European Press Event, Bolocco, Italy

I have long and lasting memories of the Jeep Cherokee, as it was back in 2007 that we drove what was then the new Cherokee in Southern Morocco, near the Algerian border. The terrain was baron, hostile and demanding. This was the desert, there was nothing but sand for hundreds of miles. We were driving the Cherokee up and down sand dunes the height of four story buildings and across mile after mile of sand. I have never heard the words: amazing, incredible, unbelievable and fantastic so many times in one day. The words were not only referring to the Jeep but also the wonderful scenery and terrain.  It takes a brave manufacturer to let people like me loose in a SUV in a difficult and unpredictable environment. But the Cherokee proved itself to be a true off-roader. It really was man and machine versus the elements and I can honestly say man and machine won.
That was then and this is now. Is the all new Cherokee as good as we felt on that day or has it lost some of the rugged, tough, go anywhere ability?

We went to Fiat Group’s testing facility at Bolocco near Milan to try the new Cherokee and also took it on to the roads around the pretty villages near Bolocco.

We started our test on the road, and there were a variety of road surfaces in the area just like in most parts of Europe.  It was evident from first getting in the Cherokee that it was much more refined and comfortable, the quality has improved beyond recognition. It drove just as well as a luxury, premium saloon and didn’t feel like a SUV.

Then we took the Cherokee to Fiat’s off-road test facility, which is fairly extreme in places. We once again tested the car to its limits. It managed to climb up a hill that had a 70% gradient which felt like going up the side of a house. We then took it through some deep mud and across concrete blocks that lifted one or two wheels clearly off the ground. At some stages the wheels were up to a metre in the air. But regardless of these conditions, the body did not twist at all, it was absolutely solid. There were gasps from some of the people watching the Cherokee completing some of the manoeuvres. It was entertaining and proved just how good it was, all at the same time.

In just a short space of time at Bolocco, we drove the new Cherokee in most conditions, from normal roads to severe off-road and it was amazing, yet comfortable and you were left feeling perfectly safe in all the differing conditions.

The Jeep Cherokee is powered by a 2.0 litre four cylinder diesel engine that produces either 140p or 170ps. The 140ps is available with 2WD that powers the front wheels and has emissions of 139g/km. It also has a 4WD option but the CO2 goes up to 147g/km. The 170ps is only available with automatic and 4WD. All 4WD models come with “Active-Drive-1” which has permanent drive to the front wheels and has 4WD “On-Demand”. The “Active-Drive-2” will become an option a few months after launch and this will have an electronic low range gearbox and hill descent and this is expected to cost around £1,000.

All models will have Start-Stop as standard. Jeep UK will import a handful of a version with a 3.2 litre V6 petrol engine. This engine will be very popular in North America. But this is not the United States and a large petrol engine will make many people shudder with fear. It is like so many things, if it wasn’t offered, everyone would want one, if it is offered, nobody will want one. So keeping numbers very low and keeping this model as “sold-orders” only will appease everyone.

The interior is finished to a high standard and has lots of nice touches. All the switches, buttons and levers are all in the right place, easy to use and look and feel good. The roof lining is particularly nice along with the stitching on top of the dashboard which adds a touch of quality that can be seen and touched and proves that Jeep have put a lot of thought into the interior. However the rear parcel shelf was a bit flimsy and not quite up to the same standards as the rest of the car.

The exterior is very modern, but still very “Jeep-ish”. It has a very attractive “Waterfall-Grille” that has the Jeep family look, but is very different to any other Jeep. The front lights are also very different, as the headlights are in the wings with the driving lights below them. The fog lamps low down to the side of the front air intake. This design shouldn’t work, but it does and extremely well. From the side the new Cherokee looks long and sleek and it has chrome window surrounds, which add to its stylish looks and gives it an added quality look. The Cherokee is quite a large SUV; it is 4,670mm long, which is around 30cm longer than a Range Rover Evoque.

There will be three trim levels at launch; Longitude, Longitude PLUS and Limited with the Limited having Leather trim as standard and that 8.4” media screen.

During the launch there was much conversation from the Journalists about engine noise; some said how quiet it was, others argued that it was too noisy although we thought it was a bit of both. We found that with the cars we drove, setting off from standstill there was a fair amount of noise intrusion into the cabin. But once up to cruising speed and your foot eased off the accelerator, then it was extremely quiet and very acceptable.

There is plenty of competition in this sector and all are very competent, these include: Ford Kuga, Nissan Qashqai, Volkswagen Tiguan and from the premium brands: Range Rover Evoque, Volvo XC60, Audi Q5 and BMW X3. So the Jeep is up against some stiff and well established competition. Still, with its improved quality, handsome styling, on-road comfort and off-road capabilities, combined with those very important Jeep badges, it could change the fortunes of Jeep and encourage people into the ultimate off-roader with so much heritage and history. So many people have always wanted to own a Jeep but in all honesty they just have not been up to the standards of the many other vehicles on offer, but the new Cherokee puts all the wrongs, right.

Prices are expected to start at around £25,000 for the 2WD with CO2 emissions of 139g/km which makes this Jeep affordable and it has reasonable emissions and fuel consumption figures that are in line with its competition.

The Jeep Cherokee off-road experience in 2007 was exceptional in terms of demonstrating the capabilities of the man and machine battle with the elements, and man and machine won.

The new Cherokee in 2014 proves it still has all the technical systems and ruggedness off road to make it a go anywhere vehicle. But now it is more about styling, quality and fuel economy. It wins in all these departments and is a great looking go anywhere vehicle.

Martin Ward, Manufacturer Relationship Manager