateral g-force, 0-60 mph acceleration time, 1/8-mile and 1/4-mile acceleration time, and speed and braking distance)
• 9-inch DVD screen viewing area
• Leather interior upgrade
• Leather wrap added to upper front and rear door bolsters and armrest
• Leather-wrapped cluster brow on instrument panel
• New shift knob cap with "Jeep" name

DESIGN

ENGINEERING

SRT engineers created the first SRT vehicle with full-time four-wheel drive by creating a new transfer case. They used the front half of a Jeep transfer case, chosen for its capability and light weight, and mated it to the rear half of a heavier-duty case, chosen for its ruggedness and ability to house electronic full-time, four-wheel-drive system components.

Under normal driving conditions, five to 10 percent of torque is directed to the front wheels, but as much of the 6.1-liter HEMI® V-8's torque that's needed can be directed forward when additional traction or stability is required. Remaining torque is sent via a heavy-duty driveshaft to a Dana 44 rear axle.

Providing horsepower and torque to the unique SRT four-wheel-drive system is a specially tuned version of the 6.1-liter SRT HEMI® engine, which was developed by adding more displacement, increasing the compression ratio and redesigning the cylinder heads, intake and exhaust systems for better flow and increased engine speed (versus the 5.7-liter HEMI).

Power from the SRT 6.1-liter HEMI is sent through a special torque converter to an SRT-upgraded, five-speed automatic transmission with specially calibrated driver-selectable Auto Stick, which offers fully automatic or manual shift selection.

Chassis setup for the 2009 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 employs SRT-tuned dampers, unique sway bars and specially tailored spring rates and suspension bushings. Front suspension knuckles were redesigned to accommodate high-performance braking and steering systems. The ride height of the 2009 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 is one inch lower than the Jeep Grand Cherokee, which lowers aerodynamic drag as well as the center of gravity, and contributes to the vehicle's stability and aggressive stance.

The braking system on the 2009 Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 features four-piston performance brake calipers developed by Brembo, finished in red. These calipers work with 360 mm x 32 mm vented rotors up front, and 350 mm x 28 mm vented rotors in the rear.

PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS

• Powered by the 6.1-liter HEMI® V-8 producing 420 horsepower (313 kW) and 420 lb.-ft. (569 N•m) of torque, the Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8's powertrain and performance-tuned ride and handling offer a world-class performance SUV experience
• Quicker than Porsche Cayenne Turbo, BMW X5
• Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 is the first Jeep SRT vehicle, offering on-road and all-weather ability and performance
• Specially developed four-wheel-drive system offers highly capable performance
• SRT performance: 0-60 mph in under five seconds, 0-100-0 in low 19-second range, 60-0 mph in approximately 125 feet
• Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 formula
• Functional, performance-oriented exterior design, featuring 20-inch SRT wheels, front and rear fascias with air dam and cooling ducts; race-inspired interior appointments that include deeply bolstered seating and comprehensive instrumentation; benchmark braking; and world-class ride and handling characteristics
• The Jeep Grand Cherokee SRT8 is part of a broad lineup of SRT vehicles developed under the credo, "Race inspired, street legal"

SAFETY AND SECURITY

Please refer to the Safety and Security Glossary for descriptions of the following features:

• Active Turn Signals
• Adjustable Pedals
• Advanced Multi-stage Air Bags
• Anti-lock Brake System (ABS)
• Auto-reverse Sun Roof
• BeltAlert
• Brake Assist
• Brake/Park Interlock
• LATCH (Lower Anchor and Tethers for CHildren)
• Digressive Load-limiting Seat Belt Retractors
• Electronic Roll Mitigation
• Electronic Stability Program
• Energy-absorbing Steering Wheel and Column
• Enhanced Accident Response System (EARS)
• Express-up/down Front-door Windows
• Four-wheel Brake Traction Control System
• Head Restraints in All Outboard Seating Positions
• HomeLink Universal Home Security System Transceiver
• Interior Head Support Protection
• Knee Bolsters
• Low-risk Deployment Air Bag
• ParkSense® Rear Park Assist System
• ParkView™ Rear Back-up Camera
• Rain-sensitive Wipers
• Remote Keyless Entry
• Seat Belt Pretensioners
• Sentry Key® Engine Immobilizer Theft Deterrent System
• Side-curtain Air Bags with Roll-Detection System
• SmartBeam® Headlamps
• Three-point Belts in All Seating Positions
• Tire Pressure Monitoring (TPM) with Warning Indicator
• uconnect phone

COLOR AVAILABILITY

• Bright Silver Metallic Clear Coat
• Brilliant Black Crystal Clear Coat (new for 2009)
• Inferno Red Crystal Clear Coat
• Modern Blue Pearl Clear Coat (new for 2009)

MANUFACTURING INFORMATION

• 2009 model year production start: September 2008
• Production location: Jefferson Avenue Assembly Plant in Detroit
• 6.1-liter HEMI® V-8 engine: Saltillo Engine Plant in Saltillo, Mexico
• Five-speed automatic transmission: Indiana Transmission I in Indianapolis

MARKET POSITION

DEMOGRAPHICS

• Gender: 80 percent male/20 percent female
• Median Age: 36-55 years old
• Median Annual Household Income: $100,000
• Education: 65 percent college graduate
• Household: 75 percent married, primarily post-family
• Occupation: mix of executive, managerial and professional

MARKET ADVANTAGES

• The most powerful Jeep vehicle ever - quicker than Porsche Cayenne Turbo and BMW X5
• On-road and all-weather ability and performance with a specially developed four-wheel-drive system
• Powered by the 6.1-liter HEMI® V-8 producing 420 horsepower (313 kW) and 420 lb.-ft. (569 N•m) of torque
• SRT performance: 0-60 mph in under five seconds, 0-100-0 in the low-19-second range, 60-0 mph in approximately 125 feet
• Functional, performance-oriented exterior design and race-inspired interior appointments
• Benchmark braking
• World-class ride-and-handling characteristics across a dynamic range
• Benchmark performance at the best price

PRODUCT CHRONOLOGY

2008 MODEL YEAR

EXTERIOR

• Refreshed front fascia and grille
• New headlamps with High-intensity Discharge (HID) headlamps option

INTERIOR

• Available MyGIG™ Multimedia Infotainment System
• Available SIRIUS BackSeat TV™
• New instrument panel
• New cluster graphics
• New leather-wrapped parking brake handle with chrome rings
• Dark Slate Gray interior color
• Accent stitching for front and rear seats and center console
• New SRT-design steering wheel
• New bezel finishes
• Available heated rear seats
• New integrated rear seat head rests

POWERTRAIN/CHASSIS

• Red brake calipers

BODY

• Unibody construction
• All-new front fascia with integrated brake ducts
• All-new rear fascia with cutouts for four-inch
• exhaust tips
• No body cladding or roof rails
• MOPAR® sill extensions
• Sun roof option
• Grille insert

INTERIOR

• Power-adjustable, deeply sculpted performance
• front seats
• Front seat uniquely patterned performance
• suede inserts
• "Carbon-Fiber" technical finish on leather-wrapped steering wheel, instrument panel brow and shift knob
• Refined aluminum finish on center stack, shifter and door-switch bezels
• Upgraded trim on seats and steering wheel
• Refined aluminum instrument panel inserts
• Refined aluminum switch bezels
• Instrument cluster includes 180-mph (300 kph) speedometer, tachometer and temperature gauges
• Instruments trimmed with unique blue accent with carbon-fiber binnacle
• Oil pressure and temperature displayed in specially configured unit in center of instrument panel

ELECTRICAL AND ELECTRONIC SYSTEMS

• Premium audio system
• Available DVD-based GPS navigation system with turn-by-turn directions and voice prompts
• Available SIRIUS Satellite Radio
• Available UConnect® Hands-free Communication System with Bluetooth® technology

POWERTRAIN

• 6.1L HEMI® engine (420 horsepower/420 lb.-ft.)
• SRT upgraded A580 five-speed automatic transmission
• Full-time four-wheel drive
• Unique MD146 SRT transfer case
• Unique air induction
• Unique intake manifold (common with LX SRT)
• Unique exhaust manifolds
• Upgraded Dana 44 rear differential

CHASSIS

• New dual rear exhaust system with unique bright center-exit tips
• New 20-inch wheels (five-spoke forged aluminum)
• New center caps
• New tires (255/45/20 front, 285/40/20 rear;
• W-rated, run-flat four-season)
• New brakes (four-wheel ABS, 360 mm rotors, front; 350 mm rotors, rear; Gloss Black calipers)
• Electronic Stability Program (ESP)
• Enhanced cooling system
• Modified steering system
• Brake ducts