The engine is proudly manufactured in Italy by VM Motori, and it replaces the 3.0 CRD made by Mercedes Benz. It's an incredible powerplant, with a lot of power and torque. The combination with the new 8 speed gearbox and the Quadradrive II transmission is great. I'm Italian and I've been driving modern turbodiesel engines for decades, since the high price and low mileage of gasoline pushed car manufacturers to turbodiesel technology very early. Now the European market is dominated by diesel cars
That diesel is just what the Grand Cherokee needed. Tom is right that buyers who drive it will probably want it. Jeep may be surprised by the demand. Can't wait to drive a Ram with this engine.
That's true, I'm from Australia but live in America, and they are the same price as the Hemi V8. But like everything else, the car costs more to buy in Australia than it does in America, so I think you're still getting a better deal here. Not sure about other countries.
In 2005 the Jeep Grand Cherokee Diesel didn't even sell, but I hope that it sells really well for 2014 and above. I don't like the tail lights with 4 reverse lights, because they should have replaced the 2 white lights not on the tail gate with amber turn signal bulbs. They did cost cutting over there, but my favorite tail lights for the Grand Cherokee were from 1999-2004. Diesels are only good for your wallet if you mainly do highway driving.
It's about time they bring the diesels back! My mother just bought the 2012 last year, it gets fair fuel economy, but it would be worth every penny for a turbo diesel. Plus, not only does the diesel get better fuel economy, it also doesn't loose power at high altitude, and can tow planets worth of stuff! This will rival some pick up trucks on towing capacity and definitely fuel economy!
I agree, this entire Eco - green marketing thing has gone well past its expiration date. It seems at times that it is harder to find things that are not labeled "Eco-something-or-other". Rather passe. Maybe the diesel hybrid will be Super-Blue-Green-Eco?
What is there to not like about it? It's got 4 cylinder fuel economy and the torque of a V8, with no power losses at high altitude bc of its turbodiesel.
If economics is the ONLY reason you look at buying a car, then buying an SUV is probably not for you. Maybe an old Corolla would be better. But if you want torque, capability, range, towing ability, and fuel economy, then a turbo diesel is a good choice.
I'm wondering if diesel engine have DPF( diesel particle filter) in US. Because that causing lots of problems in modern diesel engines in EU. Especialy when car is used mainly in city. Regeneration of that filter may fail and in that case is pretty expensive (up to 1k-2k USD).
Very nice review! I am glad to see the positive impact of FIAT in the Jeep. It looks really nice and that 8 speed with the diesel is very European. How would you compare it to other competitors?
As much as I would love to buy a diesel vehicle I just justify it from a dollars and sense standpoint. As of today, Regular gas is $3.399 and diesel is $4.199. I'd have to drive too many miles to offset that premium and the difference in vehicle cost. I'm afraid diesels just won't catch on in this country until that difference is greatly reduced.
I would like to see them catch on as well. Although I remember the hideous GM excuse for a diesel (and converted a lot of them to gas back in the day), the diesel I remember the most was our neighbor's Nissan Maxima. It had the 2.8 I-6 diesel in it and was a great car. A friend currently has a diesel Toureg and loves it - 28 mpg on his daily commute. Can Jeep get people to add 4 grand to a $45K vehicle? I think it is likely they will.
Used cars are better to buy after they've been out for a few years and the prices go down. Never buy a new car unless you can either afford it outright with cash or unless you're just wanting a really high car payment.
Majority of people today are broker than anything now (and I'm talking about those of us who work hard for a living) and we'll continue to go broker too. Cars are just too expensive nowadays and have been for quite some time now. Only if you're semi-well can you even buy these vehicles anymore with any leg room.
So many people buy diesel trucks and do mods to them for better MPGs, and not knowing their making the environment worst. For example DEF delete kits...