| No Jeep has ever felt this high-quality inside (especially when it gets rolling).
The interior is totally redesigned, headlined by four more inches of legroom in the rear seat, with 19 percent more cargo space.
A fold-flat front seat is standard, adding to the 68.7 cubic feet of cargo space with the rear seats flat.
The rear seats recline 18 degrees, and with the added legroom, life is easy back there.
The Grand Cherokee would make a great family vacation vehicle.
There's also an abundance of storage pockets and bins, including two bins under the cargo floor.
A new rear suspension allows the spare tire to be stored inside the vehicle under the cargo floor, as opposed to underneath it.
The front door openings are 2 inches wider and 2 inches higher, and the rear doors open 78 degrees compared to 67 degrees on the previous model.
That increased convenience is just one of the many details that make the 2011 Grand Cherokee such an improvement.
Jeep engineers also spent a lot of time on NVH, and their work is reflected in the very quiet cabin, even with the throttle floored, even over rough pavement.
There are three layers of noise insulation, adding to the weight but worth it.
We found the leather seats in our Laredo X test model to be just right, even almost sigh-inducing, with excellent bolstering too, not to mention totally adjustable with lumbar support.
We haven't seen a model with cloth seats, but Jeep has always done good rugged cloth.
The stitching on the Overland's leather dashboard looks classy.
The instrument panel is redesigned, nicely, with clean white numbers and needles and nice backlight.
The tachometer adds a blue area, from 800 to 2500 rpm, a reminder of the best fuel-mileage range.
The three-spoke steering wheel tilts and telescopes, and includes cruise control with audio buttons at the back of the spokes.
The Overland steering wheel is wood from about 10 to 2, and it makes the steering wheel too thick, because of the heating elements.
The LED lighting in the cabin works well, to erase the yellow harshness of the old days.
There's an optional giant dual-pane Panoramic sunroof that opens wide to the sky.
So you can see the stars, maybe better than you can see out the rear window through the rearview mirror.
The sloped backlight and rear headrests pinch the space for visibility.
The location and operation of things on the center stack, such as the electronic switchbank and HVAC controls, is all good.
Except for the position of the shift lever, which does not lend itself to manual shifting in the Sport mode, because your elbow hits the center armrest.
You have to cock your elbow high and bend your wrist too much.
If you do much shifting like that, you'll be screaming for paddles on the steering wheel. |