As Jeep introduces the next generation Grand Cherokee, they’ve focused on making the new model appealing to more people

New refined styling only hints at all the improvements within. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

looking for a large sport-ute, while maintaining Jeep’s classic off-road capability.

It looks good, is slightly bigger than the previous generation and lets everyone know this isn’t a compromise crossover vehicle that looks like an SUV but is really a car. It has all the capability that Jeep owners seek, whether they actually use it or not.

So if you feel like climbing a mountain without a road, this is the Ute for you.

For Jeep, this is an important vehicle, signaling that Jeep is still the brand it’s always been in spite of all the financial travails and acquisition by Fiat during the horrors of the past two years.

A familiar profile for sure, the Grand Cherokee remains a mountain goat off-road. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

The SUV market is still quite viable and Jeep is happy to take a share of that market – a large share, thank you.

The new Grand Cherokee will be familiar to its fans. It is still highly capable off-road, but Jeep is focused on making it more appealing by improving the craftsmanship and luxury feel of the vehicle.

More importantly, it isn’t going to cost more than the previous model, with the Laredo model starting at $37,995 followed by the more upscale Laredo X starting at $42,995. The popular Limited will begin at $46,995 and the new top-of-the-line nameplate, the Overland, begins at $48,995.

This generation is longer,

Standard traction and stability control join four-wheel drive for superb control over any surface. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

wider and taller. Not by much, but enough to make it a more usable and comfortable vehicle. The 2,916-mm (114.8-inch) wheelbase is 134.62 mm (5.3 inches) longer, and more than a hundred of those millimeters are in the rear seat’s available legroom. The wheels are pushed out towards the corners to reduce overhang, as the overall length of the Grand Cherokee is only 45.72 mm (1.8 inches) longer.

A bigger difference is that the vehicle is 76.2 mm (three inches) wider. That is a fair amount of growth, and it is quickly noticeable when you enter. It also gives it a more planted look, and adds stability on road. Off road you’ll get a bit of argument, as lots of off-roaders don’t want additional width on the narrow trails they delight in driving. Additionally, there’s 19 percent more cargo space behind the rear seat.

Jeep

The interior is much improved over the outgoing Grand Cherokee. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

stiffened up the unibody of the Grand Cherokee significantly, and you can tell. The suspension is much more responsive because everything else is holding still and allowing the suspension to do its thing.

In the curvy bits along the California coast south of San Francisco, the Grand Cherokee delighted in being flung around corners. The brakes are solid and even when pushed a bit hard stay four-square, evenly loading the four corners. Nose dive is there, but, for a vehicle of this type and size, is minimal. The body stays flat in corners, and the accelerator response when you are coming out of a corner is smooth, unless you’re right at a shift point.

The steering is precise and positive,

The new V6 hauls as well as many V8s. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

doing a good job of aiming the car where you are pointing.

This standard powerplant is a new V6 and seemed quite a good engine with plenty of power. This engine is smooth, powerful and quite different from the previous V6-powered Grand Cherokee. Your alternative is the V8 HEMI, and there’s nothing wrong with that engine, especially if you’re going to be towing. But the new six-cylinder has more than enough power for 99 percent of the tasks that 90 percent of the people who want a Grand Cherokee will be doing.

This is the first application of what will be Chrysler’s flexible-fuel 3.6-litre V6 family of engines. In the Jeep Grand

Still at home anywhere, the Grand Cherokee is the perfect vehicle for adventurous families. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

Cherokee it generates 290-horsepower and 260 pound-feet of torque. The cast-aluminum, double-overhead camshaft engine uses variable-valve timing.

This engine has a fair bit of fancy new technologies, but Chrysler decided that the incremental advantage to power and mileage from making this a direct gasoline engine wasn’t worth the price. It can come later, but with it comes additional complexity and some extra noise.

For those who must have more power, they can move up to the HEMI V8. Both engines are available in all trim levels. With the HEMI you can tow up to 3,356 kg (7,400 pounds), thanks to the 360 horsepower and 390 pound-feet of torque it possesses.

Rear liftback gets out of the way while providing shelter from inclement weather. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

But if you’re satisfied only towing 2,267 kg (5,000 pounds), then the V6 will do the trick and save you bunches of dough over the years, and will also let you show your friends and neighbours that you are willing to downsize for the good of the enviro-gas-carbon-global-water crisis. You don’t have to tell them that you’re not going to miss the V8 power except in very limited conditions.

The transmission is a carry-over five speed, but the Jeep doesn’t suffer from that. With vehicles such as this, most six-speed transmissions are used to get the vehicle to the final gear ratio as quickly as possible, and gear five is just a slightly lower final gear than sixth. That means the advantages of the extra gear, compared

Load it up! (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

to a sports car, for instance, aren’t nearly as great. Better? Yes, but not significantly.

There are three different four-wheel drive systems, beginning with Quadra-Trac I, which is an automatic full-time system. Quadra-Trac II uses a two-speed transfer case to send the power to the axle that can use it best. The heavy-duty, cinch up your jeans system is the Quadra Drive II. This system uses an electronic limited slip differential to put the power – even all of it – to the wheels that have traction, even if there’s only one. It also uses the various electronic processes and sensors to help determine what it ought to be doing.

Then there’s

There's no mistaking the new Grand Cherokee for anything but a Jeep. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

Jeep’s air suspension, called Quadra-Lift. With 104 mm (4.1 inches) of play, the system lets you raise the vehicle, giving it 279 mm (11 inches) of clearance for off-roading, then lower it to the normal setting. The Grand Cherokee will automatically lower a bit when you get to highway speeds, to improve aerodynamics and fuel efficiency. You can also make it crouch, all the way at the bottom of its range, for easier entry and exit. This is optional on the Overland.

SelecTerrain is Jeep’s system to adjust various systems to meet a set of four driving conditions. Sports Mode sends more power to the rear, delays shifts a bit and the stability control system allows more slip.

In the Snow mode, the Grand

The best Jeep ever? Easily. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

Cherokee starts off in second gear and sets the standard power division at 50/50 between the front and rear axles. Again, the stability control gets more slip to help deal with the lack of traction.

Sand and Mud mode also makes the standard power distribution 50/50, and raises the suspension an inch and lets the wheels spin even more, since that is a necessity in many off-road situations.

Rock mode automatically ups the ante for serious off-roading, putting the vehicle into an off-road 2 setup, raising it, implementing hill-descent control and engaging the low range of the transfer case for go-anywhere capability.

We spent a bit of time doing some serious trail

Right at home in the woods, the country club, or anywhere else. (Photo: Canadian Auto Press)

driving in a state park dedicated to off-roading. This was delightful, as Jeep program developers are very good at finding difficult and serious trails to fit the vehicle they’re demonstrating.

One particularly challenging scenario was driving down a 60 degree hill that was awash in dust and loose dirt. Without hill descent control it would have been almost impossible to get down without sliding on locked wheels until gravity decided it was time to stop. Luckily, this feature comes standard in the Overland and Limited and is an option in the Laredo.

So there’s plenty for everyone who might consider this rather iconic sport-ute. It’s still a Jeep, with all that means. It is a bit more efficient, much quieter and the interior looks and feels of quality.

Jeep hopes there are enough people who don’t see a world of small four-cylinder people-movers, and are willing to invest in that future.

Interior

Exterior

Mechanical

Safety

Dimensions

Misc

(J003) Standard Metallic Paint

(J005) Standard Gloss Paint

(DGJ) Transmission: 5-Spd Auto W5A580

(ERB) Engine: 3.6L V6 VVT

(26E) Quick Order

(2_X) Quick Order

(UL) Premium Leather Bucket Seats

(AJY) Security and Convenience Group

(EZH) Engine: 5.7L V8 Hemi MDS VVT

(AHX) Trailer Tow Group IV

(AHT) Trailer Tow Group

(DGQ) Transmission: 5-Spd Auto 545RFE

(AWL) Off-Road Adventure I

(RHB) Media Center 430N CD/DVD/MP3/HDD/NAV