Jeep Renegade 2016 Long Term Test - 2

Jeep Renegade Longitude
Long-Term Test (Update)

When our Road Test Editor asked me to take the Jeep Renegade for few days to give readers an update on our latest long-term test vehicle, I jumped at the chance as I was heading to an off-road facility to test a four-wheel drive truck in a couple of days’ time – put the Jeep through its paces and get some nice off-road shots to go with the story. Perfect.

"Erm, that Jeep is a two-wheel drive mate," said Matt.

A two-wheel drive Jeep? Unheard of! Oh well, there goes that idea for the update.

So the Jeep Renegade was put into service as the daily commuter for my 100km round trip from the 'burbs to the office and back. And for that, I found it quite a capable and comfortable conveyance.

But where does this vehicle fit into the marketplace?

Well, Jeep has only recently dropped the price on the Renegade no doubt so it would slot a little more neatly into its market niche. Our test vehicle is a Renegade Longitude. Put into perspective, it is the specification level above the entry-level Sport (from $26k) and below the Limited ($35k) and top-shelf Trailhawk ($39k) which is the only four-wheel drive Renegade in the range.

Our Longitude is priced at $32k according to the official Jeep website, which is certainly up there in terms of price for a small two-wheel drive SUV. Power is from a diminutive 1.4-litre turbo-petrol engine which seems to belie the old-school Jeep ethos of power and torque as much as the lack of four driven wheels mocks the almost-generic term of 'Jeep'.

But let's not dwell in the past. The Renegade Longitude is a cute, almost quirky vehicle which does have a fair amount of kit in its spec level. There's all the obvious electric stuff like the power windows, mirrors and doors, but you also get a premium six-speaker sound system, 5.0-inch touch-screen with voice control and Bluetooth, lane-departure warning, reversing camera, rain-sensing wipers, auto headlights, and for an extra couple of grand you can get the groovy removable sunroof (which in the middle of winter in Melbourne was a bit out of place).

There's also a 3.5-inch instrument cluster display that gives all your trip and economy info which is relayed from the controls on the steering wheel. Also on the wheel are the cruise control and audio functions.

There are few things missing that I would have liked in a $32k vehicle like heated, electric front seats and GPS navigation which are available in some of the competition but overall, it's not a bad package.

The interior could best be described as utilitarian, or even Wrangler-esque. It’s geometric and has a kind of bland-but-interesting feel about it. The gauges are easy to read, the HVAC controls are simple and the touch-screen, although small, adds a bit of tech to the overall feel.

Why they’ve included a Jesus bar and overhead grab handle for the passenger in a two-wheel drive vehicle is beyond me. Maybe it’s just for the ‘vibe’ of it…

On the road, the Renegade immediately feels solid. It has a kerb weight of 1295kg which is only about 100kg more than a Mazda CX-3 but it feels heavier and more solid on the road. The doors close with a reassuring 'clunk' and the bodywork feels tight.

Power from the 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine is better than expected. The Fiat-sourced mill is mated to a six-speed dual-clutch transmission that performs well for most urban driving conditions though it does tend to hang onto gears if you give it a boot-full. That boot-full may also encourage the Renegade to break traction at the front and give the driver a bit of torque steer to deal with, which is surprising given its modest capacity and outputs.

In general driving it’s a pretty sure-footed vehicle that hangs on well in corners, doesn’t wallow and points nicely. The 215/65-series tyres that the Longitude comes with are well up to the task, although the spare is a space saver that’s only good for getting you the nearest tyre outlet.

Getting in and out of the Renegade is easy thanks to the upright seating position and once again it feels bigger than it is.

There’s plenty of room in the back for the shopping or the kids’ sporting equipment and the 60:40 split-fold rear seat offers more room for bigger items. The load height is low making it easy to load and unload and while there is no auto function on the tailgate, it is held up and assisted by a pair of gas struts.

And it was while I was field testing load-carrying capacity at the local supermarket that I found that the cute Renegade does have some fans. A middle-aged bloke alighting from his Mazda CX-5 nearby engaged me in conversation asking how I liked my Renegade as he was thinking of buying one for his wife.

I gave him full and frank rundown of what I thought of it, and told him that it had been on a visit back to the dealership for a bit of warranty work, but I reckon he had his mind made up regardless of what I said.

Which brings me to the reason for the visit to the Jeep doctor. We were initially told that all that was probably required was a ‘flash’ of the transmission software, which is something akin to the guys in IT telling you turn your computer off and then back on again when you know you have a problem with it.

But just like the IT guys, the Jeep people did admit that there was a problem with our Renegade. During its return to home-base the Renegade had its transmission control module replaced and the idle-stop mechanism seen to.

Obviously, all this was fixed under warranty and the Jeep is now running just fine. But just what it would have cost if it was out of warranty wasn’t divulged.

We’ll bring you another update in the coming weeks.

2016 Jeep Renegade Longitude pricing and specifications:
Price: $32,000 (plus on-road costs)
Engine: 1.4-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Output: 103kW/230Nm
Transmission: Six-speed dual-clutch
Fuel: 5.9L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 137g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety Rating: Five-star EuroNCAP

Related reading:
Jeep Renegade Long Term Test: Introduction

Also consider:
>> Honda HR-V VTi-L (from $33,340 plus ORCs)
>> Mazda CX-3 sTouring (from $33,390 plus ORCs)
>> Nissan JUKE Ti-S (from $33,490 plus ORCs) http://www.motoring.com.au