3-second Summary: A Refined, Comfortable Off-roader that works on the road.....in certain environments.

A bunch of y'all are going to be wondering, what an on-road, driving enthusiast like me would possibly be doing driving a large SUV that decidedly has off-roading precedence over sporty, on-road road manners. A good answer, is that given my new surroundings and increased focus on shuttling DH runs on my mountain bike, I appreciate the some off-road capabilities, although the X3 suffices in this regard just fine.

The real reason is that I promised an off-roading, Jeep-owning friend of mine that I'd give the Grand Cherokee a test drive. I'm open-minded, and it does seem to have the right ingredients.

At first, I gotta say, I like the styling. From the butch front-end to the flared wheel arches and crisp tailgate, this does look good. And the interior is surprisingly refined in the upper-level trim levels as well. There's some very questionable ergonomics in places and the seats need more side bolstering but all in all, this isn't a bad place to be. Indeed, if your normal drive consists of bumpy, non-maintained roads and fairly straight interstate miles, I can't really find fault. Heck, I've been in BMWs with worse seats.

Of course, I didn't get to take the Grand Cherokee off-roading, so I didn't get to test out the various Terrain Select modes, although the Sport mode did firm up the suspension on road a bit and reduces the DSC intervention threshold. But it's a Jeep with independent suspension, so I'm sure it'll hold its on over rocks, through water, and anything else Western NC would throw at it. The cargo space is more than adequate for a SUV this size and very well-furnished, and the backseats are comfortable with optional rear seat-heating and a 115V outlet. Not surprising for an American SUV with the usual conveniences.

Not surprisingly, there's no mistaking the Grand Cherokee for any sort of sedan-based SUV. The steering is well-weighted but fairly devoid of feel, the throttle response is lazy, and worst of all, the 6-speed automatic gearbox is slightly less responsive than the US Congress. Body motions are reasonably well controlled on winding roads but there's no hiding 2200kg and an off-road biased suspension. The 5,7 litre V8 is supposed to be well, a V8 but it never really feels that way even if it is very smooth and quiet. And let's not go into the fuel consumption or blocks of CO² it emits.

So no real surprises then. It's a big SUV that's comfortable, luxurious, and great off the road, but it isn't much cop in the bends.

But that's not the end of the story. Because priced at $42-46k there is some seriously good kit that can be optioned. High-beam assistant, Comfort Access, rain-sensing wipers, radar cruise control, blind spot warning...much of the new driver aids on German SUVs are either standard or can be equipped without much cost. And given that under normal suburban driving one isn't exactly screaming around mountain bends at 80km/h or focused on torque converter lockup points, this is more than fine on the road for the "average driver".

So actually, this good-looking, reasonably-priced off-roader actually does work for most people. And the news only gets better, as a 3 litre, V6 diesel with the ZF 8-speed automatic gearbox, which should improve on the fuel consumption and shifting, provided Chrysler doesn't botch up the programming (which it probably will). If you're looking for a luxurious off-roader that works around town for good value and doesn't make you look like a git, this may be worth a test drive once the diesel comes out.

For the few 10% of us who do like to go 'round bends with verve and gusto though, this isn't a solution. But you probably already knew that before you read all this. So carry on.

Test Info: The test drive was approximately 30km and took place on interstate, urban, and backroads in Buncombe County, NC. Outside conditions were sunny and 19°C and pavement conditions were good.