I was having a chat with a few people who are interested in cars the other day and one asked "What has been significant in anything you have tested recently". After some thought I mentioned the Jeep Cherokee. Some of my colleagues agreed.
Not the most savagely unique car but one that epitomises the shift from truck like all wheel drives to more car like SUVs. It is in the mid size SUV category and is selling OK in a very competitive class but not doing as well as its big brother the Grand Cherokee.
Still it has interesting technology and distinctive looks.
To tell us all about it I have on line Brent Davison from the Newcastle Herald and the Illawarra Mercury.
• Built on a monocoque body
• The old jeeps were strong reflections of their heritage. This hints at the old style but it is more modern looking.
• The old Jeep had round or square headlights. This new Cherokee has a squinty light design - certainly modern
• One model two wheel drive - 2.4 litre (Sport) - rather optimistically named - 8.3 litres per 100 kilometres – a 33 per cent improvement on the outgoing model. It provides good performance to complement the superior economy, with a power output of 130kW and 229Nm of torque.
• All 4 wheel drive models have 3.2 litre V6 (Longitude, Limited and Trail Hawk)
• A nine-speed automatic is the sole transmission available in the Cherokee
• 1st – 4.70
• 2nd – 2.84
• 3rd – 1.91
• 4th – 1.38
• 5th – 1.00
• 6th – 0.81
• 7th – 0.70
• 8th – 0.58
• 9th – 0.48
Top gear is only for cruising above about 130km/h, making it irrelevant in Australia. Even eighth gear is unavailable till about 100km/h.
Features with each model
Sport
• Bluetooth (Uconnect Voice Command / handsfree phone)
• Bluetooth streaming audio
• Rear Camera
• Heated mirrors
• Six speakers
• 5 inch touch screen
• 7 air bags including multistage driver and front passenger air bags, driver knee bag, front seat-mounted side air bags, supplemental all-row side curtain air bags
• Hill-start Assist
• Tyre pressure monitoring system with four tyre display
Longitude
• 3.2-litre V6 Pentastar engine
• Jeep Active Drive I 4x4 system
• Dual zone climate control
• Power driver's seat with four-way driver adjust
• Rear view mirror - auto dimming
• Power liftgate
Limited
• Leather trimmed bucket seats
• Heated front seats
• 9 Speakers
• 8.4 inch screen
• Bi-Xenon (HID) headlamps with power washer and automatic levelling system
• Uconnect 8.4N HD radio with navigation and 8.4-inch touchscreen USB port in the instrument panel media centre for iPod
Trail Hawk
• Sunroof
• Tow hooks
• Skid plates
• Off-road suspension with one-inch increased ride height
• Heavy-duty engine cooling and auxiliary transmission oil cooler
• Jeep Active Drive Lock 4x4 system with low range and locking rear
• The boot measures a huge 820 litres with the rear bench slid to its most forward position, increasing to 1555 litres when you flip the 60/40 split rear seat backs down.
• All 4x4 systems feature the Jeep brand’s Selec-Terrain traction control system.
• The modes operate with the following parameters:
• Auto
• Sport
• Snow
• Sand/Mud
• Rock (available with Jeep Active Drive Lock)
Not especially cheap but good value
• Sport $ 33,500
• Longitude $ 39,000
• Limited $ 44,000
• Trailhawk $ 47,500
