Jeep Grand Cherokee Review
Published: 16th January 2005
Jeep Grand Cherokee
How It Drove - Performance
The Grand Cherokee 2.7 litre Limited XS is powered by a 5 cylinder, 2.7 litre, common rail diesel (CRD) engine that produces 161 bhp at 4000 rpm, with 295 lb/ft of torque between 1800 rpm and 2600 rpm enabling it to accelerate from 0-62 mph in 11.2 seconds and continue to a top speed of 118 mph.
The engine is manufactured in Germany by the Daimler Chrysler group and the vehicle is put together in Graz, Austria. The engine features in other Daimler Chrysler products, such as Mercedes Benz’s M-Class. We did not find the noise from the 2.7 CRD engine particularly intrusive and enjoyed its flexibility across a wide selection of roads.
The engine is turbo-charged and is coupled to a four speed automatic gearbox. Fuel consumption for the 2.7 CRD is 29.1 mpg (manufacturer’s figures) on a combined cycle. Out of interest the diesel powered Cherokee has a higher top speed (118 mph) than the 4.0 litre petrol engine (112 mph ) and is only 0.3 of a second slower to 62 mph. Another advantage the Diesel engine has over its petrol counterpart is the difference in fuel consumption - 18.2 mpg combined for the 4.0 litre, 10 mpg less than the diesel powered Grand Cherokee.
Of course this has to be weighed up in the purchase price of £26,695 which is currently the cheapest of the 2.7 CRD Grand Cherokee models and the cheapest petrol engine car is £24,995. Our test car the Grand Cherokee Limited XS is priced at £ 32,415 (prices correct at time of publication).
We recommend the diesel powered Grand Cherokee, but you need to do your own calculations as to fuel costs, depreciation and running costs.
How It Drove - Ride/Handling
The Grand Cherokee is a great touring vehicle - we went from Devon to Northumbria in atrocious weather conditions and felt secure and cosseted in the Grand Cherokee. On the motorway we simply switched on cruise control and literally cruised along, enjoying the elevated view that the Grand Cherokee offers. Around town the Grand Cherokee can feel a little ponderous although you do benefit from the automatic gearbox.
When you venture out onto tight ‘B’ roads or ‘A’ roads with sweeping bends the Grand Cherokee begins to show that it is not the most athletic of vehicles. Body roll is certainly noticeable on-road and this is due to the suspension set up which works well with the articulation needed for off-road use. The coil sprung suspension ensures that the overall ride is very good, it is just cornering which is not great and we would really like to see two settings, one for off-road and another for on-road use.
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