2023 Jeep Wagoneer

MARK TAKAHASHI: Jeep is known for building vehicles that can go anywhere and do anything. But for almost 30 years, there's one place they were noticeably absent from and that was the full-size SUV class. At long last, there's an SUV to fill that massive gap and it's this, the all-new 2022 Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer. Before we get into this review, do us a favor and hit Like and subscribe below. And head over to edmunds.com/sellmycar to get a cash offer on your vehicle. So what's the difference between the Wagoneer and the Grand Wagoneer? The short answer, $19,000. From the outside, they're pretty tough to tell apart. But the simplest way to think of the Grand Wagoneer is it's the more luxurious and more powerful of the two. Prices start right around $60,000 for the base Wagoneer with rear wheel drive. The Grand Wagoneer starts just under $90,000 and four-wheel drive is standard. Those Prices are more expensive than rivals that include the Chevy Suburban, GMC Yukon, Ford Expedition, and Cadillac Escalade. But Jeep will cover the cost of maintenance for the first five years. [MUSIC PLAYING] The Wagoneer is powered by a 5.7-liter V8 with a 48-volt mild hybrid system. Together they produce 392 horsepower and 404 pound-feet of torque. The Grand Wagoneer has a 6.4-liter V8 that's good for 471 horsepower and 455 pound-feet. Both are paired with an eight-speed automatic transmission. Those power figures beat the engines in the Chevy Suburban, GMC Yukon, and Ford Expedition. Of course there is a drawback and that's fuel economy. The Grand Wagoneer gets an EPA estimated 15 miles per gallon in combined driving. That's an MPG or two less than the equivalent Chevy and GMC models and three to four MPG less than the Ford Expedition, which does not offer a V8 engine. One area where these big body-on-frame SUVs have a distinct advantages is in regard to towing. And the Wagoneer is at the top of its class with a 10,000-pound max capacity. That's 700 pounds more than the Expedition and as much as 1700 pounds more than the GM models. [MUSIC PLAYING] From the outside, these Wagoneers are imposing. Compared to other large SUVs, it's a little bigger than a Chevy Tahoe and smaller than a Suburban. Up front we have the new grill and headlight styling that's more upright and has a more prominent brow versus the old Cherokee, which was a little more raked back. Personally, I like it. The profile of you seems to be the most challenging for a lot of people. The upright roof pillars seem to be catching the most heat as they're a bit too prominent. Let's be clear, though, the rivals from GM and Ford have the same type of roof pillars. They just mask them in with the windows and add body-colored flourishes to suggest a single larger pillar. The Wagoneer has these pillars on full display rather than try to hide them. It adds some visual weight, but I don't think that's much of a design problem for a big SUV that seems to be embracing its substantial size. [MUSIC PLAYING] The Wagoneer comes with a long list of standard features. And stepping up to the Grand Wagoneer gets you more standard and available items. These include larger screens, four-zone climate control, a virtual rear view mirror, upgraded front seats with ventilation, a cooler box, second row captain's chairs, McIntosh premium audio, automated parking, and night vision. As far as the interior goes, I'm impressed as well. Maybe it's not as nice as the top-tier, like the Escalade or even like the Mercedes GLS, but impressive nonetheless. Materials quality is good. Now, this dash-topper is supposed to look like leather, but it's not all that convincing. In some of the other color palettes, though, it looks really great with contrasting stitching and different colored surfaces. I particularly like the layout of the dash, it's nice and horizontal. And it's really easy to use. In this Grand Wagoneer trim, you have a bigger screen, but the surround-- the black surround around it-- remains the same whether you're in the Wagoneer or Grand Wagoneer. A lot of controls are built into the screen, but Jeep smartly included plenty of physical buttons as shortcuts. So things like heated and cooled seats and climate control can all be done with barely a glance away from the road. In the top Grand Wagoneer trim, you also get this auxiliary screen here for other comfort-related items like seats and massage. And it flips up to reveal a hidden compartment with a wireless phone charger and four USB ports. That's pretty smart. Now, you'll also notice there's a lot of piano black down here, which irks me, but at least it's angled away from the driver, so it doesn't really blind you in some sunlight conditions. The problem for me, though, is it's really hard to read what all these controls are, so you have to lean forward and get a little closer to it, so not ideal. But after you're used to driving it for a while, you probably won't have to look down at all. Plus most of the functions down here are dedicated to off-road features. Right behind that is a nice dual cupholder bin. And here we have a fairly shallow bin that's great for holding phones, plus there's more USB chargers in there. And the kicker is underneath is this huge bin here. In this particular Grand Wagoneer, it's option with a lockable box, but you can also get a refrigerator instead. The infotainment system itself is easy to use. There's a small delay between the time you hit a button from when it finally reacts, but it's totally acceptable. Now, the screen isn't quite in the driver's line of sight, but it's close enough or it's a quick glance away to see what's going on. You also have a virtual dashboard in front that gives you a ton of information from driving, navigation, to some of the off-road specific gauges. On the wheel itself, you have some piano black buttons here that seem like they might be capacitive touch, but they're actual physical buttons that are easier to use. Now, there aren't shift paddles, instead they have this button here that limits the top gear. It's pretty common among pickup trucks, especially when you're doing a lot of towing. Even if you're not towing, it's pretty easy to use on a twisty road. Like most luxury vehicles out there, this has adaptive cruise control to keep a consistent gap between the car in front of you and your vehicle as well as lane keep assist that keeps you nice and centered in a lane. Later in the year they will have a higher level of driver automation that's hands-free, much like Cadillac's Super Cruise, that will be activated on certain highways that are approved. Hopefully we'll get a chance to try it out for ourselves in the coming months. Available in the Wagoneer and standard with the Grand Wagoneer is a Macintosh premium audio system that has really good punchy bass. But sometimes, for my personal taste, it's little muddy on the bass side. But your personal preference may vary. That's all fine and good. But for a large SUV like this, we also need to check out the back seats. So come on, let's go. Now, here in the second row, I have plenty of space. I mean, I'm not even all the way forward and, yeah, I can slide it much further back and have a ton of leg room. And there's plenty of room under the seat for my feet. Now, that's a little bit too far back for my taste, but this seems to be about perfect. And it also reclines way back, so it should be great for road trips if you're looking to get a little rest back here. You also have some manual sunshades here that block out the sun nicely. And in the top trims here, we have this beautiful glossy, almost like an iPad for the rear climate control for the second row. And you also have a USB C USB A port on both sides. And there are plenty of options for rear entertainment where you have dual screens that have a ton of inputs that include Amazon Fire TV. So that means if your kids are watching something while they're at home and then you need to hit the road, they can pause it and start watching it again right from here. Pretty smart. Right here there's another shallow bin, which is great for phones, with even more USB ports, and another huge bin that pretty sure you can squeeze a small child into. Two medium-sized cup holders are also very handy. And you have plenty of room in the doors for bigger bottles and other personal effects. The view from the second row is pretty nice too because I'm sitting a few inches taller than the front seat, so I have a nice view out the front. Also, it feels nice and airy thanks to this large, panoramic sunroof and the large windows right next to you. But it's a third row, so let's check out the back backseats. Getting into the third row is really easy. It's a one-touch affair, slides the seat forward. It's a nice big opening. I don't feel like have to stoop down and or shimmy between things. Now, once I'm back here, this is impressive. Usually third row seats are meant for kids and occasional use at that. But this is adult-sized space. And I'd have plenty of space if I was sitting in the second row as well. This is probably as big a third row I've been in, honestly. There's plenty of thigh support because it's not all the way down to the deck like a lot of other third-- three-row SUVs. You also have some remote releases here as well as four more USB ports, two on each side. So on a long road trip, your kids will never run out of juice. That's impressive. It seems like they really took their time and thought every little detail out. So, yeah, color me impressed. [MUSIC PLAYING] Behind the third row of seats is 27.4 cubic feet of cargo space. That's more than the Expedition, or Tahoe, or Yukon. With the second and third rows folded, you have up to 116.7 cubic feet in the Wagoneer. The Yukon and Tahoe offer more space in this configuration, while the Expedition has 12 cubic feet less. One thing I particularly like, however, are these remote release buttons for the second and third rows. And it's a one-touch affair for both. And it's a nice flat load floor, which means you can get some really big, bulky items in. Now, obviously, if you have the bench seat in the second row, you'll have even more. But, as it is, it's a really easy to use cargo space. And if you have the height adjustable suspension, you can lower it down to the ground for access height, which means you don't have to lift bulkier items quite as high as you would with other SUVs. Overall, when it comes to utility, the Wagoneers have it covered. [MUSIC PLAYING] Behind the wheel of this Grand Wagoneer with the 6.4-liter engine, it has plenty of power, which is impressive. So let's get into it a little. [ENGINE REVVING] Yeah. Oh, it's got some sauce. And that's pretty impressive considering that they weigh between 6,000 and 6,400 pounds. And it sounded pretty good. I mean it's a 6.4-liter V8 Hemi. And it had a good growl. But more than that, when you start this thing up, it has a really good, inspiring low baritone that makes you giggle. I mean, it's something that we can't get too used to because-- since internal combustion engines are going away. But if this is the last hurrah, it's pretty good. Now, besides the acceleration being pretty potent for such a big car, the brakes are up to snuff as well. I mean, the brake pedal feels good, feels appropriate. It's on the soft side, which makes sense for a luxury vehicle like this. And it's easy to modulate and come to a nice smooth limo stop. When it comes to handling, well, I mean, it's still a really big, heavy SUV. So you can't go charging into turns like you're in a sports car, but it acquits itself pretty well on the curves and on narrow roads. We also did a three-point turn on a more narrow road back there and it did it well. I would have expected it to be a four or five-point turn, but it did it in a fairly narrow spot. And when we're off-roading, it got around some sharp turns without even a problem. And this doesn't even have four-wheel steering. Ride comfort is what you'd expect from a big luxury vehicle as well. It's smooth. And that's not exactly what I was expecting, to be honest. It's still a body-on-frame SUV, which means it's built more on a truck platform and it shares some small parts here and there with the chassis-- with a RAM 1500. And usually you get some weird vibration, some subtle bounces and jounces, but none of that with these Wagoneers. The ride quality isn't quite as smooth as, let's say, a Mercedes GLS. But I certainly like it better than I do in like a Chevy Tahoe. The Tahoe I felt some low rumbling coming to the wheel and to the seat, and I'm not getting that here. And even with the car fairly unloaded, it's not busy over the rough stuff. And there's plenty of rough stuff throughout New York. On the cobblestones, when we were leaving the Meatpacking District-- sure you felt all the cobblestones, but it wasn't intrusive. You didn't get a lot of those harsh initial impacts. [MUSIC PLAYING] And it is overall pretty quiet. Road and wind noise is well-silenced, even on the highways. And when you hit a bump or two, you'll hear a gentle thud, but it's not very crashy and the initial impacts are smoothed over pretty well. One thing helping out with the ride quality is instead of a solid rear axle, like you get in a Ram 1500, this has an independent rear. So it really balances out and smooths over that without too many residual bounces after you hit something. Now, you might hear some rattling now, but that's actually all our gear in the back, so it's fine. Just ignore that. Visibility is pretty good with the Wagoneers, but not great. This roof pillar here is pretty thick. And if you're close to a crosswalk, you can easily hide two pedestrians behind it, so something to keep in mind. But, overall, it doesn't get in the way of left turns too much. The back view is about what you'd expect from any SUV. It's not great, but all of the surround view and rearview cameras take any guesswork out when you're trying to back into a narrow spot. There is one option I didn't have a chance to sample for myself, but it shows some promise. It's a third screen just for the front passenger. Now, that's something that we've seen in something like the Mercedes EQS and Porsche Taycan, not a Jeep product. That allows the front passenger to play co-pilot and look up destinations and swipe them over to the main head unit and take over turn-by-turn directions. It's pretty smart, but it goes further than some of the other ones by also including some entertainment options like Amazon Fire TV. So, overall, when it comes to road trips and packing the car full of people and stuff, I think these Wagoneers have that covered. [MUSIC PLAYING] There are several benefits to having this built on a truck-based body-on-frame. One of them is towing capability, but also off-road capabilities. We did some moderate off-roading in these and did quite well. You have three levels to choose from when it comes to off-roading, with the top version having a lot more electronics to help you out, and more gauges, and more bells and whistles, to be honest. But it just makes it easier to off-road. We went over some pretty jagged rocks and some tough climbs, but it handled it with ease. I also drove the Expedition off-road on similar trails and it was honestly just as good. And both of them were able to maneuver around tight spots without having to do multiple-point turns. Now, you might not be able to climb rocks like a Jeep Wrangler, but you can definitely get to some rather remote fishing spots without any problem. [MUSIC PLAYING] After spending some time with the Grand Wagoneer and Wagoneer, I have to say I am really impressed. It's a worthy competitor to the Tahoe, Suburban, Escalade, and Expedition. I can't wait to see how it stacks up when we get one back in our office for full testing and evaluation. In the meantime, head of the edmunds.com for the latest news, specs, and information on the Wagoneer, Grand Wagoneer, and all of its competition. Thanks for watching and don't forget to hit like and subscribe below. [MUSIC PLAYING]