The radio is mounted up high in the center of the instrument panel, and climate controls are similar to those from the Chrysler Concorde and Dodge Intrepid. Auxiliary switches and controls are grouped logically and are easy to reach. The Limited has light-faced gauges that look sporty and are easy to read. Inside, ergonomics and aesthetics are quite good. The lack of a third seat could be a negative when most of the competition has one. No third seat is available, but Automotive News reports one will be offered on a future model. The second seat has new child-seat tether anchorages. There is more hip room in the back seat and back doors are wider, too. The spare tire was mounted under the rear floor and that freed up interior space. When Jeep redesigned the Grand Cherokee for 1999, it kept the same 105.9-inch wheelbase but made the vehicle taller, longer and wider. Quadra-Drive will pull the vehicle when only one wheel has grip.
2001 JEEP MODELS DRIVER
The test vehicle was equipped with Jeep’s Quadra-Drive four-wheel-drive system that uses a speed-sensitive, torque-transfer system that allows drive to be distributed from front to rear or from side to side, as conditions require, with no driver involvement. This is a first for a DaimlerChrysler vehicle, and it results in improved air conditioning and a quieter idle. I have heard about this from other Jeep owners, too.Īnother new item for 2001 is a hydraulic cooling system that replaces electric and mechanical fans. Because it was quiet on the highway, I could easily hear the rear axle whine, and that was bothersome after a while. I passed slow-moving 18-wheelers in the blink of an eye, courstesy of the 235 horsepower.įor 2001, Jeep has added a five-speed automatic transmission whose extra gear allows more relaxed highway cruising. One weekend I drove the test car to a friend’s country cabin, and the brawny V8 absolutely shined on two-lane highways.
This engine is as smooth as frozen yogurt, yet when called upon, it can flex its muscles impressively. The heart of the Limited is the SOHC, 4.7-liter V8 with the soul of a sports car and the obseqiousness of a maitre d’. Back in 1999, when this model was first introduced to journalists, I drove one over a very rugged off-road course and it was most impressive. It’s too nice, and too expensive, to knock around even though it is capable of performing quite well in the rough. Realistically, not many owners soil their Grand Cherokee in off-road excursions, and I don’t blame them. In a time when buyers seem to snap up all the luxury SUVs automakers can build, the Limited has glove-soft leather seats, wood trim and an automatic dual-zone climate control on top of an off-road pedigree that gives it serious off-road capability. Jeep’s flagship, the Grand Cherokee Limited, drives like a tall-riding luxury sedan, is loaded with creature comforts and has one whale of a V8 engine.
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