Considering a 2015 Grand

[schmugboy]

Sorry if this has been asked before. I'm considering trading in my capable, but rarely used off-road anymore JKUR for a grand Cherokee. Looking at the eco diesel or V8. Trying to decide which package to consider. Overland with off-road II package or a limited with just the protection group and 18" wheels "trail rated". This will be my daily driver with hopefully monthly excursions down fire roads and other out of the way camping spots. No rock crawling or really technical stuff like with my JK. I guess the real dilemma is to get all the bells and whistles with air suspension and the upgraded off road system or something that I can modify/lift like I did to my JK. Also considering a Ram1500, but this may be the wrong section for that diversion.

Thanks for any opinions.

 

[jerome5tousand]

All I can say is that I love my Grand Cherokee Overland. Its the first car Ive had with all the bells and whistles. The air suspension rides so smooth and its a super comfy car for long trips. I only intend to drive on mild off road trails but I have seen some videos that prove it is capable of much more. Check out Chief Products from OZ, they have some gnarly videos with a mostly stock Overland

 

[kojackJKU]

If you can, get the overland! I drove one last year and it was AWESOME.

 

[Timgco]

I would drive both. The Eco vs Hemi is night and day imho. I prefer the Hemi as the daily driver. I have also driven the coil and air bag suspension. Currently have a '14 Limited with 3.6L and it does pretty well. 22mpg on the daily grind stop/ go traffic. Can do a little better in the open hwy. The Hemi with 8speed Trans is very nice! It's hauls! The Eco motor does have a good pull from a stop, but does not feel as fast as the 3.6 to me.

The other consideration for those that plan to take this rig into the back country. How reliable with those airbags be? If one blows out or you have an electronic fault in the air suspension, can you still drive out? With a coil suspension and OME or Icon complete suspension, I feel you have a more reliable system. I know two others that have air suspension on their WK2's, and have had no issues to date.

Either way, I think you'll have a very refined daily driver over the JK. As long as you don't plan to really push trails like you can in a built JK, I think it's a great choice.

 

[schmugboy]

Thanks for the valued opinions. Dealing with the dealership has not been fun, since they want to sell whatever is on the lot which are mostly limiteds with the ORI package. So I'm trying to decide if I should order what I think I want. Which is the overland and ORII. I know one comes with the quadra-drive vs. the quadra-trac. But I should only be concerned if it comes with a low range and limited slip. I guess more research is needed on my part. Which I had done for the truck not the Jeep. As for V8 vs. Diesel, I fully agree the V8 is tops, at least that was the case with the truck (I drove both), but I'm trying to straddle the fence of MPG and Power, just in case the wife decides a full size trailer is in our future.

Thanks again, and hopefully before the end of the year I can post a build thread, too.

 

[Jason911]

I've got a '14 Limited that I ordered out specifically - Off-Road I, trailer tow, fold flat front seat, body color mirrors, navigation and the EcoDiesel. More to the point, I did not want the quadra-lift/air suspension(but I lost out on the ELSD), and I did not want a sunroof(no Lux II package), but wanted the diesel. Getting either the off-road I or II package nets you the 18" wheels, and better aftermarket tire choices. Off-Road I nets you low range and a center locking transfer case, and a wonderfully smart terrain management system - its truly impressive where I can go without a rear locker. Fuel economy wise, it took about 20,000 miles for the engine to break in. 28mpg in town for me was normal as was 32mpg on the highway. Drove back from the shores of Lake Superior today, and in a head for most of it - still pulled 28.9mpg @ 70mph (and after I just upped the tires to 32"- coming from a 30.5").

Power wise I pull a 7x19 all aluminum fully enclosed trailer with a total weight of 4400lbs. Zero problems with acceleration or braking - the diesel puts out 420lb.ft just off idle, great for on ramps - and i can still get 16mpg if I keep it @69mph.

The bladder busting range is one of the truly high-points. With a tank topped off, 730 miles is the max range I ever saw, but I've never gone beyond 701 miles before filling. That like driving from Milwaukee, WI to St. Louis, MO AND back on one tank.

 

[lysol]

My wife has a '13 Overland V8. It has been great to us so far. It's coming up on 50k miles and so far, only the water pump has had to be replaced (covered under powertrain warranty).

 

[epiccosmo]

Was severely let down by my 2014 EcoDiesel Summit. Items quit working 10 miles down the road. Looking back, the only thing I feel like might have made me like the vehicle more would have been getting the V8. EcoDiesel was not worth the increased price. Otherwise, I miss my JKUR more than I miss it.

My father also had a 2012 Overland and got rid of it due to weird issues starting with it.

I will never buy another Jeep product unless its a JKUR.