Jeep lands new Cherokee diesel

Jeep has released the new Cherokee Limited Diesel in Australia, marking the first time its new mid-size SUV has been available here with a diesel engine.

Now in dealers in limited numbers, the new Cherokee flagship is priced at $49,000 plus on-road costs — $5000 more than the Limited AWD petrol on which it's based, and $1500 more than the Trailhawk AWD petrol, which previously topped the range.

The first oil-burning Cherokee lowers fuel consumption significantly, its 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-diesel producing 125kW and 350Nm but using a first-in-class nine-speed automatic transmission and idle-stop technology to consume just 5.8L/100km — despite a tare weight of 1854kg.

The Cherokee Limited Diesel comes standard with 185mm of ground clearance and Jeep’s "next-stage off-road technology", Active Drive II 4WD with low range, including industry-first rear axle disconnect, which engages 4WD only when necessary to improve efficiency.

Braked towing capacity is a class-leading 2393kg (450kg with an unbraked trailer) and the diesel Cherokee – which comes with the same maximum five-star safety rating -- comes only in luxurious Limited specification.

Standard features extend to 18-inch polished aluminium wheels, xenon HID headlights with washers, Alpine nine-speaker premium sound, heated front seats, instrument cluster with 7.0-Inch TFT colour display, leather upholstery, premium interior accents
Remote start system, remote USB port and Uconnect 8.4-inch touch-screen with Navigation.

Safety equipment includes a Parkview reversing camera, Parksense front and rear park assist with stop, automatic headlight levelling, seven airbags, electronic stability control with rollover mitigation and on/off-road anti-lock brakes.

Further safety options comprise Forward Collision Warning-Plus, ParkSense Parallel/Perpendicular Park Assist, Adaptive Cruise Control-Plus, Lane Departure Warning-Plus, Blind Spot Monitoring and Rear Cross Path Detection.

Pricing for the new Cherokee range launched in June continues to open at $33,500 plus ORCs, for the entry-level 2WD 2.4 Sport auto, increasing to $39,000 plus ORCs for the cheapest of three 3.2 V6 AWD models.