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The Jeep Trackhawk Is Technically Faster Than A Dodge Demon

Yes, you read that correctly, and technically it’s 100% accurate. However, as you will learn from our buddy Jason at Engineering Explained, there are more factors at play here than just top end capability. Let’s dive into this and dissect what Dodge has done and why.

As Jason explains, if you take these two rides and line them up side by side and race until they reach their max MPH, the Jeep Grand Cherokee Trackhawk is going to win, despite the Dodge Demon being smaller, lighter and more powerful. As car guys, you likely already know what’s in play here that takes the factual stats out of the equation and artificially limits the Demon to a top speed of 168 MPH: an electronic speed limiter.

Why would Dodge build a car solely for straight line asskicking then hobble it on the top side? The answer is actually pretty simple: safety. No, the Demon doesn’t become unstable or unsafe at higher speeds, but the ultra-soft drag radials built just for the Demon by Nitto are rated at 168 MPH, meaning for safety and regulatory reasons, Dodge had no choice but to set the top speed limiter at 168.

The Grand Cherokee Trackhawk, however, doesn’t have Nitto drag radials, and it’s tires are rated for much higher top speed, meaning the only thing limiting it to 180 MPH is it’s shape and bulkiness. Being an SUV, the Trackhawk simply can’t punch through the air any faster than that.

If you decided to swap out the tires on your Demon for a set that are rated for higher top speeds, you can simply change a setting in the car’s onboard computers that will change the limiter appropriately. While Jason seems to think this could allow the Demon to reach speeds approaching 200 MPH, we have to wonder if the gearing might restrict the outright top end some. It’s hard to build a car geared for the quarter that will still haul the mail on top, but with the 8-speed transmission it just may be able to tickle the double century mark.

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