2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee Review

The 2017 Jeep Grand Cherokee offers a lot of standard and optional features to choose from, but in general, we're most fond of the off-road-ready Trailhawk. It can go nearly anywhere and yet still comes with swanky equipment such as ventilated seats and the 8.4-inch Uconnect touchscreen. The Trailha...

The eight-speed automatic shifts seamlessly on the highway, though there's some jerkiness in stop-and-go traffic, and the engine requires more revs than you expect to get going. The massive amount of turbodiesel torque means you can easily hold just one gear up long grades.

The EcoDiesel 3.0-liter V6 is all about torque, a full 420 lb-ft worth. With 0-60 mph arriving in 7.7 seconds, it's quicker than the V6-gasoline GC. The eight-speed automatic is smooth, though its shifts are slow. For more thrilling acceleration, check out the V8.

Around town, the Grand Cherokee brakes provide decent power and pedal feel. At the test track though, the GC nosedives and squirms during full panic stops. It took 121 feet to stop from 60 mph, which is average for the class.

The GC's steering has a light effort and a chunky steering wheel that feels good in your hands, which should suit most people. Unfortunately it also doesn't have much in the way of feel, so you never really know what the front tires are up to on road or off.

Whether at the test track or on back roads, the Grand Cherokee feels lethargic and heavy. It has little roll control, meaning it leans considerably through corners. The stability control intervenes early and often.

The eight-speed automatic shifts seamlessly on the highway, though there's some jerkiness in stop-and-go traffic, and the engine requires more revs than you expect to get going. The massive amount of turbodiesel torque means you can easily hold just one gear up long grades.

The Summit model, with its low front fascia, isn't Trail Rated, despite the Quadra-Drive II four-wheel-drive system and height-adjustable air suspension. Still, it's ultra-capable when scurrying up steep off-road trails.

The Grand Cherokee has excellent sound deadening, plus supportive seats and plenty of room to stretch out. Although we expected good things from the air suspension, it suffers in the city, struggling to soak up smaller bumps.

The front seats are wide and overstuffed with padding, yet they are surprisingly firm. Adjustable lumbar and heating and cooling up front are complemented by well-padded armrests. Rear reclining seatbacks have easy-access levers. The rear middle seat is livable but not wide enough for adults.

Oddly, the optional air suspension struggles to absorb smaller pavement ripples, allowing significant vibration into the cabin. It's definitely not the best urban vehicle. Big bumps, on the other hand, are absorbed with ease.

The optional diesel engine clatter makes it louder at idle than rival gas engines, but the EcoDiesel is considerably quieter at full throttle, partially because it doesn't rev as high. Dual-pane front glass means nearly zero wind noise on the highway.

Large primary buttons and knobs for the climate control system are easy to operate and the system cools/warms the cabin well. Some of the secondary controls located in the infotainment screen are a bit harder to find, though, and can be frustrating even for owners used to the system.

Jeep's most recent improvements certainly make the Grand Cherokee's cabin a nice place to be. The Uconnect infotainment system, materials and controls are at the top of the class, though the touchscreen forces too many steps for certain functions.

The centerpiece is an excellent chunky steering wheel paired with solid, substantial controls. Large, grippy knobs for stereo volume/tuning/fan speed are nice, but some climate control functions require three to four button pushes through the touchscreen. Ridiculous.

Wide-opening front doors help entry. The step-in height is higher than average, but the air suspension can be lowered when parked. The rear doors also open wide, though the opening is compromised by the intrusive rear wheelwell and wide rocker panels.

Despite the high seating position, there's still generous headroom up front. Good elbow room, too, and the center console leaves room for the driver's right knee. Excellent rear foot- and kneeroom, plus plenty of headroom.

The windshield pillars are fairly long and thick, hampering views on curvy roads. Most other pillars are narrow, though, and the tall side windows facilitate lane changes. Standard rearview camera and parking sensors are especially handy in a tall SUV.

When you consider all that it offers in one package, the Jeep Grand Cherokee is very utilitarian. It has above-average tow ratings, an optional adjustable air suspension and decent cargo space, although the latter could be better in terms of maximum capacity.

The main front bin has little space and a cheap-feeling door. Up front, the door pockets are too narrow for most hands. There are, however, good anti-tip cupholders.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee's trunk isn't the largest in the department; it also doesn't have a very low load floor, but with the optional air suspension you can lower the ride height when you park. The trunk houses a full-size spare and still offers 36.3 cubic feet of space.

There are two sets of two latches, each on the outboard positions of the rear seat. Realistically, you'll be able to put two child seats in the rear.

The EcoDiesel and Hemi V8 4x4s have the same tow rating: 7,200 pounds. Two-wheel-drive models can tow 7,400 pounds, while gasoline V6 models can tow 6,200 pounds. Most crossover SUVs don't come anywhere close to those numbers.

Though the Uconnect system in the Jeep Grand Cherokee is one of the most user-friendly on the market, our test vehicle had several issues with reliability during operation. Knobs often failed to respond to inputs, and the satellite radio cut out so many times that we lost track.

Audio and navigation controls are extremely user-friendly. Almost any novice can master the basic functions of the Uconnect system after just a few uses. The optional nine-speaker stereo has good sound quality and dynamic range.

Connecting via Bluetooth or USB is easy and quick with the Grand Cherokee. Songs and podcasts are indexed with lightning speed. Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, however, are not available.

Optional systems such as blind-spot monitoring and forward collision mitigation are nice to have, but unfortunately they're oversensitive in the Grand Cherokee. Warnings sound with the slightest encroachment on other cars or even when a car is two lanes away in your blind spot.