2016 Jeep Cherokee 4X4 - Deep Snow & Off-Road Review 

I love my Jeep Cherokee. I mean it's my second car so what the hell do I know, but I've had it for almost a year with zero problems, it handles snow very well, it's powerful when I need it to be, and those are in shitty Canadian winter conditions. During Spring/Summer it was a dream, it's quite spacious for my needs, great sound system, remote start is always great on those snowy winter mornings. I'm not using the freaking thing as a moving truck, or off-roading regularly, but I think it's a fantastic vehicle for normal daily use.

I have the same Cherokee and I'm happy to report that I'm one of the few that have no problems with mine. And I really love how it handles in the snow.

I bought a 2016 Cherokee North 4x4 with the 2.4l new exactly one year ago, put 28,000km on it and so far its held up in the northern Canadian winter with no problems. Installed BF Goodrich A/T k02’s in the factory size, an aftermarket trailer hitch and that’s about it. It handles everything with ease, can tow ski doos and jet skis and can accommodate some larger size passengers on long road trips with no complaints. Definitely can’t compare it to a wrangler or a pickup or a full size suv but for its size it can really hold its own if you take care of it. The 4 cylinder could use a little more power but you get used to it and the build quality is really an improvement over the last generation of Jeeps.

I get a new car every 2 years. This is by far my favorite. I’ve had Grand Cherokees, Wranglers 2 and 4 doors, Dodges, Trucks, Cars… but this car rocks. I have the 2016 with the 4 cylinder and I averaged 30mpg yesterday going to Watertown NY 1 hour away. Amazing ride, quiet and snow traction is awesome and I live in Syracuse NY one of the snowiest cities in the US. My neighbor has the 6 Cyl 2015 and he loves it as well. Great product by Jeep.

Love my ‘18 Cherokee. I get 22 - 24 mpg out of the v6. Wonderful pairing of the 9 speed and the 6. Love the active drive system on this. Handles snow like it’s not even there.

I've owned this car for 5 months and it's awesome. Quiet, smooth ride, comfy even for a big guy, easy to use features and Uconnect phone is the best out there. I just took a 2 hour trip and averaged 31mpg with the 4 cylinder. To me this is a homer run for Chrysler/Jeep. I buy a car every 2 years so I've owned a lot of brands.

First part of is video is like watching NASCAR in the snow.

Just bought one, love it. Loving it more after watching this. Thanks! Good job.

Jason, you have been racking up the subscriber count at an astronomical rate. Congratulations man, you've made it!

Like the way it looks, sharp and mean

i like Chrysler nowadays, they make some good stuff

by you letting off the gas you are not letting it do its job of getting you over the hill. Keep the gas pedal steady and let it do its job.

My favorite vehicle that I've owned was a 2001 Jeep Cherokee Laredo. Got snowed in during a blizzard with a bunch of friends and my Jeep was the only vehicle that could make it out of the parking lot to go get more beer!

A real pleasure to watch this 3 camera setup in your two last videos. Thumbs up everyone :D

just brought one, I didn't think that I would love it as much as I can love car but I absolutely love it.

At first I thought I was watching a NASCAR race, turn left....turn left....turn left....turn left! All kidding aside I love watching your videos.

I own 2016 Jeep Cherokee, 3.2L limited...so far no issues...i love 4x4 drive...i live in Canada...never experience a slide with this vehicle even though a original all season tires are worn out. I am not a guy to go off road..but handling in the snow it's just soooo good...and...one thing...maybe this test should have been done by going in the opposite direction since down the hill every car will move. Just saying...

great to see a non trailhawk models with 4wd

my brother and his wife have this, with the trail hawk package. enough traction options I am sure there is one for "moon" and "mars" somewhere. ha ha. my brother sometimes gets annoyed because it keeps him from getting sideways when he wants unless he puts it in sport mode. I think it is a nice Jeep, a lot of computer capability and gadgets in their Jeep. would almost make NASA jealous. ha ha

I can't tell if he's in his 20s or 40s that's all I could focus on

If you really think about it people do not buy these expensive new jeeps to go trash them going mudding or off-roading so stop saying "These aren't real jeeps" they're for everyday weather conditions not hardcore off-roading

They had to replace the engine on mine a few months ago .i bought it brand new in 2016 .something is wrong with jeeps in general, a friend of mine bought a wrangler which also needed to have its engine replaced..

Damn son! With the proper tires, I bet that thing would've made it up that hill. I am pretty impressed with its AWD system.

Jason, you kept mentioning how the conditions were terrible for this test and that the results wouldn't exactly be comparable to other tests on the same 'circuit'. I can agree with you on the lack of 'compareableness' as this test saw more extreme weather conditions, but I would say that these sorts of conditions are *perfect* for testing any AWD or 4x4 system. Too many videos illustrate what vehicles CAN do--how much more informative is it when we start to see where vehicles begin to fail? This vid does a good job of showing how this Jeep reached its limits (which as you pointed out, was mostly the fault of its tires). Great stuff!

That's not "brake differentials". But is is brake traction control system, where the brake will apply on the wheel/wheels that slip, to wheels that have grip. With good snow/ice tires of today you would not have any problems. I know have the same Cherokee, with Bridgestone Blizzak tires up sized to 235/56-17 and have not been stuck since, and have tried. Last two winters have left us with 18-20" in our 400' up hill down hill curvy dirt driveway, where our Colorado Z71 and the Cherokee has not been stopped if we can keep momentum up. After passing a few times no problems after that.

Just bought the sport model. Haven’t loved a car this much and this is my 6th vehicle. Love love love it!

YES a set of Blizzaks or Goodyear Ultragrip Ice will pull that hill. did it myself in a sleet-ice storm this week. thanks for the in depth commentary.

Thanks for the review. I have a 2019 and I was very curious about the snow/off-road capabilities. You demonstrated exactly what I would like to know in advance with great specifics in the variants of approaches in different 4 wheel modes. I have a plus with the tow package and I really want to see how it handles something like two tons. Thanks again!

love these offroad reviews, keep em coming!

As your driving on snow packed roads at higher speeds like 45mph or more it feels like the rear of Jeep Cherokee swerving. So through winter driving depends on how bad roads are your safe long as your speeds are 35mph or less. My ole school Cadillac front wheel drive handled way better through snow because older cars were much heavier. Jeep Cherokees are light especially in the front so the best way to go is get 4x4 Jeep Cherokee 🤷🏽‍♂️

Love Jeep. I've owned 2 Wranglers and 3 other non-Wraglers (1 Cherokee, 2 Grands). While they were great off road, long-term reliability was horrible. At least one prob. a month. Transmissions(4 different problems), sensors, power windows, abnormal brake wear, ECU replacements, A/C, lighting/wiring- many problems across my ownership, so I stopped buying Jeep. Not to mention all "bell/whistle" items are kinda cheezy.

I know you're a busy man but how about doing a review/comparison test of the Michelin CrossClimate tyres. Here in the UK they are selling like hot cakes! But are they worth the hype? Can one tyre be good on dry, wet and snow?

Really impressed by that ascent, especially considering the conditions.

That's one mean looking machine! =O

Some say he's still going in circles

They need to throw that 2.0l diesel engine in this thing.

I have a 2019 Cherokee Trailhawk and I LOVE it!!! GREAT Truck!!!

I've always been more of a sports car kinda guy, but i gotta admit that looks fun!

yep my favorite subscription very educational and informative best of luck to you you deserve a channel on tv that pays well

got to love the neonerd reviewers.

Jason, is a breakdown of the vehicle mass available? I'm curious as to how the 4000lbs is distributed.

Any chance you can do a new video that gets into the engineering of FCA’s active drive 1 and active drive 2 systems used by this and current Cherokee? You are one of the few people that is capable of explaining this. Its a very unique system Thank you.

I actually like the looks of this jeep. And even though it is a fiat chassis and independent suspension it does well for its class.

I’m confused by this video. You keep saying AWD? Doesn’t the Cherokee have a transfer case which offers 4 low?

Would you say this vehicle has good long term reliability?

finally someone who drives something that isnt the trail hawk......btw the wrong tires will make any car suck in snow....especially the ones on this jeep.

My 06 suzuki grand vitara drives up hills in 1 foot of fresh snow, and that was before I got all terrain tires.

If I can lock it into a four wheel drive mode it IS four wheel drive. I have a Trailhawk. Has what I'm going to call a split transfer case. Front and rear diffs change ratio at the same time. You can lockmit all in. Apparent advantage is it allows competerized control of each wheel. Honestly, I bought it in large part to be able to haul a trailered sailboat out of the water with minimun fuss. 4vwheel low and locking rear. Have not yet had any need to do so. It has done surprisingly well pulling out with the "auto mode" 4 wheel". No wheel spin even at fairly steep slippery sandy ramps. Pleased with that. The transmission however SUCKS. They make it worse with each update. Slams a 3-2 downshift if you don't come tona full stop. Lurches into first at creeping speed. I'm ready to lemmon law mine. I'm afraid it will self annhialate itself when the warranty ends. Nothing can take being beaten to death.

A transverse front engine, but they give it a system that can send all the power to the back? Seems kinda odd to me.

I love how this newer Jeep gets only 2 mpg better than my 06

I Love my Jeep Cherokee TrailHawk V6 All Black!😎

You should have tested the trailhawk version with the dif lock!

I'd like to see a Forester/Outback in these conditions. Do you have a video with that AWD system on this hill?

Great video! Wish it was the Trailhawk in this video but you did that in another video.

Great review thanks !

I wonder when it will start breaking Down

I would be curious as to how this vehicle compares to the Forester XT. Solid video as always.

the owners manual is worthless when it comes to explaining the different terrain modes ... one simple question ... we do a lot of camping in the summer and we love to travel ... when we take our 2016 Latitude off road (just dirt, mud, & gravel) ... is it better to have it in Auto, Auto w/ traction off, Or Sand / Mud with traction on or off ?? Thanks!!! I'm just confused when it comes to the traction control button whether it's better to be ON or OFF ??

Have you done a video about how AWD systems can vary the split of power front to back vs traditional 4wd transfer cases that are pretty much on or off?

Cadillac 2010 SRX AWD owner here off to test drive a Jeep Cherokee. If it works in that should do great in Southern Michigan weather. Will let y'all know if I took the jump to Al Most a Car.. (AMC joke from the 80's lol) BUT I do have a question.... 4000lbs of towing capacity you say? Hmm...the specs on the Jeep Cherokee 2018 states 2000 lbs from MOPAR/AMC.....? Pray explain?

Really don't understand why you haven't tested the Wrangler yet, seems like the obvious 4x4 to test before going on to the Cherokees.

Hey man what camera do you use? That quality is amazing.

Worst day to test an AWD vehicle? Wouldn't it be the best day to test an AWD vehicle?

It looks great! Tires do make a big difference. Good test.

I want to see you review your STi on this course. That would be a good watch and with it's locking diffs should do okay, the only questions is ground clearance. Also where did the Jeep's awd system rank among the other? Thanks for the cool video keep it up!

Definitely impressive for an SUV with all season tires! Ive done very similar things in my moms Subaru outback with the exact same tires, though;)

You know, I dont get what the sport mode is for. Never used it aside from on the highway a couple times. RPMs shoot up. Thats about it.

why the 9 speed auto though seems needless, i can imagine it constantly changing gear when on normal roads.

Why are the lights blinking on the car? Is it because they're LEDs and that's just what LEDs do? Can only cameras pick that up?

Maybe I missed it but didn't hear any reference to the vehicle it replaced, the Liberty. Towing capacity off the show room floor is ONLY 2000lbs whereas with the OPTIONAL towing package, it does bump it up to 4500. Think the older Liberty, both the KJ and KK models had a 5000lbs off the showroom floor or, came standard with that ability. The one thing I wish Jeep had done was to offer a better drivetrain system or at least a limited slip on it's standard KK's. It's "traction control" is all but useless with it's 50x50 system. That's where the Cherokee's offerings are better. But would like to see a stock Liberty vs stock Cherokee off road test.

when you are on a bumpy road and the steering wheel wants to wiggle left and right because of the bumps , what is better ? : Hold the steering wheel stiff so it cant do it or hold it loose and let it wiggle ? You could do a video about that . or have you already done one ?

Great video, Please could you do a video about the differences between electronic and mechanical differentials?

Can you please do a video on gear linkage between the gearbox and the gear stick, I greatly appreciate it and your videos are awesome 👍🏼

why are those weird white hazard lights having a seizure when you go down the hill?

well make a nice mall crawler for soccer moms and dads.

that is a sharp looking vehicle

The exact same model you tested how much different is there from the 2015 . ?

I have the 3.2L and from Cincinnati to St.Louis I got 36 MPG!!!! so I am not sure where the numbers are coming from and this was cruising at 70 Mph!

Good video man. Anyone on here know an easy way to find out info on Active Drive 1 ? I am particularly interested in how the rear diff works and how traction control/accelerometer functions work. It's easy to find content for all of the other Active Drive systems. But not anything about the proprietary 11 herbs and spices of the rear drive system. Especially a video?

How do the diffs distrubute the power by the front and rear axels and change the percentage? Thanks.

Why were the headlights flickering? Was it happening on the jeep itself or was it due to the camera that was used?

Is the Trailhawk better?

Where is the deep snow? I see a little bit of snow and some mud.

Can you change the stereo of the Jeep and put a new one??

I would like to understand how the transfer case can change torque bias what mechanically happens to change it?

Can you shift into four wheel drive , sand and mud as your driving

I have a cherokke latitude 2016 and I have to say it really shines in the snow. On-road during normal conditions is kind of meh though.

Is this Jeep a four-wheel drive or all-wheel drive

hi there, i got an off-topic question: how many pull-ups can you do at one time? :)

Would you recommend the Jeep Compass for snow or a heavier and bulkier suv like a ford raptor maybe?

What is best for down pouring rain/very wet roads?

The trailhawk model is so dissapointing. I hardly has anymore ground clearance over the stock model. It needed another 4''. You can't even get a lift for these yet either while they already have lifts for the Renegade.

Nice !!! Cherokee!!!

Hi peoples. I hope someone sees this. I have a 2018 Cherokee Longitude with the 8 speed & 3.2ltr v6. I love it, but I don't know if I have an issue with the transmission or not. When I put it in manual mode and do some spirited driving, it's very slow to change gear when I select the next gear, taking upto 3 seconds to change after I've selected it, and at times hitting the limiter. Is this normal? Living here in Australia, our last 2 cars have been Ford Falcons with autos, and they'd change gear almost the instant a gear is selected. I'm happy with the fuel economy, as it's pretty much on par with the big 4ltr 6 cylinder falcons, if not a little better. Also, The cruise control isn't playing nice. Say I've set it too 100kmh, but have to slow down, it disengages no problem, but when I hit resume, it'll go upwards of 3 to 5kmh faster than the programmed speed & take around 2km to settle back down, this 3 to 5kmh happens at any speed It's programmed at, be it 60kmh or 100kmh. Is this normal? Only other issue I have is that the drivers side centre console kick panel keeps coming loose at the firewall end & flaps around a bit. It's at the dealer today getting its 28km service, hopefully they've fixed that issue properly this time, They've said they've fixed it every other time it's gone in for service, but comes loose again about 2 weeks later. It's not a hinderence, just a little annoying. We bought it as an ex demo with 6k kms on the clock. Its build is Oct 2017, first registered here in Australia Sept 2018. Other than these few issues, I'm more than happy with it.

hi i got a question about changing oil, how often do i need to change my oil. time or milage can you have a video explaining change oil? thanks

do you have official press credentials...if so how did you obtain them or give me a link to investigate how I may aquire some of my own please

Come on, let's see the STi and all of its fancy differentials do that hill.

which is better the Cherokee or renegade?

I'm going to give this a look at, but as of now. I'll stick to my 2002 z71 Suburban with my low range box and 3 diff lockers. But this would be something good for general areas on the mountain where I live, especially in winter.

will you try to review the Ford Focus RS? Please?