Overview & Reviews

The Jeep Grand Cherokee is one of the pioneers that ushered in the modern midsize SUV in the early 1990s. Jeep has always wanted the Grand Cherokee to be maneuverable enough for urban duty, roomy enough for family duty, stylish enough to take out on the town and capable enough to tow your toys or shuttle your passengers to a remote campsite. Modern Grand Cherokees are far more refined than the early models, but they're no less versatile.

Unlike most other traditional SUVs, the Jeep Grand Cherokee has always been built using a carlike unibody platform for superior on-road handling. Yet Jeep's strong reputation for off-road prowess is retained, thanks to the Grand Cherokee's advanced four-wheel-drive systems and capable suspension. It's a rare combination of attributes in a modern utility vehicle, as the Jeep is able to venture farther off the beaten path than competing crossover SUVs.

User Reviews:

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  Great SUV - 1997 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By SVG - November 5 - 7:16 am

  Everything is great on this SUV. It rides very smoothly and I have never had any mechanical problems with it. Gas isnt bad for an SUV. The options are a very big plus for this SUV.

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  I Didnt Like It at All - 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By Cad-Lad - November 5 - 12:58 am

  To the point, the car is a jeep. It does everything and anything you could possibly need. Need to get somewhere? Check. Need to go through bad weather? Check. Need to get groceries? Check. Need to tow something heavy? Check. Wanna attract the ladies? Check. --- Now the downsides: You dont get to do the above that often. I dont know if its just having the 2005 model, but frankly the car wasnt that good. Useful and practical, very; enjoyable not at all. It has a million little issues reliability wise, but with adequate maintenance, youll never be stranded. Not to mention parts are cheap and very easy to find, but that in mind seeing warning lights and hearing beeps every 10 minutes into a ride gets annoying FAST. --- It has a horrible interior. Im not nit-picky, but good lord, I have never seen an uglier interior. The colors for the dash can normally be ignored if nothing else, on most cars, but youre constantly reminded of it in this jeep. It may seem tolerable at first, but believe me, its one of the worst interiors ever created. No where you can touch that wont feel scratchy, rough, or just simply displeasant. --- Onto the absolute worst parts: the seats. Some people like them. I didnt, you have to be fat to sit in them. Or have weird posture. The seats DO NOT hold you in place, unless you are almost fat albert levels of obese. This car has wide side bolsers, and way too much lumbar support. If youre young and charming, like myself, a wily fellow to whom extreme back support is unnecessary, youll get sore and tired fast. Older folks or folks with weaker backs should be fine, because even the lowest settings for lumbar proved too much to me (the lowest lumbar setting was still excessive and exacerbated by how hard the seat are), and I found the seats to push against the top of my back too (the bulging part where they plant the jeep logo). Compared to the previous generation, these seats feel like lead and iron in terms of hardness and were my personal enemy for the 6months that I was stuck with the thing. As for seating room, Id rather you think of it as a coupe. The back seats are somehow worse than tbe front seats lacking in depth or space at all for your legs. --- Onto performance, it was actually Not awful. It wasnt very good though; it had body lean in a straight line and I wasnt personally a fan of the way the transmission shifted and felt (1st second and third were rev happy, 4th wouldn5 budge and no matter how hard you pressed on the pedal youd have to wait a while for it to downshift), thats all my opinion of course, the first few cars I ever worked on were fords and chevies and even ford didnt have such a garbage transmission engine pairing. Chances are youd like the jeep if youre used to driving diesel trucks. It has good power delivery Ill admit, and the gearing is pretty good up until it hits 4th gear (and more horribly 5th). It can stay in low gears pretty well when you ask it to I guess. It does have manual shift (poorly executed since you cant lock fifth gear) -and the 290-305 ft-lbs of torque let you accelerate without revving when you ARE stuck in high gear. The engine is good without a doubt, even if it has a horrible transmission pair. As I stated, this car has too much body lean for aggressive driving. You might not mind, you wouldnt expect an suv of its weight to handle at all; it has some low speed maneuverability which at times can be surprising. The suspension isnt as bouncy as the previous generation, and seating position is much lower and less tank like. If you want a jeep that still feels like you can go to war in it, look for the previous body style. --- As per the technology, its without a doubt simple and efficient, I have nothing bad to say. --- Off-roading? Hahahahahahahaha! Thats so 1963. But I guess it probably does it well, if you do an enormous amount of off roading, buy a wrangler instead. The grand cherokee is more for people who want to camp occasionally on a trail, but also have handy car around for when the time arrives. I sold my jeep to someone who wanted a replacement after he drowned his TJ in a mudpit at some mountain, his was a newer TJ and he was surprised at the tech that came with the Jeep especially its GPS console. --- Bottom line: if all you want is a nice commuter car, skip it. This jeep is for people who have other things to do, mountains to climb, and snowy parking lots to be alone with their girlfriend in.

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  Disappointed Jeep Owner - 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By Randy - November 3 - 10:10 pm

  This is my third Jeep Grand Cherokee. I am having substantial problems with the transmission. The Jeep shudders when taking the smallest hill, though I have the 5.7 L engine. Jeep cannot fix the problem, and told the dealer to tell me the shudder is normal. I have been a loyal Jeep owner for 15 years but am now in a Lemon Law proceeding. Other problems include being on my third factory installed CD player, though I use the player less than once a week. Too bad Jeep wont stand behind the product, and in fact has been nasty to work with. I would like to keep driving Jeeps but cannot recommend due to their lack of standing behind the product.

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  Never Again!!! - 1999 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By tries - November 3 - 10:00 am

  I bought my 99 Jeep used a couple years ago and I doubt Ill ever buy another. If it wasnt for the extended warranty Id be in the poor house. The a/c went out three times and the heat twice. The entire rear-end has been replaced twice. Im finding it almost impossible to sell or trade.

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  Hate to part w/my Jeep Gr. Cherokee Ltd. - 1995 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By brady - November 2 - 12:33 am

  I truly hate to get rid of our Jeep, but it is getting up in miles and we needed more room due to amount of traveling we do w/our 3 dogs. It has a great secure feeling on the road, is "easy" to drive and has great pick-up, which Im really missing in my new vechicle! Ive always thought it is a super-sharp truck, performs great in snow and ice/off-road. Gas mileage was quite respectable for its class.

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  Im impressed - 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By johnny - November 1 - 10:00 am

  I bought this car for my wife. # 1 in our list was the Toyota Highlander then we drove this Jeep. Interior quality is of a German car, every detail is of very high quality there is not a single part I can find for cost saving. Stereo ever though is basic form, is great and Voice controls are very accurate even more so than my Infiniti M35. Only gripes I have are based on the model and you get them all with the Limited and Overland. One thing that blew me away was MPG I got 30.9 MPG on the highway.. On a large SUV, my infiniti is lucky to get 22mpg on the same trip.Rides like a $$$ luxury car. I want to sell my infiniti ASAP to get me the Limited V6 model panoramic with panoramic roof and 4x4.

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  radio problems - 2013 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By dolphsdeli - October 29 - 10:45 pm

  the radio in my 2013 grand Cherokee overland summit freezes when Bluetooth wireless is used.has been to the dealer 4 times in 2 months cannot fix .radio was replaced.i was told yesterday 3 27 2014 that the Iphone is not compatible with the uconnect system in my jeep.. am I the only person in the US with a jeep and an iphone.someone somewhere has to have this problem..help

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  LOVE MY NEW JEEP SUMMIT - 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By Lululovesherjeep - October 29 - 9:38 pm

  First, let me say that I would never have paid sticker for these vehicles even though the vehicle is awesome so far. I bought a 2014 with 11,300 miles so it feels like brand new and I saved about $15K over sticker. I love this jeep but have only owned it a month now. I am averaging 24.9 to 25.9 with mixed driving about 50/50 city/hwy. It has so many features that I did not have on my 2002 Jeep grand Cherokee Limited model. It drives great, very quiet and minimal road noise. Stereo is awesome and I feel like I have more space in the cargo than my older jeep. It is a V6 2wd vs. my 4.7L v8 2wd that averaged 18.5 mpg. I think it has just as good pickup and power as the other and love the added gas mileage. I feel like this car practically drives itself! Its loaded with all kinds of safety features and tech settings that make it a joy to drive. I love the interior with the exception of the suede on the front sides of inside windshield, just not my taste and believe it may fade overtime. I keep it garaged but sure over time outdoors the sun would fade such a dark brown fabric. The seats are nice leather although they could be a bit more comfy, they are a little firmer than my other jeep. I have experienced some fogging of the headlights when humid or wet outside, this I am told jeep will fix under warranty. The only additional improvements I could offer thus far is that Jeep should put a little more luxury leather seats in the front of the Summit model. Like the quality Infinity puts in their SUVs. For the sticker price of the Summit model, they should be a bit more plush and with awesome cushioning. They are fine, the ride is nice, but they are just a bit flatter with a firm feel. I recommend doing away with the suede next to the windshield as this will probably look pretty bad once the sun fades the fabric. I can imagine them looking pink once the sun gets too them. Last Jeep should consider doing a little lighter wood trim on the dash to break up all the dark brown. At least they could give the option for different wood trim colors. The lighter medium brown and lighter brown wood grains would give it a bit more sophisticated look. Some may like the all one color look, but it does need a little something to break up the very dark interior. Last, the lower console has a bit of a plastic look that I believe may show scratches easy over time or color wear off the plastic. Maybe consider something a little more durable like stainless steel material or a hard rubberized plastic such as what is used for the interior door material. I must say that anyone considering a mid size or larger SUV without the need for a third row seat, should check out the Jeep line. They have really come a long way since my 2002 model. I loved my 2002 and drove it from early 2004 till Oct 2015, so I guess you can say I loved my jeep. I tried to find something other than another jeep only because I had driven mine for so long, but when I kept comparing all SUVs the jeep kept coming out on top in terms of size, comfort, fuel efficiency, power, cargo space, regular unleaded gas, and overall maintenance and cost of ownership. I find that I have everything I could imagine and then some in this vehicle. When I compared several vehicles like Acura MDX, Lincoln MKC, Audi Q5, Toyota Highlander, etc., I found that the Jeep seemed to offer much more in value, comfort, and cost efficiency. While I loved the Audi Q5, it was a bit smaller, higher maintenance costs, and premium unleaded gas. I loved the feel of the Q5 and its driving experience but figured I would be paying dearly in my cost to own and read too many horrors in costly reliability issues. I dont want to go to the dealer for every maintenance issue and closest dealer is a 40 minute drive. Not all parts but many parts and services are as much if not more than 3 times the maintenance on the Jeep. The Lincoln MKC felt cheap in comparison and had much less room. The cargo area is much shorter than other SUVs and didnt even think I could fit a tall pet carrier in it due to its height. Many door seals, interior trim, and even many door panels seemed not to be aligned very well. The interior felt a bit cheap and the very light interior models I drove already showed scuffs and dirt from test drives. I felt they were over valued. The Acura MDX was nice and drove nice, but didnt need the third row and the premium fuel. The Toyota Highlander, while roomy was more vehicle than I needed and the drive was not anything spectacular. These are just a few I actually compared probably 15 models and came back to the jeep, but a lot had to do with the price I was able to get it for. Overall I am very pleased with my Summit model and look forward to another 10 plus years of enjoyable Jeep driving. Recommend SUV buyers look at the jeep line.

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  Almost but not quite - 2002 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By GCOwner - October 29 - 8:43 pm

  This vehicle is an odd and frustrating mix of good and bad qualities. The good: The styling (interior and exterior), ride and options are nice. It is impressive off road, and that is a Jeep. The Bad: Certain mechancial systems are simply flawed, like the front break system, the steering system and possibly the transmission on some units. Youll get to know the service guys.

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  Great Car But Cant Pair with Galaxy Note 3 - 2014 Jeep Grand Cherokee
  By mylblujeep - October 29 - 5:59 pm

  Just bought the Overland 4x4 V6 and I do love it. However, it appears that it still has glitches. I would give it 5 stars but my must have Samsung Galaxy Note 3 cant pair with the Uconnect/Nav/Stereo system. Confirmed with manufacturer that its still behind in addressing the issue. In fact, if you look at their compatibility list, its a short list. Pathetic that Jeep/Chrysler/Uconnect cant address this issue. Also, there appears to be some concerns with the Front Collision Warning system. Many cant verify if this system actually works. Also, system appears to work differently when Adaptive Cruise Control is on versus off. Hope Chrysler reads this and address these issues.