The 45-grand Grand Cherokee

Chrysler Australia has no doubts whatsoever. The latest Grand Cherokee from American offroad brand Jeep will take sales away from Ford's Territory and Toyota's Kluger.

Traditionally the Grand Cherokee is a luxury SUV, in VFACTS terminology, but Chrysler Australia is also willing to pitch the new, much improved offroad flagship at volume-selling medium SUVs.

It's all about the new Grand Cherokee presenting a strong "value story", explained Craig Bradshaw, Chrysler's General Manager Marketing and Product Strategy. The new model, which shares some underpinnings with the Mercedes-Benz M-Class, will continue to go up against BMW's X5 and the M-Class -- and others -- but with the entry-level Grand Cherokee Laredo now priced from $45,000 the Jeep is also hunting scalps downmarket.

"This is going to be the best value Grand Cherokee we've ever had," explained Bradshaw, who expects the new model to "open up the market" against Territory and Kluger explicitly -- although not just those two alone.

The Grand Cherokee has not gone low-rent to match the medium SUVs. If anything, the new model is significantly improved in numerous ways, not least of all the new 3.6-litre 'Pentastar' V6 engine -- a powerplant that produces 90 per cent of its peak torque from 1600 right through to 6000rpm. Output figures are 210kW of power and 347Nm of torque, measured against combined-cycle fuel consumption of 11.4L/100km.

Then there's also the slinky styling and the admirable interior design -- the first occasion a Jeep has been developed by Chrysler's new in-house design studio, according to Bradshaw.

"It's very intuitive once you get into it..." said Bradshaw about the new interior layout, "what you see is what you get."

While the interior is certainly a step in the right direction for the Jeep brand and the Grand Cherokee in particular, it's not the end of the story for the luxury model.

"The Grand Cherokee is the first product of the new Chrysler organisation," said Bradshaw. "It sets the tone for new products you're going to see in the future."

Riding on four-wheel independent suspension -- a first for the Grand Cherokee -- the new model remains highly capable offroad, but has raised the bar for touring as well. Chrysler is offering Australian-delivered Grand Cherokees with the option ($3250) of Quadra-Lift air suspension, which the company's sales manager, Veronica Johns anticipates will be taken up by the vast majority of Grand Cherokee owners buying during the first year.

Bradshaw declared that the new Jeep "brings on-road dynamics to a whole new level" and will provide a "premium ownership experience".

Contributing to that experience is the new model's double-bulkhead design and double-isolated suspension to reduce NVH. For offroad work, the Grand Cherokee provides Jeep's 'Selec-Terrain' on-demand system to adjust the vehicle's ride height and drive system to suit five different terrains.

The range has launched in Australia with a choice of three levels of trim and two engines. For the moment, there's no diesel option, although a V6 oiler is on the way and is expected within two to three months. The optional 5.7-litre V8 (standard for the Grand Cherokee Overland) develops 259kW of power and 520Nm of torque, versus fuel consumption of 14.1L/100km.

Both engines drive through a standard five-speed automatic and Jeep's Quadratrac II four-wheel drive system. The constant four-wheel drive system features a centre differential and electronically-controlled clutch pack with open diffs front and rear. Quadra-Drive II -- an electronically-regulated limited-slip rear differential -- can be ordered either as standard for the Grand Cherokee Overland or as an option for the Grand Cherokee Limited. It's part of an 'Offroad Adventure Group' option pack also comprising 18-inch alloy wheels and a underbody protection for $1950.

Steering is a power-assisted rack-and-pinion setup, with the Grand Cherokee capable prescribing an 11.6m turning circle. Brakes are ventilated discs at the front, solid discs behind. Ground clearance (with steel springs) is 218mm or it can range from 205m to 270mm with the air suspension that's standard for the Overland, optional for the other variants. Chrysler claims that the standard range of ride heights available for the air suspension (with the twist of a knob in the Select-Terrain system) provides better than two inches of lift (66mm raised), but the vehicle can also sit lower in the Sports mode (13mm) or lower still when parked.

Approach, departure and breakover angles vary according to whether the vehicle is riding on air suspension or steel springs. Approach angles are 25 to 34 degrees for the air-suspended models, 26 degrees with steel springs. Departure angles are 23 to 37 degrees for air, 24 degrees for steel and the breakover angles are 18 to 23 degrees for air, 19 degrees for steel.

The base-grade model, the Grand Cherokee Laredo, is only available with the Pentastar V6 at a price of $45,000. As standard, the base model comes with 18-inch alloy wheels, auto-on/off bi-xenon headlights, electrically-heated/adjustable/folding mirrors, dual-zone climate control, cruise control, heated front seats, eight-way electrically adjustable front seats with four-way lumbar adjustment, reach/rake adjustment for steering column, leather-bound steering wheel, cloth seat trim, trip computer, voice recognition, Bluetooth connectivity, reversing camera, keyless start/entry, tyre pressure monitoring system and 30-gig HDD/CD/DVD audio system with six speakers.

"This vehicle [the Grand Cherokee Laredo] is certainly going to target the heart of the market," Bradshaw observed.

Holding the fort in the midrange is the Grand Cherokee Limited, priced at $55,000 for the V6 variant or $60,000 powered by the 5.7-litre HEMI V8. Standard features in this level of trim include: 20-inch alloy wheels, heavily tinted rear/quarter windows, two-position memory for seats/mirrors/steering wheel, Capri leather seat trim, heated second-row seats and nine-speakers for audio system.

Topping the range is the Grand Cherokee Overland, priced at $69,500 and powered by the standard 5.7-litre V8. Over the equipment fitted to the Limited variants, the Grand Cherokee Overland features as standard Command View panoramic sunroof, powered tailgate, Nappa leather seat trim, ventilated front seats, wood/leather steering wheel and satellite navigation.

Safety features offered across the range comprise: rain-sensing wipers, front airbags, side-impact front airbags, side curtain airbags with integrated roll-detection, knee airbag for driver, electronic stability control, Brake Assist, traction control, Electronic Roll Mitigation, Trailer Sway Control, Rain Brake Support, Ready Alert Braking, Electronic Brake Distribution and tyre pressure monitoring. The Grand Cherokee Limited adds front/rear ultrasonic parking sensors with acoustic guidance and the Grand Cherokee Overland gains: Adaptive Cruise Control (not available at launch), Blind Spot Monitoring/Rear Cross-Path Detection (not available at launch), Forward Collision Warning (not available at launch) and alarm system.

Built in Chrysler's Jefferson North Assembly plant in Detroit, the new Grand Cherokee goes on sale in Australia from February 1.

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