Test drive Jeep Grand Cherokee 1999 - 2003 SUV

Grandious general -purpose SUV

If someone does not know what the phrase Jeep Grand Cherokee means, then this is probably a person not only not interested in cars, but also far from civilization as a whole. The legendary SUV, a hero of a huge amount of jokes, is simply beautiful, according to most of our compatriots, and a prestigious car that has at one time a symbol of prosperity and well -being - this is the Jeep Grand Cherokee. Now there are not many of them, but literally a couple of years ago the predominance of cars of this brand and model on the streets of our cities and on the parking lots of nightclubs could have the idea that it was time for Chrysler to transfer the production of this model somewhere in the suburbs so that dealers could Save on delivery. Jokes jokes, but few model has such a brand in Russia and other republics of the former USSR.

The model was produced for almost eight years, and I must say, timely modernization of both mechanical filling and appearance helped the previous grandi not to lose its former prestige. But sooner or later, even the best car begins to age, so spy photos of the successor began to appear in the press a couple of years ago. The Russians were looking forward to a new model, but when it appeared on sale, many did not like what they saw. I don’t know how it is in America, but we have the level of sales of a new Grand is much lower than that of the previous model. The previous and current generation Grand Cherokee is like heaven and earth: if the first was very sharp in motion and formidable in appearance, in connection with which he was the unprecedented popularity among people of a certain kind of occupation with the corresponding manner of driving, then the second Grand seemed like a business class sedans Soft and comfortable. And despite the fact that external similarities emphasize the continuity of models, in nature they turned out to be very different. Now this is not the same gangster jeep for showdowns, rather just an expensive and stylish SUV. Not only design, but also the behavior of the car became calmer and softer. Indeed, despite the fact that the power of almost all engines was increased, this did not give a noticeable advantage over the old model either in dynamics or at maximum speed. Moreover, it was discontinued, it was not known for what reason, 241-horsepower top version 5.9. And the company itself unobtrusively hints at changing the nature of the car: the main bet on the European market is now being made on a turbodiesel version, which, incidentally, is gathering in Austria at the same factory with its new relative Mercedes ML.

Maybe for Americans or Europeans, Grand Cherokee became different, but in the heart of our people this car forever remained just like a gangster car. What is the change in the design - the stream neighbors are still politely inferior to the road with the slightest expressing of the desire to change the trajectory of movement. And there is nothing to say about the races: few decide to challenge such a car, especially with a chandelier on the roof. The gasoline eight under the hood involves active driving, but the presence of a myriad of sellers of striped sticks somehow does not have a little to the duels, so we drive in a calm mode. At first, the Grand somehow quickly got out of the yard in reverse, and despite the fact that I was for the first time in this car; No problems with visibility, even given the form of the body from this point of view, did not arise. With this car, you quickly find a common language and after a couple of minutes you begin to climb into the gap in the stream and accurately predict the moment of switching, in order to successfully, with a margin, complete the maneuver. The Grand’s move is very smooth, and on large pits it only sways softly, like a jelly, but every road trifle and joints are properly transmitted to the body, as if the tires have been pumped.

It is time to check the accelerated dynamics, I choose a quieter place, stop the car, and gas to the floor ... wow! - the representatives of the fair sex of our editorial office, who were present on this test, cried out in unison. Actually, to be honest, nothing special, - I mentally answer them - think, for some ten seconds from a place to a hundred. Stop! Something doesn’t fit here-seven or eight years ago, at that time, only ultra-road aristocrats from an off-road tribe, like Range Rover or the first five hundredthy gelendvagen, also those small-scale, released in the number of five hundred copies, had dynamics. And now this is no longer an indicator? I already doubted: the car is almost new, maybe what a limiter is, so it accelerates slower. But no, they checked, according to the indications of the speedometer and stopwatch, about the same numbers are obtained as indicated in the catalog, and when moving in the city stream, it is noticeable that the Grand drives quite quickly. Here are just an amateur of extreme supercars with their howling engines or the previous Grand with a 5.9-liter engine, this car is unlikely to inspire feats, no, as riders are expressed, picking up. What from the place, on the move, the car confidently gains speed without a characteristic moor or jerk. At idle, the engine is not heard at all when moving, and only on the dispersal from from below is a barely audible rumbling that is blocked even quiet music. Of course, if you manually switch the gears, each time forcing the engine to bring the tachometer arrow to the red zone, then the sound will become more loud, but it is unlikely to add speakers or sports sharpness to the car. Too much time is lost on switching in Kik-Dawn mode, besides, the movement turns out to be somehow torn, as if the car does not like it, and the pleasure of such a ride, you understand, is not enough. It is much more pleasant to ride Grand calmly, not trying to bend the gas pedal. In the city, and in the suburban cycle, he will simply obey the driver’s teams, providing good acceleration, but at the same time remain comfortable and soft, allowing the driver to relax at the wheel. After a few minutes of the trip, the leg itself releases the gas pedal, I no longer want to overtake anyone, cut, etc. In normal movement mode, everything returns to normal: delay disappears during switching, the course becomes soft, as if you are going to Cadillac. True, this has its negative side: on the highway, the car strives to go faster all the time, only a look at the speedometer quickly cools too much fervor. Probably, the whole thing is in very good sound insulation - the sensation of speed is hidden, and even at 120-130 km/h there is a feeling that you are barely reaching for. But with a set of speed, the off -road roots of the Grand Cherokee begin to affect - mirrors are slightly howl, and the overall noise level is noticeably higher than that in cars, and not least due to the distribution box and other singing nodes of the all -wheel drive structure.

Off -road vehicles, depending on the purpose or, say, class belonging, can have a lot of design differences, even if outwardly they differ only in insignificant details. For example, professional SUVs, those that are constantly operated in severe conditions, as a rule, have a strong spar frame and dependent pendants, which provide their design, providing a lower level of comfort than independent ones, but more reliable. And the so -called SUVs in their design almost completely repeat passenger all -wheel drive cars.

Of course, there are some intermediate models trying to grab more advantages from both classes, but usually, having studied the design of the SUV, we can more or less confidently say in which environment he will show himself better. But in the case of Grand Cherok, we came to a standstill. It is a little incomprehensible by what scheme this car was built: it seems that good asphalt habits are combined here with typically professionally-impassive structural features. Say, now a fashionable carrier that is now among the SUVs and other SUVs is combined with ... dependent suspensions, gesture beams of the front and back, more suitable professional mupporters. Of course, hard bridges are much more reliable in operation and more unpretentious, and in extreme cases, such a beam can be pulled along the rut or turn some kind of rotten stump in the forest, if there is no other opportunity to drive, but immediately there is a logical question: how many such off-road adventures will withstand Carrying body?

However, that I immediately rush to extremes - I have not had to climb on the road, but during a long -term operation with such pendants there will be much fewer problems. And we must pay tribute to the engineers, they did everything possible so that the driver did not feel any inconvenience associated with this constructive feature. Honestly, I learned about it myself only after the test was completed from the catalog. In the Grand Cherokee movement, it is practically no different from its classmates with an independent front suspension, except that some nuances were revealed on Borovaya.

If you ride, as taught in a driving school, then the car is simply exemplary, especially since the constant all -wheel drive provides additional convenience of management. But in active modes, the behavior of the car does not change for the better. For example, in a speedy turn, if at the very peak of the turn to lose the gas, the Grand is quite sharply left in the rear axle, and the higher the speed, the stronger the car tries to turn around. It’s not that it was very strained or caused some difficulties, it is simply desirable for the future driver to know about this control feature in advance, because the first reaction of the driver, if he sees that the speed in the bend is too high - instant discharge of gas and a blow to the brake pedal. However, all this is still a controversial question, during the test under the wheels there was wet asphalt, it is possible that on a dry coating the car behaves completely differently. In other modes, no crime was noticed, and if you take into account the factor of the presence of two hard bridges, then by handling the grand, you can safely put a solid four. At least, all SUVs with both dependent suspensions that I had to ride, compared to Grand Cherokee, were just terribly controlled.

The presence of rigid reptile stabilizers in front and behind makes the car very stable. And despite the high center of gravity, he practically does not even roll on the snake, except if only if he specifically swing it. The brakes, by the way, are discs on all wheels, which again is very unusual for a car with a dependent suspension, but it is very convenient to use. Thanks to this, in a close city stream there is no need to withstand much larger than in the case of passenger models, the distance to the in front of the driven car, even despite the presence of universal rubber. In general, unlike its larger counterparts, Grand was very convenient in the city: the visibility of the driver’s place is very good, including thanks to large mirrors. From the inside, the car does not seem so large as outside, and thanks to the high landing of the driver, no passenger car will hide behind the right front stand, as often happens in other SUVs. Salon - like a suit from a good tailor: you sit in the seat like a glove, as if in sports BMW. Some especially large fellow citizens can, of course, complain about relative tightness, especially on the front seats, but otherwise the ergonomics of the salon deserves a high rating. The front panel, as if surrounding the driver, is sheathed very high -quality and pleasant to the touch with skin. The clarity of the work of all steering wheel switches and controls is completely non -American, more reminiscent of the salons of expensive German cars. It’s not very convenient to sit in a high SUV, it’s good that at least custom -made steps partly solve this problem.

In general, if you firmly decide to buy yourself jeep, and certainly the Grand Cherokee model, you need to decide in advance which qualities are more important for you. If you need a tank, reliable and all -handed, it is better to ask the prices for Hammer, which, by the way, you can also order from the company Yukolaservice. The new Grand Cherokee, given the state of our roads, is more suitable for the role of a representative car, especially if you are used to the comfort of a business class car. In addition, the versions with a diesel engine, which have recently been loved to our compatriots in almost all characteristics, except for fuel consumption, are not very different from the gasoline we tested.

Pavel Kozlovsky

Source: Auto -Gazeta / N 44 (303) dated 12.12.00