The IT Nerd

So I’ve come to the end of this review. What are my final thoughts? This is a very capable Jeep that will handle anything you throw at it better than anything else in its class. But at the same time it will get the kids to day care without an issue. Plus it’s got a ton of technology that makes your life simpler and safer. The final fuel economy that I got was 12.1 L/ 100 KM. I could have done better, but I drove mostly in stop and go traffic. But I’m not disappointed with this number because if I compare it to other SUVs that I have reviewed, it did pretty well. Also if I compare it to my daily driver which is the Toyota Matrix that has AWD and a 4 cylinder engine that puts out over 100 less horsepower, it fuel economy is the same in similar conditions. Thus that makes 12.1 L/ 100 KM in the Jeep Cherokee pretty good.

So now let’s discuss the price. With everything in the Limited trim level included, it goes out the door for $43,070. But keep in mind that the Cherokee starts at $23,695 as a 4×2 with a 4 cylinder engine and the Limited trim level starts at $32,395 as a 4×4 with a 4 cylinder engine. Thus there’s plenty of room here to find the Jeep that you want. In terms of competition, I can come up with two competitors in terms of SUVs that have similar power and appointments. The Subaru Forester which if you get the XT Limited With Technology variant, and the Ford Escape Titanium. The former optioned the way this Jeep is optioned will cost you $39,876 and the latter will set you back $38,499. But, consider the following:

• The Jeep has a V6 Engine. Both the vehicles I mentioned have turbocharged 4 cylinder engines. As an aside, most of the compact SUV class has abandoned the V6 engine as an option. Thus if you want a V6, the Jeep Cherokee is pretty much your only choice.
• While both have 4 wheel drive, neither has a 4 wheel drive system that is as capable as the Jeep Cherokee.
• Neither has a suspension system specifically designed for off road use.

So you pay a bit more for the Jeep Cherokee, but you a vehicle capable of taking on anything you throw at it. That’s important seeing as the compact SUV class is full of vehicles that aren’t nearly as capable. Thus I would consider the Jeep Cherokee to be class leading. No wonder it won the AJAC Award for the best utility vehicle of the year. Clearly AJAC knows a winner when it see it.

This entry was posted on May 30, 2014 at 7:19 am and is filed under Products with tags Jeep. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.