Jeep commands a bigger SUV, but with little wiggle room

Tom Incantalupo | ROAD TEST

March 17, 2006

Among the Jeep Grand Cherokee's most likable features is how it handles: It's light on its feet, almost car-like. Another has always been its svelte shape.

Sadly, both those attributes are lost in the new, enlarged version of the Grand Cherokee called the Commander.

Yet, the stretch adds only 2 inches to the Grand Cherokee's length, just about enough to squeeze in a third row of seating, which was the idea.

Unfortunately, the enlargement also added 4 inches in height. The result is a top-heavy look and a top-heavy feel in driving. The Commander might not be the ugliest Jeep since the 1970s Grand Wagoneer, but it certainly tries.

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No room for comfort

The third row of seats enables the vehicle to accommodate seven people - the first Jeep to have that capability. The third row is very cramped for adults. And when it's in use, there's practically no luggage room left behind it.

My advice: If you regularly carry seven passengers, buy a minivan.

The Commander performs as advertised, ferrying its passengers in quiet cushy comfort. Its prices are competitive for this class, but, sadly, the fuel economy is no better than 20 mpg, even by notoriously generous EPA estimates.

Some reviewers also have complained about the Commander's second-row legroom, but it increased slightly from the Grand Cherokee's. And dual skylights are available over the second row to help forestall claustrophobia for denizens of the rear.

Even with the stretch, the Commander isn't competitive sizewise with full-size SUVs like the Chevrolet Tahoe, Ford Expedition and Toyota Sequoia.

On sale since the fall, the Commander starts at about $28,000, but that's without four-wheel drive. My heavily optioned four-wheel-drive tester stickered at almost $44,000.

Heavy options

The base price does, however, include anti-lock brakes; electronic stability control with a program to resist sway and rollovers; side curtain air bags; and a rear-obstacle detection and warning system to help prevent inadvertently backing over children or objects.

Three engines are available in the Commander: a 210-hp., 3.7-liter V-6; a 235-hp., 4.7-liter V-8; and the one I sampled, a 330-hp., 5.7-liter V-8. The differences in fuel economy among the three are small, so one of the V-8s would seem the best choice to power this 5,000- pound-plus vehicle. Note, however, that the 5.7-liter engine wants midgrade unleaded gasoline, but the other two can get by on the cheaper regular unleaded.

The 5.7-liter engine has "cylinder deactivation," a fuel-saving technology that cuts off fuel to half of the cylinders when all eight aren't needed.

All models come with a five-speed automatic transmission. There's a choice of three progressively more capable full-time four-wheel-drive systems.

Commander's inside look

Cargo room ranges from just 7.5 cubic feet when all three rows of seats are in place to almost 69 cubic feet with only the front-row seats in place. Long tethers make it easy to lower the third-row seats without crawling inside through the open tailgate, but raising them requires a bit more muscle. No power option is available.

The second-row seats fold and tumble in a 40-20-40 split. The third seat is split 50-50. The seats are arranged theater-style, with the second and third rows progressively higher than the first to give rear-seaters better visibility. The downside is that, even when the third seat is unoccupied, its back and head restraints impede the driver's rearward vision.

The bright, saddle-brown leather upholstery in the tester might seem, to some eyes, better suited to a small Italian sports car than a vehicle the size of a building. But, otherwise, the Limited tester's decor would likely be judged by most as conservative and tasteful - even a bit utilitarian, with exposed Allen bolt heads on the dashboard.