The new Grand Cherokee and Grand Wagoneer are the first three-row Jeeps since the Commander, the big SUV Jeep introduced for 2006. While the Grand Cherokee is a unibody design related to Jeep’s current offerings, just like the Commander which came before it, the Grand Wagoneer is a new design entirely.
Like the Tahoe/Suburban/Yukon/Escalade family from GM and the Ford Expedition/Lincoln Navigator, the Grand Wagoneer has its roots in a pickup. Based on the Ram 1500, the Grand Wagoneer has a solid foundation. And it better start strong, because this Jeep costs $110,000.
Here’s what you learn after driving the first six-figure Jeep.
It’s Big
Seems obvious, right? This is a truck-based three-row SUV. If you normally drive a Tahoe or Expedition, you won’t find much difference here. But if you regularly drive a Miata or a Volvo V60 (like me), it’ll take some adjustment. At 215 inches long and 84 inches wide, the Grand Wagoneer is 30 inches longer and nearly a foot wider than our Volvo. That’s nearly big enough to park the Volvo inside of it’s footprint. And while you notice that girth from the outside, it becomes more obvious while you’re driving.
Because you sit so high, the interior feels large. The Jeep’s steering is light and overboosted, with essentially no feeling of connection to the road. You feel more like you’re navigating a cargo ship than driving a truck. It’s the same in parking lots, the edges of the car so far from where you’re sitting that it’s nearly impossible to park in any elegant way.
It’s (Mostly) Good Looking
This is subjective, of course, but from most angles the Grand Wagoneer looks handsome, a classic Jeep sent off to the tailor. Too bad it doesn’t hark back more directly to the old Wagoneer namesake, a streak of wood paneling hung along the side. Our test Wagoneer was an Obsidian edition, which includes blacked-out accents in lieu of chrome, plus 22-inch wheels.
Just don’t look at the Jeep profile. From that angle the Jeep’s girth overwhelms. It looks slablike, just a big rectangle on wheels. Even wheels larger than 20 inches in size look toylike on the truck, like the Grand Wagoneer’s body is riding on roller skates.
There’s a Ton of Tech
Jeep
Jeep isn’t just charging six-figures for a bigger Wrangler. The Grand Wagoneer is loaded with pretty much everything you’d expect from a truck in this price range. Not only is the interior lovely, but it’s full of screens to control every little thing, including a screen for the front passenger, that way they don’t have to suffer the indignity of reaching over the center console to change the radio station. The Jeep rides on an adjustable air suspension, cameras cover over the exterior. There’s even a night vision system to help spot wildlife after dusk. That system was the biggest surprise, because it’s one that was a novelty in luxury cars just a few years ago, and now is actually useful. There were also interior cameras to monitor the rear seats, just in case you can’t see that far behind you with a quick peek.
It’s Really Comfortable
Jeep
If you buy the Grand Wagoneer to use around town, you’ll be disappointed. It’s too big, feels ungainly, and that huge gas guzzling V-8–the 471 hp 6.4 liter that’s in a bunch of Stellantis products–will see you stopping for gas after every grocery run. But that’s not where this truck excels. It’s best for a long haul.
On the highway, it all comes together. The 23-speaker (!!!) McIntosh Stereo drowns out any road or engine noise. The 6.4 only barks when you hit the gas, making it easy to merge or maintain pace with traffic. The interior has heated, cooled, and massage seats. And at speed when the gas mileage gets out of the single digits, the Grand Wagoneer is just a stellar place to spend a few hours.
The Grand Wagoneer, even in its cheapest configuration, costs nearly $90,000. The regular Wagoneer, which has the same engine but without the high luxury interior, is $58,995. That puts it right in line with its direct competitors from Detroit, and even with European luxury SUVs like the Range Rover, BMW X7, and Mercedes GLS, among others. But nobody will cross shop the Jeep and a Range Rover. They’re so different in character it just doesn’t make sense.
Jeep’s real competitors for the Grand Wagoneer are the Cadillac Escalade and Lincoln Navigator, and right now these are the two finest versions of these luxury SUVs that GM and Ford have built. The Grand Wagoneer is a first effort. A great first effort, but still a first effort. And while it lacks the gorgeous interior of the Navigator or the panache and elegance of the Cadillac, it has a name that hearkens back to a beloved truck from a brand that has been known for SUVs for decades.
They’ll sell as many as they can build.
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