Tested: 2026 Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit Gets a Power Bump That Doesn't Pay Off

• What’s new: For 2026 the Grand Cherokee gets a new turbocharged 2.0-liter inline-four engine.
• Why it matters: It's new for Jeep, and with 324 horsepower and 332 lb-ft of torque, it's one of the most powerful among midsize SUVs.
• Edmunds says: Despite all of that power, it's not particularly responsive, nor does it make the heavy Grand Cherokee quicker than its lighter rivals.

A sweet spot for non-hybrid enjoyers

To understand just how much of a powerhouse the Mini Hurricane is, you just have to start stacking it up against its rivals. Spring for a Honda Passport, and you'll gain two cylinders, since it's only available with a naturally aspirated 3.5-liter V6. It puts out 285 hp and 262 lb-ft, but it has a well-established reputation for being nearly indestructible. The engine in the Subaru Outback is likely more durable, and you get 260 hp and 277 lb-ft from a turbo 2.5-liter flat-four. You'd have to go for the most potent version of the Mazda CX-70, powered by a turbo 3.3-liter inline-six producing 340 hp and 369 lb-ft, to beat the Jeep. 

The Mini Hurricane finds a power sweet spot for those who don't want an electrified SUV but still want a decent amount of grunt from their daily driver. If a heavily boosted four-cylinder isn't your thing, you'll have to keep your fingers crossed that the discontinued 5.7-liter V8 option will return as it did in the Ram 1500. 

When more isn't actually more

With more power than most, you'd expect the Grand Cherokee to smoke its rivals in a straight line, but you'd be wrong. At our private test track, the Jeep ran 7.2 seconds to 60 mph, crossing the quarter mile in 15.4 seconds at 88 mph. That means it falls behind the Subaru Outback, which managed a 6.8-second 0-60 mph time and a 15.2-second quarter-mile run at 93 mph. The Mazda CX-70 put up similar numbers, sprinting to 60 mph in 6.9 seconds and completing the quarter mile in 14.9 seconds at 95 mph. 

The aforementioned Honda Passport was the slowest entry in this race. A TrailSport we tested ran a 7.9-second time to 60 mph and a 15.9-second quarter mile at 87 mph. The Volkswagen Atlas Cross Sport was next to the bottom with a 7.5-second time to 60 mph and a 15.4-second quarter mile at 91.8 mph. 

The elephant in the room, and the reason why it's not as quick as you'd expect it to be, is the Grand Cherokee itself. On our scales, the Jeep weighed in at 4,880 pounds. That makes it just under 900 pounds heavier than the 3,981-pound Subaru Outback. Of course, the GC has more cargo space than the Subaru, but the Outback has it beat in terms of front and rear legroom and headroom. While the Mazda CX-70 is 40 pounds heavier than the Jeep, at 4,920 pounds, its power advantage is simply too much to overcome. 

Flashing back to the V8 Grand Cherokee for a moment, the last 2022 model we tested weighed in at a fairly hefty 5,126 pounds, although its 357-hp V8 meant it absolutely crushed with a 6.4-second time to 60 mph and a 15-second quarter mile at 91.2 mph. If you're crossing your fingers for its return, so are we.

The stopping king 

While it has plenty of competition off the line, the Jeep Grand Cherokee is the undisputed winner when it comes to slowing things down. It took just 119 feet to stop from 60 mph, a very impressive feat given its size and weight. The more powerful CX-70 took 121 feet to shed the same speed, while the lighter Outback needed a whopping 129 feet to come to a stop. It goes to show that you still need to pair a lack of weight with a capable braking system. 

On our skidpad, the GC pulled 0.79 g, or slightly below its rivals. The Outback managed 0.81 g while the CX-70 scored 0.86 g. The winner in our testing is the Honda Passport, which managed 0.87 g — starting to approach low-end sports car territory. That said, these differences are quite slight, and you won't really notice them in the real world. 

While circling the skidpad, the accelerator felt like a light switch, either delivering too much or too little power. It just never seemed to be happy, an attitude it carried onto our test track. 

Setting its on-track performance aside, the things that hold the GC back are more about its engine's lack of charm. It's a powertrain that, despite being all-new for 2026 and quite powerful, lacks a decent amount of refinement. This Jeep's new heart is laggy, unrefined and at times sounds as rough as a diesel. While it didn't win over our team's hearts, it did highlight how much we'd love to have a V8-powered Grand Cherokee back in production. Jeep, please make it happen.