Wicked Wednesday: Jeep Trackhawk and Hennessey Mammoth 1000 Square Off in Heavyweight Drag Race
Six tons of weight, over 1,700 horses’ worth of power, and abysmal fuel economy. This is a heavyweight drag race you don’t want to miss.
Back in the day Chrysler produced a number of factory lightweight drag racing warriors. These were some of the earliest muscle cars and they followed a simple formula. They were made as light as possible and stuffed with as big an engine as possible. When those cars were ripping down drag strips it was impossible to imagine that some day they would be matched by trucks and SUVs. And we are not talking about cheater EV trucks and SUVs. We are talking about good old fashioned gas guzzling internal combustion machines. They are powerful but they aren’t light. This is the heavyweight drag race division. In one corner is a stock, Jeep Trackhawk. In the other is the Ram TRX that has been converted into a Hennessey Mammoth 1000.
This week’s “Wicked Wednesday” is all about these two heavyweight drag race machines. These rides are not just quick but capable. The lightweight cars from the ‘60s were basically good for one thing and that was ripping down a drag strip. But these vehicles can be used as an everyday driver. They can take you off-road. They can haul at least four people and all of their stuff. And of course, they can take you to the poor house with the way they guzzle gasoline. These two rigs were recently featured in a carwow YouTube video that pitted them against each other from a dig and a roll. They also competed in a brake test. The winner is not as important as the fact that in 2022 these things actually exist. God Bless America.
The Numbers
Here are a couple numbers to wrap your head around. The Jeep is the lightest of the pair. Actually, calling it the least heavy may be more appropriate. The Jeep weighs about 5,300 pounds. The Hennessey Mammoth 1000 comes in at an earth crushing 7,000 pounds. The Jeep produces 707 horsepower and the Mammoth 1000 comes with 1,000 horsepower. This is a truck and an SUV. Think about that for a moment. Back in the year 2000 the most powerful Jeep Grand Cherokee had a 4.7L V8 producing 230 horsepower. The Trackhawk makes more than TRIPLE the power.
The Contest
In this heavyweight drag race the Hennessey Mammoth 1000 is saddled with chunky off-road tires. Terrible for a race from a dig but it still manages a more than respectable 12.5 second quarter mile time. But the lighter Jeep with more track worthy tires beats it with a time of 11.7 seconds. In the rolling race the Mammoth 1000 wins when the vehicles are in ‘normal’ mode but the Jeep wins when they are in ‘sport’ mode. And in the braking test the Jeep takes a victory there as well, although neither vehicle could be described as stopping on a dime.
The Reality
Both of these vehicles are impressive but also endangered. Just like if we went 20-years in the past we could never imagine vehicles like this existing. If we think about 20-years in the future, we can’t imagine vehicles like this existing in that time either. There will be some very quick trucks and SUVs in the future, but they will almost certainly be powered by electricity. We live in a truly remarkable time in automotive history right now. We are seeing the best of the traditional V8-powered vehicles making power numbers unheard of not too long ago. But they won’t be around for long. History will show this as a mere blip in the automotive timeline. So, our advice is to get out there and enjoy it while you can. These are the days you will be telling your grandkids about.
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