Have you heard of the legendary automobile manufacturer Jeep? Many of you must have started recollecting a little but for those who are unfamiliar with the brand, Jeep is a iconic SUV manufacturer and also the inventor of CJ series of army off-road vehicles. Owned by Fiat at present, the manufacturer is planning to make an entry into the Indian market with its popular Jeep Grand Cherokee and the fact that it offers a good diesel line-up, make it even more suitable for the Indian market.
The company has switched to diesel engines essentially to raise the demand of their products in the European market and now that the company has enough diesel engines to offer, the possibilities of the brand getting introduced here are high.
image – Jeep Grand Cherokee
Jeep President and CEO Michael Manley knows well about our domestic market and recently he said,
“We recognize that Indian customers appreciate good value and we are keen to provide that with our Grand Cherokee”.
The president has hinted that initially the company will introduce Jeep Grand Cherokee and other products later.
image – Jeep Grand Cherokee Rear
The company has a rich line-up including Grand Cherokee, Commander, Compass and Patriot and all these models are currently sold in Europe. Jeep is currently planning a B-segment product which it wishes to launch as soon as 2014.
Coming to the Cherokee now, it is a fabulous looking SUV that stuns you with its interesting styling. The body lines are minimal but the edginess introduced well across the whole body of the car is praiseworthy. Built wise it is a brilliant car and looks very tough. The car is built on Mercedes M Class’ platform which makes it the stiffest car in its class and also enhance ride, handling and off-road manners.
image – Jeep Grand Cherokee Interiors
Being an off-roader, the company offers a Selec-Terrain system which is similar to Range Rover’s Terrain Response System. Selec-Terrain is controlled by a dial and you can select the terrain type you are diving on to let the car adjust the best settings to achieve best possible traction and off-road performance. On the inside, there is enough room for all the passengers and one would always feel comfortable. But the plastic quality is not at par with that of Mercedes-Benz or Volkswagen products.
Under the hood, it features a 2987 CC CRDI diesel engine, which has been designed and engineered by Fiat. This engine is same as Merc’s 3.0 litre V6, however Jeep has retuned it to deliver smooth power outputs and enormous torque figures. Disappointingly the engine is mated to a 5 speed automatic transmission only. The car will be imported as CBU initially, but if Jeep successfully incorporates localization and brings the cost of the car below Rs. 40 lakh mark, there is a handsome possibility of Cherokee beating some of the top selling SUVs.
Pictures Of Jeep Grand Cherokee
image – Jeep Grand Cherokee
image – Jeep Grand Cherokee Top
image – Jeep Grand Cherokee
image – Jeep Grand Cherokee
image – Jeep Grand Cherokee
Source – AutoCarIndia
