Jeep Grand Cherokee Review

The Jeep Grand Cherokee was already a handsome beast, in a square-jawed kind of way, but last year Jeep took the time to tweak the design and fiddle with the oily bits. The trademark seven-slot grille is now shorter, while the lower grille section has been revised and changes slightly with each of the five model grades. The headlights are now slimmer and feature both xenon lighting and LED running lights across the range. At the rear, the tail-lights are now larger and use LED illumination, the bumpers have been tweaked, the spoiler's larger, and the tailgate offers greater visibility. Some of the materials used in the interior are said to have been increased in quality, and our top-spec Summit model features an appealing suede-like finish for the A-pillars and roof. The electrically-adjustable seats and steering wheel both offer good adjustment, and it's certainly a very spacious interior, particularly in terms of elbow room. While it's nice to see Jeep get away from that shiny fake wood that we're used to, it's a shame that most of the silver trim is still painted plastic, and while we're nagging the pedal for the parking brake feels old-fashioned now most cars of this type are moving to electronic versions, and the pedal digs into your leg if you try to use the foot rest. Also new are the instruments, which use a seven-inch colour screen for the central display that can be configured to show a range of different information. New, too, is the 8.4-inch colour touch-screen for the Uconnect system that lives in the centre stack. The system looks after audio, climate, navigation, connectivity, and vehicle settings, and while it's generally all very easy to use, the navigation system is a bit clunky both in operation and in terms of its route guidance. The big change for 2014, however, was the arrival of a new eight-speed automatic transmission. We'll talk about what it's like on the road later, but for now we'll say that we're not fans of the new shift lever, mainly because it demands you press the button to move between modes more than a conventional auto would, and also because it lacks a tiptronic function. Instead to change gears you have to use one of the steering wheel-mounted paddles, but these we found to be a touch too small and mounted too high up. Directly behind the steering wheel spokes are buttons to control the audio system, and we often found ourselves cycling through radio stations when we intended to change gear instead. Mounted by the gear lever are the controls for the air suspension that's standard on Overland and Summit models, and this allows you to cycle between an entry mode that makes it easy to get in and out, a normal ride-height mode, plus two off-road modes, with the highest offering an additional 6.6cm over the normal setting, and a total of 28cm of ground clearance. There's also an Aero mode that lowers the suspension by 1.3cm to improve aerodynamics and this engages automatically at speed. Next to the suspension controls is Jeep's answer to Land Rover's Terrain Response. Dubbed Selec-Terrain, it offers Auto, Snow, Sand, Mud, and Rock modes, with each altering the responses of the transmission, engine, suspension and other systems. Rock mode only engages with low-range selected, and that can only be done with the transmission in neutral. But we'll talk more about that stuff later. Rear seat passengers are well looked after with their own ventilation and USB ports, as well as good head- and leg-room, and enough space in the foot-wells for a middle-seat passenger to travel comfortably. The seats also recline for greater comfort on longer journeys, and they fold forward to form an almost flat load floor. However, there's no seven-seat option as there is on say, a Land Rover Discovery. A power tailgate is standard on all but the entry-level Laredo model and once you get into the boot there's 782 litres of space on offer. The boot floor is quite high largely because of the full-size spare but there's still acres of space, with a maximum of 1,554 litres with the seats folded. There are several neat touches back here, such as a rechargeable torch, 12v charging points and more load hooks than you could ever need. Although a monstrous 6.4-litre V8-powered SRT model is available, realistically there's only one engine in the UK, and that's the 3.0-litre V6 turbodiesel. It produces a pretty handy 250hp and 570Nm of torque, although in the entry-level Laredo model Jeep have chosen to artificially detune it to 190hp, a move we think is a mistake. On the move, it's really very capable. There's some initial resistance as you pull away from a stand-still, but it's generally only something you notice when you make a quick get-away: floor the throttle, and there's a delay of a good second or two while everything gathers itself together before there's a chirp from the tyres and you're propelled down the road. In normal driving, though, things are much smoother, the new eight-speed transmission doing an excellent job of blending one ratio into the next and responding well to kick-down. It rides well, too, with large surface imperfections dealt with without fuss, although - in common with other air suspension set-ups - at lower speeds around town there is a slightly tendency to fidget about. The Grand hustles itself through corners well for such a big car, and what feels like body roll is in fact just you sliding in your seat - the big Jeep could use a bit more side bolstering here. Jeep have done an excellent job of controlling wind and road noise, making the Grand Cherokee an excellent long-distance cruiser. Jeep claims the Grand can achieve 37.7 mpg on the combined cycle, and while we couldn't achieve that, we averaged around 30mpg across a mix of driving conditions. CO2 emissions of 198 g/km place it in VED Band J, but curiously the figures for the crippled Laredo version are identical, removing any possible benefit. Of course, as with any Jeep, its on-road performance is only half the story. Laredo and Limited models make do with standard steel suspension, the more expensive Quadra-Lift air system reserved for the Overland and Summit models. This limits the ground clearance of the two entry models to 21cm versus the 28cm of our Summit test model. Jeep quotes an official wading depth of just over 50cm which is surprisingly low given the air intake's location above and behind the nearside headlight. However, Jeep remains one of the few companies not to have moved exclusively to the new breed of brake-based four-wheel drive systems. Laredo and Limited models feature the company's Quadra-Trac II system, and this does use the brakes to stop a spinning wheel and transfer power to the opposite wheel, while a centre differential can route up to 100% of available torque to the axle with the most traction. In low-range, the transfer case splits torque equally 50/50 between front and rear. Overland and Summit models, however, are better equipped, featuring instead the Quadra-Drive II system that incorporates an electronic rear differential that can proactively direct torque to the wheel with the most traction, while the centre diff in the transfer case distributes torque front-to-rear as necessary. Realistically either system will take you to most places you'd want to go in a vehicle of this size and value, but if you wanted to increase its performance we'd suggest a change of tyre should be your first item of business. Prices for the Grand Cherokee start at £37,705 for the Laredo, but given its restricted engine and cloth seats, we think that's a tough sell. More usefully-specced is the Limited at £39,165, with our fully-loaded Summit model weighing in at a hefty £50,205. The problem for the Grand Cherokee is its residual values. At these prices, a Land Rover Discovery with its bullet-proof resale value becomes the more sensible choice. That aside, however, there's a lot to like about the Grand Cherokee. It's more capable than its size would suggest, both on- and off-road, and its handsomely rugged styling is likely to win in it more than a few fans.