2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee CRD in Australia mid-year

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By Tim Beissmann | February 23rd, 2011

The Jeep Grand Cherokee CRD will be unveiled at next week’s Geneva Motor Show ahead of its Australian launch around the middle of the year.

The engine, designed and built by Fiat Powertrain and VM Motori, is a 3.0-litre turbo-diesel unit with 177kW of power and 550Nm of torque (available between 1800 and 2800rpm). The outgoing diesel engine produced 160kW and 510Nm.

Despite the power increases, combined cycle fuel consumption is 8.3 litres/100km and CO₂ emissions have dropped to 218g/km. Both represent efficiency improvements of 17 percent over the old model.

Jeep Australia’s Dean Bonthorne told CarAdvice the local branch was still getting together firm specifications of the vehicles, but admitted the Grand Cherokee CRD models would arrive either late in the second quarter or early in the third quarter. Its first appearance will not be at the 2011 Australian International Motor Show in Melbourne, as Jeep does not have a stand there this year.

Mr Bonthorne confirmed the 3.0-litre diesel engine would be offered across all three models lines: Laredo, Limited and Overland. He said the engine would carry a price premium over the V6 petrol engines, with official pricing to be confirmed closer to the launch.

Mr Bonthorne said Jeep was very much playing a game of “wait and see” over which engine type – petrol or diesel – would be the most popular in the new model line.

“The diesel was historically the best selling model, but the Pentastar V6 now offers a genuine alternative, Mr Bonthorne said.

“The diesel’s 3.5 tonne towing capacity and extra torque makes it the ideal towing vehicle, but the V6 will be the one for economy and price.”

The 3.0-litre turbo-diesel engine features a compressed graphite iron block with aluminium cylinder heads and a two-piece structural aluminium oil pan. Its compact and lightweight construction leads to a total weight of 230kg.

Jeep says the stiffened crankcase architecture has led to improvements in noise, vibration and harshness, while the cast-aluminium pistons have been redesigned to provide minimal friction. The compression ratio of the diesel engine is now 16.5:1, down from 18.1:1, leading to cleaner combustion and more power.

CarAdvice expects more information on the Australian-specification 2011 Jeep Grand Cherokee CRD over the coming days. We’ll bring you all the news as it comes to hand.

Read CarAdvice’s full drive review of the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

Jimmy James

This is not a criticism of Jeep, but just a general question for the people who produce Car Advice…

Why do diesel engines cost more than petrol engines?

What is the justification for this?

JEKYL & HYDE

diesel’s run higher compression.this means the block,conrods,pistons etc all have to be stronger than its petrol equivalents.big petrol motor $7-8k.light truck diesel motor $13k.its also why diesels generally last longer…
56th-ghia

Principally because diesels have direct injection so the fuel system runs at much higher pressures and they need an injector pump to overcome the pressure in the combustion chmaber.

Manifold injection petrol engines run at much lower pressures, there is no injector pump, the fuel pump is much more lightweight, and the injectors are lightweight.
Sumpguard

One thing that seems to be overlooked when motoring journos report on the extra cost of diesel and the subsequent amount of time it will take in fuel savings to pay it off is that you get a large portion (if not all) back at resale time.

I’d recommend anyone that hasn’t driven a modern diesel goes and does just that. They are amazing.

Another point is that many people that live in suburbia and head to work in a heavy flow of traffic tend to use a fairly heavy pedal to “slot in” with the flow around them and this is when the claimed city economy of petrol engines blows out significantly. The worst you’ll ever do in something like the cruze diesel (new series) is around 9 ltrs per 100 k’s on a very heavy right foot but the petrol will easily blow out to 30-40, even 50 % more.

The Europeans have known this for the best part of 1/2 a century. We drove a Jetta hire car in Melbourne in said heavy stop/start traffic a couple of years ago and around 8.5 ltrs per 100 k’s was the worst it showed. On the highway it was around 5.5. Diesel makes much more sense now than it did 25 years ago.

My last 4 cars have all been diesel (currently Sportage Platinum) and I honestly don’t think I could go back.

JEKYL & HYDE

sounds alot like the new nissan v6 ctd.much prefer this over any petrol model.seems like 125-140kw will be the benchmark for 2.5ltr ctd’s and 170kw for 3.0ltr ctd’s..

Nick01

I agree.
james

Benchmark for who? They’re still playing catch-up.Bmw 3 litre diesel produces 225 kw & 600 nm..& the new benz 3.0 bluetec diesel- 190 kw & 620 nm

Crossy

Those diesels may well be available but to get the 225kw BMW in a 4WD X5 you will pay at least $110K. The 190kw Mercedes one isn’t available in the ML series as far as I know and if it was it would probably be in the same price range or more.

Eureka

“but the V6 will be the one for economy and price”

That’s a surprising statement to make – I would expect the turbo diesel to be better on fuel compared to the petrol v6 (in real world driving). Or maybe he is only referring to the purchase price and not fuel economy?

Alex

It would be both, the price difference between petrol and diesel and the fact that diesel is now dearer than petrol (due to higher refining costs required for modern diesels)

Over 100,000kms the cost of fuel for Petrol is approx $13000 over the same distance the diesel is $11,600 + $3000 purchase cost. Still dearer to own the diesel and thats before you count in higher service costs with more frequent intervals and larger oil sumps (TD typically needs servicing every 5K in harsh environment and 10K nominally vs Petrol at 10K-25K depending on the brand).

Eureka

I appreciate your reply but all I am saying is that I can’t see how the petrol v6 engine will be more economical on fuel than the turbo diesel…which is what Mr Bonthorne appears to be suggesting.

As for your calculations…don’t forget that the $$ premium of the diesel engine will be recouped come resale time (to some degree). Also, I’d be very surprised if it has 5k or even 10k service intervals for normal usage in Australia…aren’t all modern diesel engines 15/20k intervals nowadays?

Dan

I suspect Mr Bonthorne words were taken out of context. It is probably the economical alternative in terms of overall package (price, servicing, etc).
The current Ford Ranger has 10K service intervals however I recall Jeep saying the GC petrol has just 12K service intervals anyway.
Jimy

Jeep Diesel engines are 10k service intervals. You can download the service manual from their website. I’ve also confirmed it with the service agents. I was keen on the Diesel because of fuel consumption, however the service costs, shorter intervals are really concerning me.

samboy

Not sure I agree with you Alex..I service my ’08 VW Touareg 3.0 TDI every 15,000 km( about once per year)at a typical cost of $ 500 per service.

Dan

If the diesel is a $3K purchase premium and a fuel saving of approx 3.3l/100km (diesel and 95ron fuel are roughly the same price around our way) I think the diesel would be the good buy. However I have had several Jeep dealers indicate the diesel will be around a $5K premium making that economy decision more difficult. The torque of the diesel in a 2100kg car is very appealing though.
B

Is this engine FIAT reliable? Two things:

1) It’s a FIAT engine
2) It’s revision 1.0 (fresh release)

If anything happens, it’s $20k a pop. The grenade 4 cyl 3.0 diesel Renault engine in the Nissan Patrol is $15k+ a pop.

Andrew

Who better to make a diesel engine? The vast majority of cars (never mind commercials etc) sold in Europe are diesels.

I think the Nissan engine issue is a bit unfair, the origins of that engine go way back to before 1995.

Nick K

If the petrol V6 is LPG compatible and fuel prices go crazy one could always convert. Rang a Jeep dealer on the LPG question, has not got back to me… Obviously selling lots of cars not to bother to follow up. I really think the entry level car to be fantastic value.

B

Used to be A$1 = US$0.60 and the Grand Cherokee used to be $60k-$80k. Around twice the price of a Kluger.

Now A$1 = US$1.01. The Grand Cherokee is now $43-$44k driveway (I checked at the dealer last week). Cheaper than the base AWD Kluger.

Get it while the AUD is high.

Jimy

I thought the base model was just under $50K drive away? If you have got one for $43k, can you send me a copy of your invoice??

B

You could get the base model for around 45k drive away without even trying. They mean business and due to the high AUD.

B

This is referring to the V6 petrol. The diesel won’t be released for a couple of months.
Jimy

Interesting. I thought it would be at least 6 months yet before they would do a deal with no on road costs at all. Hope you are right, I intend to shop in next 2-3 months.

bangel

VM motori has a long history of suppling auto and industrial diesels world wide , they would have done their homework .

Used by all the big 3 in US and land rover , very durable motors .

Jeep have got a huge winner on their hands with the currency conversion and free trade agreement .

This car in both petrol and deisel is going to tip the market upside down , as long as the interior quality is as good as the pics , and its screwd together properly .

The look just blows all the jap/koreans away , non of their fussy over styling , man its a workhorse and it looks it .

B

Quality and luxurious interior. Soft padded plastic dashboard, not the hard plastic type. Tightly put together.

Eric

Most new cars dont have warranry if fitted with LPG.

Why not fit LPG to the diesel.

Some diesel run an ADBLUE aditive and will not start if it runs out.

Eric

Jeremy

I would go diesel without hesitation. The problem I have is no 7 seat option. This means no sale – period.
M

Jeep will not be at the Melbourne motor show? That is disappointing. Quite a few manufacturers missed the last show but now that Melbourne & Sydney are alternating I thought they’d be back.
Dan

One other problem with the diesel, if you intend to go with the Laredo I have read elsewhere it may only come with a low output (140KW/440Nm) diesel. Hardly worth paying extra for over the petrol V6.
V6 Diesel

176 KW 550Nm V6 Diesel………..first found in the VW Touareg back in 2007 and since been shared with Audi and Porsche. Now we see one in a Jeep and Nissan. I reckon its the new std. Will we find one in a Territory?

dilligaf

No. Ford does not plan that far ahead.
Jeremy

No need.
The 2.7L V6 Diesel going into the Territory is a proven, reliable and efficient unit. Mated to the 6 speed ZF gearbox it will be more than adequate to motivate the Territory.
Andrew

Just to be clear the VW group engine is not a VM Motori engine, it is their own engine.

The outputs of the VM Motori used by Jeep are going to be similar but it is nothing to do with VW.
Andrew

Ford actually manufacture the 2.7 and 3.0 litre engine used by Jaguar Land Rover it it part of a partnership on diesel engine development with PSA (Peugeot Citroen) These Ford diesel engines are extremely advanced. I think any criticism of Ford is unwarranted globally they were the only USA car company that weathered the GFC without needing a bail out. They had built their PAG (Premium Automotive Group) into something very impressive but sadly needed to dismantle it to shore up the USA businesses. Just look at the latest volvo diesel hybrid announcement – developed under Ford. Sadly this know how has been exported to Chinese ownership… Personally Ford are the only USA car company I have respect for.

Save It for the track

I don’t see there being any significant issues with the engine being fiat. Many years ago in a former life I did 80,000 km’s in a year with a diesel VM Motori engine, it was barely run in, and was a good drive, that 2.8 seemed to go better than similar offerings from Toyota and the like at the time.
Andrew

Try driving one, it looks great on paper. Everything seems fine in the forecourt. Then you sit in one and the foot operated park brake sits against your shin. No car no matter how compelling on paper is worth risking amputation of a limb in a crash, certainly it’d be a broken one.

Shame as I would be ordering an overland diesel as soon as I could otherwise.

The diesel will offer clear fuel efficiency benefits when towing, I also think that the torque delivery characteristics of the diesel may make it better to drive than the petrol engines with the 5 speed auto.

Jeep when you do a rev 2 could you please – put in an electric park brake and a 6 or 7 speed auto.
Dan

Is the park brake really that obtrusive? Have you actually driven the car or sat in it to notice? I know the Kluger has a similar set up and I don’t have a real problem with it. I don’t like it, but I don’t have a problem with it.

Andrew

I have driven it – and it’s a particularly poor implementation of a foot brake. The ones in Subarus, Toyotas, Mercedes I have driven over the years to name a few have been fine. This one for me at 6ft 2 and a friend at 5ft 10 was extremely poor. I have got similar feedback from others that have driven it. Some people are buying it – I advocate having a look for yourself but it was certainly something that surprised me on a number of levels. I have also driven the left hand drive version in the USA and this was not an issue there as the footwell is broader/a different shape.

Save It for the track

I don’t believe there should be foot operated park brakes or the switch operated park brakes thar are creeping in (a-la Tiguan). I believe all vehicles should still have proper handbrakes. What will happen in one of these things with a switch for a park brake when some sort of electrical or cpu glitch sees the hill descent control and all of the other electronic nannies fail?

Andrew

Park Brake:

Most have a fail safe. The park brake can be replaced in an emergency with park on an auto or leaving the car in gear in a manual.

Though they have a fail safe, most cars a la the Land Rovers have a manual over ride for the park brake if it locks on and you need to release it.

I suggested an electric one only as there isnt room for a lever in the console. I am happy with a level, personally the lever on the wrong side like the old one would have been better than the current situation.

Dan

I drove both the V6 and V8 recently. The V6 doesn’t have enough torque for the 2100kg in my opinion. The V8 was just right but likes to drink. The diesel should hopefully give the best of both worlds (torque & economy).
http://www.freedomcorp.com.au Iain Tait

I am a long term jeep fan with 9 personally owned and another 8 in the family. To be honest this relationship has sometimes been stretched as a result of the revolving door of ownership and some patchy quality issues. I must say the new ownership seems a marriage made in heaven with Fiats brilliance diesel, small engines and design (fiat, Ferrari, Alfa, Maserati, Lancia) that Chrysler/Dodge/Jeep/Ram needs so much, plus the USA access that the Fiat group so much needs. All under brilliant leadership in Sergio Marchionne. Mercedes was not going to let Jeep become a premium competitor and it showed in plastic low rent interiors and budget electrics!
So now to the 2011 Grand Cherokee…I have driven it over night, examined it to the smallest detail, spoken to friends who service them and researched the components…the result I ordered my new CRD in march 2011. They are stunning and the interior is Merc/BMW plus. In fact it was designed by a previous Merc designer.
2012 ML merc floor pan (they haven’t got theirs yet) Merc transmission, A very good and economic motor, and seriously capability for towing and off road, all for stunningly aggressive price! The closest competitor in my mind is the Discovery 4 at a $30,000 plus premium.

Rob

Hi Ian,
I have just ordered my CRD Limited and due to land in December, but not holding my breath until January… How are you finding your new Jeep and do you know if you can service these outside of dealers?

Big Bear

I’m with Andrew. I sat in one and went for a test drive a couple of weeks ago. It is such a shame that such a great car has been totally let down by something as simple as the park (foot) brake. Last time it was the foot well. C’mon Jeep…. common sense. Its enough to turn me away from the car. Very disappointing.
so far so good

To both Andrew and Big Bear. Whilst I do agree about the the park (foot) brake being a bit of a let-down in design, it is by no means a reason not to buy a car. Unless that it, there are a whole host of issues and this can be seen as the proverbial icing on the cake.

Fact of the matter is, you;d be hard pressed to find another car in this price or even close price range to offer the same refinement, equipment levels, off-roa capabilites and lastly looks.

I’ve purchased a Limited and so far have found the biggest annoyance in the left-hand indicator stalk position. The park (foot) brake was weird for the first week but now don;t even notice it. It never touches my leg, it is not in the way and to be honest, I enjoy not having the hand-brake in the console.

A bit of feedback on consumption, anywhere between 12 to high 14 litres for a 100km. This is a combined cycle with higher city stop-start percentage and gentle on the accelerator. Most of the time the engine spends it’s time between 1500-2500rpm and this is irrespective of speed and up to 110km/h. Not much difference in fuel from my old 3.5 V6 family sedan. Though have not yet managed to do a trip of pure highway, I am looking forward to it and in terms of fuel, should be impressive for the size of the car. I think they really have managed to work a perfect marriage between the 5 speed auto and the V6 pentastar. An excellent engine that can really haul arse when needed. On that note, the drive-by-wire accelerator takes some getting used to.
Where’sTheDiesel

Got word from a Jeep dealer the Grand Cherokee CRD wasn’t arriving until late this year or even early next year. Also base model Laredo diesel is unconfirmed for Australia.
Mal

I just ordered my CRD Overland and the delivery is expected end of July 2011, so I believe that they are going to be here very soon. Mine will be on the first boat of CRD’s to land in the country.
The dealer expected the price to be the same as the Hemi and that is what is on my order.
While I am not a fan of the foot brake, is is not a deal breaker. What I am suprised about is the inconsistancies with the model release details and the actual car. There is no side mirror LED indicators and the interior trim on the Overland is brown wood, not the dark grey listed in the brochure. You would think that Jeep would ensure that the brochure and the actual model would be the same.
Bryan

If you can really pick one of these up for about fifty grand it will give Mitsubishi, Toyota and Land Rover a bit of a wake up call about the pricing of the Pajero, Prado and Dicovery respectively. I have been looking at second hand Pajero and Prado in the fifty to sixty thousand price range but I might wait a few months and take the diesel Grand Cherokee for a drive before I decide. I would like the 7 or 8 seat option of some of the others but according to my wife (and the fact the we have a second car) the extra seats aren’t really necessary.

I downloaded the brochure from the Jeep New Zealand website and it has the specs for a diesel engine in it; don’t know if it is the one we will be getting here but if it is, it looks pretty good on paper…
Patrick

Nice car, it’s ashame about the dealers !!!!! Will never buy another one.