The latest Grand Cherokee will be locking horns with the likes of the Range Rover Sport, the Volkswagen Touareg and BMW X5 and is arriving at a time Jeep is planning a comeback in the UK.
In the past few years the legendary American brand has been through the mill with parent company Chrysler hit by financial meltdown in the US.
Now Chrysler is hooked up to Fiat and the new Grand Cherokee something of a tripartite affair.
Its DNA may be Yankee Doodle Dandy but the Grand Cherokee’s underpinnings come from Mercedes – Chrysler’s previous partner – and the engine is a new 3.0-litre V6 diesel from Fiat.
The combination is highly effective producing heavyweight performance which in the top specification Overland model is backed up with impressive kit.
Priced from £43,995, that version comes with sat-nav, a rear-view camera, adaptive cruise control, air suspension and blind spot alerts among its standard features – items which make it the best part of £7,000 less than a similarly equipped Touareg.
A cheaper Grand Cherokee Limited is available at £36,795, but without the extra equipment – especially the air suspension – it does not stack up as well.
With big alloys – 18-inch on the Limited and 20 on the Overland – the ride is harsh without the automatic damping and the absence of sat-nav as standard on a car in this echelon is an oversight.
In this league quality counts and the overall refinement of the Overland makes a lot more sense when looking at the opposition.
Inside the Grand Cherokee is as roomy as you’d expect from a large 4x4. It’s well appointed and with quality leather upholstery and wooden trim inserts the Overland is up with the best. There’s even a power operated tailgate, ventilated front seats and a heated steering wheel among its creature comforts.
There’s new instrumentation which is fresh and trendy but there remains a straight up and down feel to the dash – the norm in America but a little different to how the European brands do it.
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