Category: Sporting 4x4s 
Price Range: £27,100 to £41,800
Good engines, improved driving dynamics over previous version, good pricing and equipment
Interior quality still lacks class and sophistication of rivals, on-road behaviour still doesn't match the best either, thirsty
The all-new Grand Cherokee is a vast improvement on the car it replaces, but it's still not one of the better cars in this ever-more competitive class.
Reliability of the outgoing model was nothing to write home about, with higher than average repair and warranty costs, and with the car languishing all too near the bottom of reliability surveys. Early feedback on new versions of the Grand Cherokee, built in the US for the American market where it has been on sale since 2004, was favourable, but there have already been a number of recalls for various quality glitches and safety issues.
European examples are built in Graz, Austria, and perceived quality on the models we've sampled wasn't perfect: handbrake levers were sloppily fitted, while interior plastics fall some way short of those we'd expect on a premium sport utility vehicle at this price. Soft-touch plastics are reserved for too few areas, such as the door tops and centre armrest. The dashboard and most consumer-facing panels make do with a hard and hollow-sounding plastic.
Handbrake aside, fit and finish is generally fine; the heating and ventilation controls particularly good, but minor switchgear only average in function and appearance. The wood trim is pretty nasty, too. We've no qualms about exterior finish, which is excellent.
Latest Readers' Drives About the Jeep Grand Cherokee
wrote on 23 09 2006
wrote on 15 08 2006