Hit the trail in Grand style
The hero model of the 2017 Grand Cherokee range is the rugged Trailhawk. Jeep wants you to get it dirty. No, really. By David Linklater.
We live in strange times when actual off-road ability is a point of difference for a vehicle in the SUV segment.
But that’s Jeep’s big push this year: a revised range of models designed to showcase the brand’s off-tarmac abilities. The hero is the one you see here: the new Trailhawk version of NZ’s biggestselling (and biggest) Jeep, the Grand Cherokee.
The Kiwi lineup also includes Trailhawk versions of the compact Renegade and mid-sized Cherokee. There’s a new Compass coming before the end of the year; count on a Trailhawk version of that, too.
If you hadn’t guessed already, a Trailhawk badge signifies a Jeep that prioritises off-road performance. Rather confusingly, a Trailhawk model also wears a ‘‘Trail Rated’’ badge, which marks a model that has been developed off-road and makes the grade in five separate areas: traction, wheel articulation, ground clearance, water-fording and general manoeuvreability.
The name references the Rubicon Trail, a legendary 27km stretch of off-roading in the Sierra Nevada where Jeep does much of its testing.
Know what you’re thinking: if a vehicle is Trail Rated it’s supposed to be able to complete the Rubicon, right? That’s always been the implication, although Jeep’s never (feel free to correct me here) explicitly said so.
Now that more and more of its models wear that coveted badge, the company’s definition has become less and less specific. There’s no written-in-Rubiconrock requirements for those five categories, for example, only an assurance that each model makes the grade... in its own way, via a complicated and/or vague system of points. There’s even now a series of Trail Rated Jeep models named after ‘‘trails’’ in the countries they’re sold in. Local Jeep people are looking into the logistics of doing one for NZ.
The exception to all of this, as always, is the old-school Wrangler. The entire Wrangler range is officially Trail Rated, although none of them actually wear the badge. It’s just a given. And of course there is the ultimate Wrangler, the Rubicon. That can definitely do the Rubicon Trail straight out of the box.
Perhaps none of this really matters. Semantics. Point is, Jeep stuff is tough, even if the company is also aiming to make maximum marketing impact with those badges.
Our preview drive of the Grand Cherokee Trailhawk didn’t touch
tarmac at all (that’ll come later). Instead, the new model got a workout around an off-road course above Kariotahi Beach, looking across the Tasman south of Auckland.
What makes a Grand Cherokee a Trailhawk? It comes with a standard 184kW/550Nm 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel engine and eight-speed automatic transmission, with Quadra-Drive II 4WD. So far, so normal.
But the Trailhawk gets a specially tuned version of Jeep’s Quadra-Lift air suspension system that can rise to 275mm of ground clearance and allow greater wheel articulation, an electronic limitedslip rear differential and skid plates. The Selec-Speed hill descent control can also function as hill ascent control.
Approach, breakover and departure angles are 29.8/27.1/22.8 degrees, but the approach can be increased to 36.1deg for ‘‘extreme off-roading’’ by removing the lower front fascia, says Jeep. Or a rock can always do that for you.
The wheels are kept at a modest 18-inch size (better for off-roading) and the Goodyear Adventure tyre sidewalls are reinforced with Kevlar. Tow hooks (in fetching red, as is the Trailhawk fashion) are standard.
The Trailhawk is identifiable by its anti-glare bonnet decal, special badging and red accents. Inside, it has a black interior with bespoke seats and a special feature in the 8.4-inch UConnect screen called ‘‘off-road pages’’, which shows you wheel articulation, suspension height and the status of the fivemode Selec-Terrain controller.
It all made our afternoon’s offroad driving a doddle. Yes, we realise Jeep isn’t going to run a media event and send us out on a course that the car can’t handle. No, we didn’t do any really hairraising stuff.
But on standard tyres inflated to roadgoing pressures, the Trailhawk still romped over grass, mud and through suspension-stretching ruts in fine fashion. It was a pleasure to stand back and watch and see the 4WD system and axles doing their thing.
Know what you’re thinking (again): none of this matters because people don’t take big, expensive SUVs off-road. Even the off-roady ones.
Jeep NZ executives don’t disagree. But Fiat Chrysler NZ (distributor of Jeep stuff here) is encouraging owners to get out and discover what their vehicles can actually do with a series of ‘‘4x4ever’’ road (off-road?) shows at dealerships around the country. It’s sending a fleet of four Trail Rated models out there; tyres will get muddy and the odd wheel might leave the ground.
The rest of the Grand Cherokee range has also had a refresh. All models have picked up the grille and front fascia from last year’s 75th-anniversary model and reversing camera/rear sensors are standard across the range. There are new LED daytime running lights and the UConnect touchscreen has improved connectivity and graphics.
The Trailhawk might be the hero of the Grand Cherokee range, but at $94,990 it’s in the middle price-wise.
The Laredo opens the bidding at $64,990-$76,990 (V6 petrol RWD or diesel AWD), there’s a Limited at $89,990 (diesel or V8-petrol) and the luxury-oriented Overland at $99,990 (again, diesel or V8-petrol).
The SRT, with its thunderous 6.4-litre V8, is still at the top of the pile. It’s $114,990 and keeps its own distinctive front styling. The 2017 model gets a new leather upholstery package. There are more Grands to come. Expect a couple of as-yet-undisclosed ‘‘buzz’’ models (that’s Jeep-speak for special editions), as well as the silliest Grand Cherokee yet: the tarmac-tearing Trackhawk. Which is another thing entirely.