2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited: Long-term car review

It's been a nine-month lovefest with our Jeep

The Jeep Grand Cherokee racked up 22,575 miles in nine months in our long-term fleet, 8,302 of those coming in the third quarter alone. And to date, the Jeep has averaged 18.6 mpg, sucking down 1,210.5 gallons of fuel and $4,487.33 from our wallets along the way.

Those are the hard points, the left-brain bits of info, if you will. Here's the rest of the story: That odometer stands in testament to our love of the Jeep. By comparison, we've driven the Grand Cherokee almost 1,800 miles more than we have our long-term Hyundai Sonata, and 3,700 more than our long-term BMW 550i xDrive, through three quarters. And given our hobbies (enthusiastic) and driving style (extra enthusiastic), we're more than pleased with the efficiency we've eked from the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 engine.

All of that enthusiasm means we routinely task the Jeep with towing--boat trailers and pop-up campers abound on staff--and in this regard, we were a bit hesitant about opting for the V6. The optional 5.7-liter Hemi V8 can handle up to 7,400 pounds, after all, and it turns out 70 more horses and 70 lb-ft more of torque to scratch our need-for-speed itch. But the 3.6-liter's 5,000-pound capacity is more than up to task, even if we could use a few more ponies underhood. More so, we've learned to appreciate the Pentastar's regular-grade-fuel requirement (the Hemi calls for midgrade) and the 20 percent better EPA combined fuel rating (19 mpg vs. 16 mpg).

We also tend to maximize the Jeep's payload capacity, loading it up with people and cargo for various activities near and far. For this we're doubly glad that we opted for the rear-seat DVD entertainment center, as well as the Luxury Group package that added--among other things--the power liftgate, providing easy access to the cargo hold.

As for reliability, we've yet to spend a single night without the Jeep in our stead. The only maintenance it required this quarter included a stone-chip repair to the windshield and the Jeep's third scheduled service call.

As one staffer said, echoing everyone's sentiments thus far, "I'll never turn down seat time in the long-term Grand Cherokee. It's a just-right vehicle for me: not too big, not too small, it's comfortable, and it has enough power to do 99 percent of what I'd want in a daily driver."

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