Jeep Cherokee 2016 serious crossover

Jeep Cherokee 2016 serious crossover google doc

 The 2016 Jeep Cherokee builds something completely new suv a very familiar name and heritage. While the original Jeep Cherokee that launched in 1986 set the bar for sport-utility vehicles that could be used as family transport, inspiring a generation of competitors (and perhaps, the SUV trend as a whole), times have changed, and the market has come to favor models that are far more carlike.

For the most part, that's what the Cherokee is—although Jeep has managed to built a surprising amount of ruggedness and off-road ability onto a package that's designed primarily for families, road trips, and the daily grind. Top rivals for the Cherokee include some established crossovers like the Ford Escape, Honda CR-V, Subaru Forester, and Toyota RAV4. It's a clean break from the more truck-like Jeep Liberty it replaced, and its styling is less blunt and bluff.

The current Cherokee may be the first compact SUV get the midpoint right, masterfully bridging the gap between city-friendly crossover and serious (or, serious enough) off-roader. It's an unlikely subject, stuffed with the heart of a Trail Rated Jeep. There's plenty of ruggedness and a general zest for things outdoorsy, while remaining perfectly suitable for families that merely want AWD security and the suggestion that they might have enjoyed camping a time or two.

Jeep Cherokee 2016 serious crossover google doc

Instead of taking a design direction that's closer to that purpose—or going with something a little edgier—the Cherokee enters the fray with a startling variation of the Jeep face, then becomes something entirely derivative at other points. The cabin does paramedic duty here though, healing up all that poorly thought-out stretching with some palliative shapes and some truly nice finishes and Easter-egg touches (consider it a challenge to find all the hidden Jeeps inside).

The Cherokee really sizes right in with models that would be called compacts in the U.S., like the CR-V, Forester, and Escape. Jeep might call it a mid-sizer, but it's right in with those models. There’s no third-row seat, but it's a relatively roomy five-seater, with a back seat that’s suitable for adults—or even asking three to sit across for shorter distances--but the jutting front headrests might enforce a slouching position that robs some of that rear-seat space. The second row slides fore and aft to choose between legroom and cargo space, and there’s a handy organizer for the more retentive fans.

You have a choice between a four-cylinder engine and a V-6—which helps it stand out in a class that includes several models that have gone all-four-cylinder. The standard 184-horsepower, 2.4-liter in-line four is plenty strong for quick acceleration (as well as smooth and quiet for this class), provided there isn't too much weight aboard. The other  new 3.2-liter V-6 makes 271 hp and 239 lb-ft of torque; it's torquey and generally happy with whatever work you throw its way. With the V-6 and a Trailer Tow Package, the Cherokee can pull 4,500 pounds. No matter which version, the Cherokee has fairly numb but accurate steering, with a well-tuned and well-damped ride.

The Cherokee also sports a ZF nine-speed automatic that offers a shockingly wide range of ratios—allowing even the four-cylinder versions to take off very quick from a standing start and cruise with very low revs on the highway. Yet there's some unhappiness in the way that this transmission sometimes balks, sometimes shifts with a bang, and sometimes holds a gear a lot longer than needed. It's not a deal-breaker, but it makes us wonder if the Cherokee would have been better with fewer gears. Its top figure of 31 mpg highway isn't class-leading either, but we've seen close to it in real-world conditions; 4WD models post a few mpg lower. All V-6 Cherokee models now include engine stop-start (ESS), which might not boost the official EPA numbers but will save some fuel in low-speed stop-and-go commuting. 

Jeep Cherokee 2016 serious crossover google doc

Sport, Latitude, Limited, and Trailhawk editions are offered, with each model serving a different kind of buyer. Sport and Latitude models appeal to cost- and value-conscious families, while Limited models are the luxurious flagships of the lineup and Trailhawk models are ready for the trail. Jeep's Trail-Rated badge applies to the Trailhawk, and it gets a one-inch lift, unique front and rear fascias, an Active Drive Lock and locking rear differential, added skid plates, and red tow hooks. There are several different four-wheel drive systems, including Active Drive I, and Active Drive II (adding a dual-range transfer case). All models with 4WD have the Selec-Terrain system, with separate ’smart’ modes for Snow, Sport, Sand/Mud, and Rock, and in low-range models with four-cylinder engines, its crawl ratio is an astonishingly good 56:1

Latitude and Trailhawk models now include a ParkView backup camera plus automatic headlamps. And on Latitude, Limited, and Trailhawk models, there's a new package that combines Blind-spot Monitoring, Rear Cross-Path Detection, ParkSense rear park assist, and signal mirrors with courtesy lamps. About the only thing missing in the Cherokee's safety feature set is a clever surround-view camera system, which would be a boon for off-road use.

The 2015 Cherokee also offers more options than you'll find in most other affordable crossovers—if you're willing to spend extra, of course. Highlights include a CommandView panoramic sunroof and Sky Slider roof, memory heated/ventilated seats, and soft Nappa leather upholstery with ventilated front seats in the top Limited model. Infotainment systems include 8.4-inch Uconnect media center audio-streaming app connectivity (Pandora and Slacker, among others); and top models include a full-color reconfigurable LED instrument cluster.

The 2016 Jeep Cherokee might produce polarizing first impressions, but it can end up a lot more appealing once you soak in the design, inside and out.

The design isn't as cohesive, from the outside, as it should be. Part That might sound like a backhanded compliment, but there's something true to it -- certainly in the way that Jeep fans will end up seeing the Cherokee. To be blunt, even a year in, the design still stands as a little unexpected and awe-inducing -- and not entirely in a good way. The sharp, futuristic (and arguably cluttered) front-end design is a direct challenge to square-jawed, Jeep tradition. But even if you can't quite reconcile with the front-end appearance, there's plenty else aesthetically appealing in the Cherokee to redeem it. 

On one side, the new front-end styling breaks out in a new direction, in a class that's starved for a new look. But in our eyes, the controversial look feels incomplete; in some ways it feels like a redux of the Compass, a model that blurred design lines and styling consistency in ways that were a little uncouth, a little unconvincing.

Jeep Cherokee 2016 serious crossover google doc

The Cherokee's wan, thin nose is the first problem. Breaking up its LED running-light eyebrows from the headlamps sounds like a clever idea for cool looks after the sun sets, but in daylight it delivers an Aztek-like effect--a tiered face that looks like it's always being woken up too early. A Jeep should look wide and awake, like it's up before reveille. The essential seven-bar grille looks thinly drawn here; what was once a point of pride for Jeep is now an effete afterthought.

Although the exterior of the Jeep Cherokee polarizes, the interior peacefully unifies. It's sporty, not at all trucklike, and finished in smooth, fine fashion. 

That heady ode-to-nature stuff inside seems funny to us, since the Cherokee's cabin is wrapped up as tightly in petroleum derivatives as our retirement accounts. Jeep says the interior shapes are influenced by birds of prey, with a fluid feel. Whatever. In any case, It's a handsome look tipped into several color schemes named for places like Iceland and Mount Kilimanjaro and Morocco. (They're just gray, brown, and gold, right?)

Jeep Cherokee 2016 serious crossover google doc

The SUV theming is far from humorless, thank goodness. Jeep designers loaded in some great Easter eggs, like the 1941 Jeep Willys you'll find when letting the Cherokee park itself, or like the small but perfectly formed Jeep that rests at the base of the windshield, climbing over a sensor like it's a Moab boulder. You'll be happier inside looking out, than most Jeep traditionalists will be, outside, looking in.