2028 Jeep Grand Cherokee Gets 420-HP Hurricane I6, Hemi Exits

The 5.7-liter Hemi is done in the Grand Cherokee, and Stellantis isn’t bringing it back. According to a report from MoparInsiders, citing a well-placed source and a leaked internal document, Jeep is slotting the 3.0-liter twin-turbo Hurricane inline-six into the 2028 Grand Cherokee — Standard Output variant, 420 horsepower, 468 lb-ft of torque. Road & Track confirmed the report, and Jeep declined to comment.

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For buyers who’ve been waiting for real muscle to return since the V8 disappeared from the two-row Grand Cherokee after 2023, the numbers are genuinely encouraging. The Hurricane S.O. beats the old Hemi on every spec sheet metric. What it can’t replicate is the reason Hemi loyalists wanted it back in the first place.

The Spec Case: Hurricane S.O. vs. the Old 5.7-Liter Hemi

The Standard Output Hurricane is the same engine currently doing work in the Grand Wagoneer and the Dodge Charger R/T Sixpack — not the High Output variant found in the Scat Pack Sixpack, which pushes 550 hp and 531 lb-ft. The S.O. is tuned for refinement and broad torque delivery, running up to 22 psi of boost through twin turbos and using a water-to-air charge cooler to keep intake temps in check.

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Here’s how it stacks up against the Hemi it’s replacing:

That’s 63 more horsepower and 78 lb-ft more torque than the Hemi — and it’s not particularly close. The Hurricane also improves on the 2026 Grand Cherokee’s current top engine, the 2.0-liter Hurricane four-cylinder, which makes 324 hp and 332 lb-ft. The inline-six should also restore meaningful towing capability. The current four-cylinder model maxes out at 6,200 pounds; the Hemi-era Grand Cherokee was rated at 7,200 pounds, and the Hurricane S.O. is expected to get close to that figure.

Why the Hemi Isn’t Coming Back

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Stellantis head of American brands Tim Kuniskis has been direct on this point. Speaking to The Drive earlier this year, Kuniskis said returning the 5.7-liter V8 to the mainstream Grand Cherokee lineup “doesn’t make sense.” The reasoning is product differentiation: Jeep doesn’t want the Grand Cherokee and the Dodge Durango — both body-on-frame-adjacent three-row rivals — sharing identical powertrain menus. The Hemi stays in Durango territory. The Grand Cherokee moves to Hurricane.

That’s a deliberate strategic call, not an oversight. Ram reintroduced the Hemi to the 1500 after a brief absence, which briefly raised hopes that Jeep might follow suit. Kuniskis’ comments put that to rest for the mainstream lineup. The Hurricane inline-six is the answer Stellantis has settled on, and the 2028 model year is when it arrives in the Grand Cherokee.

More Power, Less Soul — And What That Means for the SRT

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The performance argument for the Hurricane S.O. is easy to make. Better acceleration, more towing, smoother power delivery across the rev range — the twin-turbo six produces a flat, dense torque curve that the naturally aspirated Hemi couldn’t match at low engine speeds. On paper, this is an upgrade.

The character argument is harder. The 5.7-liter Hemi had a sound and a throttle feel that no turbocharged inline-six can replicate. That V8 burble at idle, the way it pulled hard through the top of the rev range — those are the things Hemi loyalists actually miss, and 420 hp doesn’t fix them.

For the confirmed Grand Cherokee SRT, the powertrain question remains open. Jeep hasn’t specified an engine for the performance variant, and the brief does not include confirmed specs. What the research does show: Jeep displayed a Grand Cherokee prototype earlier in 2026 running a modified High Output Hurricane paired with an eBoost Air anti-lag system, a setup described as theoretically capable of reaching 640 horsepower. That prototype is not the 2028 production model — the S.O. is — but it signals that the platform can handle significantly more than 420 hp when Jeep decides to go there.

For Grand Cherokee buyers who have been patient since 2023, the Hurricane S.O. is a real upgrade — more power, more torque, and likely more towing than the Hemi ever offered in this application. For the gearheads who wanted that V8 back under the hood, the numbers won’t be enough. The Hemi’s exit from the Grand Cherokee is now a strategic decision, not a temporary gap, and Stellantis has made that clear.