Moab, Utah isn't the historic home of the Jeep brand, but it just might be its spiritual one. Thousands of feet of red sandstone mountains have been carved by millions of years of wind and water. The thinly populated spec on a map is as isolated as a visitor wants it to be.
In recent years, the city has boomed thanks to outdoor enthusiasts willing to shell out money on house rentals and hotels rather than camping. Four-wheel drive is as prominently found as boots covered in a skim coat of dirt and dust.
It is here where Jeep brought automotive industry journalists to test of its next-generation Grand Cherokee. Perhaps the most important model in the company's lineup, the fifth-generation builds on tones already set by its ancestors, as well as the newest Jeep family member, to create a compelling package.
Now sold in just a two-row variant (the three-row Grand Cherokee L is a different, though similar beast), the Grand Cherokee has a lot more going for it than just a finely appointed interior and up to 11.3 inches of ground clearance.
The exterior has gotten a reboot in line with the Grand Cherokee L. It's attractive and plays with the SUV's new architecture to make the Jeep more aggressively stanced yet passively faced in tandem.
Grand Cherokee comes in seven trim levels with the buyer's choice of two- or four-wheel drive in all but the top Grand Cherokee Summit Reserve and midgrade Trailhawk where 4x4 is standard.
Right now, buyers can get their Grand Cherokee with either a 3.6-liter V6 or a 5.7-liter V8 engine. A plug-in hybrid variant, Grand Cherokee 4xe is coming soon. The V8 is more powerful, making 357 horsepower and 390 pound-feet of torque to the V6's 290 horsepower and 257 pound-feet of torque.
The tradeoff with the more satisfying pull of the V8 is the fuel economy. Its EPA-rated to achieve 14 mpg in the city and 22 mpg on the highway compared to the V6's 19 mpg city and 26 mpg highway numbers. For a two-row SUV, those numbers are not great. But, that's a hole the Grand Cherokee 4xe will likely fill when it comes to market.
Time behind the wheel is exactly as expected. There's nothing particularly sporty or engaging about the way the Grand Cherokee handles, but it performs its pavement duties acceptably and generally behaves itself.
Off the beaten path, the SUV takes to rocks, trails and steeps with ease, exactly as expected, with varying degrees of capability based on which suspension and drivetrain is chosen.
One doesn't need a specially equipped Trailhawk model to conquer most off-road terrain with Jeep's large range of four-wheel drive options that make the Grand Cherokee more capable than most of its competitors.
In the most highly equipped models, that means that the Grand Cherokee feels both weighty and sturdy. Its weight gives a feeling that passengers are protected, but it also makes the Jeep not as overtly agile as other two-row SUVs. The bulkiness of the design also interferes with sight lines.
Opting for a trim that gets drivers a forward-facing camera helps, but latency between what is ahead and what is shown as well as depth perception and contrast issues, makes relying on the technology for any length of time unwise. Still, it's far better than similar cameras in the Subaru Outback and Nissan Pathfinder.
The SUV has a 19-speaker McIntosh sound system available in the highest-grade Grand Cherokee models and it offers a top-notch listening experience that's better than what can be found in nearly every other SUV on the market. It's a boon for Jeep, not just because of the sound quality, but also because of speaker placement. McIntosh and Jeep co-designed the soundscape from scratch rather than retrofitting it to the model, and it shows.
Jeep also wins for having comfortable seating for four adults (five persons total) in its Grand Cherokee and finally upholstered and appointed surfaces that would traditionally be far more at home in an SUV with a luxury price tag. From available supple, honey-colored leather to genuine wood and metal, the company's designers have once again outdone themselves, raising the bar for a two-row Jeep SUV.
It has a good amount of cargo space for its size. Small item storage in door pockets and the center console is also adequate.
The automaker has loaded up the Grand Cherokee with a long list of desirable standard features that is more than befitting its price tag. Dual-zone automatic climate control, a 10.25-inch all-digital gauge cluster, a 8.4-inch infotainment touch screen, USB ports, Bluetooth, a Wi-Fi hot spot, tethered Android Auto and tethered Apple CarPlay make the list.
It's available with a 10.1-inch infotainment touch screen, a 10.25-inch passenger-side touch screen, navigation, satellite radio, wireless smartphone charging, wireless Apple CarPlay and wireless Android Auto.
The company's Uconnect 5 infotainment operating system is not only easy to look at - it's easy to operate. The tech team has outdone themselves, making an Android-based system that allows users to customize their experience and keep priority functions one tap away.
Still, some of the infotainment tech remains glitchy. Switching between navigation and Apple CarPlay seems to be a particular sore point, causing, on more than one occasion, the screen to black out or freeze and require a reboot via a session sitting on the side of the road. This issue has also presented itself in the Wagoneer, Grand Wagoneer and Grand Cherokee L.
Unlike other automakers' safety and driver assist systems, the Grand Cherokee's hands-on driving tech isn't intrusive or hard to get to just the right setting. Its intuitive use and guiding hand makes long haul road travel a lighter burden but doesn't take away the nuances of the driving experience.
The easiest way to get the Moab is by plane, right into the airport 20 minutes outside of town where visitors claim their bags through an opening in a metal fence generously labeled as Baggage Claim.
The harder way to get there, though far more scenic, is a drive down from Salt Lake City, up from Phoenix, or over from Las Vegas, with not much between starting point and destination on any route.
On the road is this Grand Cherokee's natural environment, a place where it must put its power, prowess, comfortability, and high-tech features to the test. The Jeep would be just at home on the long travel into Moab as it would on the trails around the area. It's a sweet spot for a pretty sweet ride.
About the writer
Eileen Falkenberg-Hull leads the Autos team at Newsweek. She has written extensively about the auto industry for U.S. News & ... Read more
