New Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe to be tow king

When the 2022 Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe is revealed early next year, it will deliver off-road capability and towing capacity to match or better outgoing V8 and diesel models.

So says Christian Meunier, the Global Head of Jeep, who has also confirmed that when it arrives here in early 2022, the fifth-generation Grand Cherokee will dump diesel power in favour of the first plug-in hybrid (PHEV) version.

The current Jeep Grand Cherokee can tow up to 2812kg in petrol V6 form and up to 3500kg in diesel V6 and petrol V8 guises, matching the best utes and SUVs.

The latter includes the Toyota LandCruiser 200 Series, Nissan Patrol, Land Rover Discovery and Defender, Audi Q7, BMW X5, X6 and X7, Mercedes-Benz GLE and GLS, Porsche Cayenne and Volkswagen Touareg.

When it was revealed in January, Jeep said the new Grand Cherokee would tow up to 3266kg in petrol V6 and V8 form, but that could increase for Australia following an extensive local testing program now under way.

Either way, Jeep’s new flagship SUV will eclipse the towing capability of large ladder-frame SUVs including the Ford Everest, Mitsubishi Pajero Sport and Toyota Fortuner (3100kg), and the Toyota Prado and Isuzu MU-X (3000kg), not to mention Jeep’s own Wrangler (2495kg).

And it will be much better than the maximum towing capacities offered by car-based large SUVs like the class-leading new Nissan Pathfinder (2720kg), which is also due on sale here in early 2022, as well as the Volvo XC90 (2400kg), Hyundai Santa Fe (2500kg) and Palisade (2200kg), and the Kia Sorento, Mazda CX-9 and Toyota Kluger (2000kg).

In addition to upgraded 216kW/348Nm 3.6-litre petrol V6 and 266kW/529Nm 5.7-litre petrol V8 engines (and eventually high-performance SRT and Trackhawk versions powered by a 6.4-litre V8 and 6.2-litre supercharged V8 respectively), the new Grand Cherokee’s first hybrid powertrain will combine two electric motors and a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol engine to deliver 280kW/637Nm.

Apart from offering EV driving capability for about 40km thanks to its 17kWh lithium-ion battery, Jeep says the Grand Cherokee 4xe will be at least as good as its pure-petrol brethren – and the outgoing diesel models – when it comes to towing and off-roading.

“I think Grand Cherokee is going to be a home run,” Meunier told Australian journalists recently. “Without diesel – with 4xe, with V6 – it’s going to be a home run. I have zero doubt. The product is going to be awesome for Australians, they’re going to love it.

“Towing is core to Jeep so we wouldn’t compromise on it, but we’ve tested Wrangler and Grand Cherokee 4xe and towing is at least as good as with an ICE engine.

“The 4xe at the end of the day, in terms of capabilities – torque and everything – is as competent as a V8. And obviously fuel economy and everything is no comparison. So we’re looking towards the future.”

Meunier said the new Grand Cherokee, which offers more ground clearance (up to 277mm) and greater water fording capability (610mm) than its predecessors, will focus on advanced powertrains without turning its back on demand for V8s – including in Australia.

“It doesn’t mean that V8 doesn’t remain – obviously there’s still a market in the world especially North America – but we’re looking towards the future and we believe that electrification really provides a lot of benefits, torque wise, acceleration wise, and towing? You know towing is good.

“I promised a lot of other things like the testing of the Grand Cherokee in Australia and we’re doing it. And that will make all the difference in the world.

“We’re testing the GC in Australia. We’re going to test the roads, we’re going to test your dirt roads, we’re going to test the towing capacity because we know its important ion your market.”

In the same interview, Jeep’s global boss defended the US car-maker’s decision to axe the diesel for the new-generation Grand Cherokee, which will also be available in seven-seat L guise for the first time.

“I’m not going to elaborate about diesel, and the future of diesel and things like that, because I think you know,” he said.

“Obviously we still have diesel powertrains … but on the Grand Cherokee, the decision was to go petrol and electrification … because that’s where the future is going.

“With electrification on product like Wrangler and Grand Cherokee, we’re able to deliver more capability off-road, more fun to drive, strong towing capacity, strong torque and eco-friendly technology.

“I’m not saying we couldn’t sell a few more units with diesel, but 40 per cent of the segment is petrol [and] I think the petrol is going to keep growing because diesel engines are becoming more and more challenging because of emissions [regulations] and electrification is going to really help us bring something new to the customer.

“Diesel is still there in Europe especially but also in North America in certain conditions and also in Australia. But on the Grand Cherokee the decision was to go petrol and electrification. So we’re going both ICE and electrified powertrains because that’s where the future is going.

“It’s going to be an alternative, it’s going to be a way for Jeep to differentiate and to show that we’re really advanced on technology. And the capability off-road is outstanding. People are going to love it, I have no doubt.

“We don’t want to be followers in Australia. We’re gonna be leaders in electrification, we’re gonna be before the others.”