Jeep to launch Grand Cherokee in India.

By -

American SUV icon Jeep, inventors of the famous CJ series of army off-roaders, could soon come to India. Part of the Chrysler group, now owned by Fiat, Jeep has been steadily dieselising its range of off-roaders to make them suitable for the European market, and that means they are now well suited to India too. Jeep President and CEO Michael Manley, a regular visitor to India, is well versed with the dynamics of the Indian market. “We recognise that Indian customers appreciate good value and we are keen to provide that with our Grand Cherokee”. 

Today Jeep has a whole range of diesel SUVs and the Grand Cherokee could be followed by products like the Commander, Compass and Patriot, which are all currently sold in Europe. And Jeep will have other Fiat-based soft-roaders that could be well suited to the Indian market in the near future too. It’s currently evaluating a B-segment competitor that could be launched as early as 2014, and once Jeep gets a foot into the Indian market, it could be followed by Chrysler and Dodge at a later stage.

Even for Jeep, inventors of the SUV, the new Grand Cherokee is a landmark car. For a start it looks right, absolutely spot on. The toothy seven-slat grille has been given pride of place, the large bonnet has a tough-looking squared-off feel to it and the exaggerated wheel arches give this new car a planted, tough look. It is attractive-looking from the rear too. Then comes the fact that this really is a tough, solid vehicle. Built on the same platform as the Mercedes  M-class due to Daimler’s earlier ownership of Chrysler, the new Cherokee’s chassis is the stiffest in its class. This helps ride, handling and off road-manners too.

Some Jeep traditions are carried over, like the low-ratio transfer case, but manually locking diffs aren’t part of the specifications list. What you do get is a Selec-Terrain dial which, much like Range Rover’s ‘Terrain Response’, allows you to select the kind of surface conditions you are driving on, after which the car automatically makes adjustments to various settings to get the best traction and performance.

The common-rail diesel motor under the hood has been designed and engineered by Fiat but built by diesel specialists VM Motori. Displacing the same 2987cc as Merc’s 3.0 V6, and using the identical size of pistons, the diesel maker has outdone itself by tuning the motor to deliver silky-smooth power and bags and bags of torque. You only get a five-speed automatic, strangely, and that’s not ideal.

On the inside, there’s more space than you expect. There’s a nice, airy feel to the cabin, the driver can stretch out and adjust the seat to a driving position of his choice, and there is plenty of legroom at the rear as well. Some traditions are carried over. The driver, for example, is greeted by the traditional round-boss steering wheel, and the detailing and switchgear look familiar too. Plastic quality however is not as good as either Volkswagen or Mercedes, and the general ambience of the cabin is more rugged than luxurious. But that’s what a Jeep really is – a tough, rugged, go-anywhere SUV.  If Jeep manages to get local assembly – and later, production – in order, and manages to keep the price below Rs 40 lakh*, it could  be off to a strong start.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

All new Ambassador makeover by Hindustan Motors in 2012 .

By -
Image
Sixty years back, the word ‘car’ in India literally meant the Ambassador for most Indians. A lot has changed since then, with horde of automobile manufacturers active in the Indian market, sales figures for Hindustan Motors have hit an all time low 5,510 units in the first 10 months of the current fiscal year. Over the years, it has been the Indian political class that has been keeping Hindustan Motors rolling. The latest blow to Hindustan motors came from the Govt. of India itself, which replaced the Ambassador with cars like the  Maruti SX4  and the  Tata Indigo CS considering safety and performance issues. The next-gen Ambassador will feature structural, aerodynamic and aesthetical chages. Changes on board the 2012 Ambassador include new engine calibrations, an anti-lock brake system and aluminium alloy wheels. For comfort, there will be new leather seats coupled with wood grain interiors. For the first time, there will also be an integrated music system and redesigne...
Read more

Force One to get 4x4 in mid-2012

By -
Image
Force Motors, which launched its first SUV, Force One, last August will launch a new 4x4 version and a variant equipped with ABS by mid-2012. The new 4X4 was displayed at the Auto Expo last month. At the launch, the company had indicated its intentions to offer more features in the SUV at a later stage. These features have made it to the SUV, but the company has been tight-lipped about launch date  and price tag. The 4x4 variant will continue to be powered by the FM-Tech 2.2-litre common-rail turbo-diesel motor that develops 139bhp and 32.6kgm of torque. It will be offered with a five-speed manual gearbox as is the case with the 4x2 version. There will be no visual changes to  differentiate the 4x4 from its 4x2 sibling, except for  the badge. We expect the ABS-equipped 4x4 version to  cost at least Rs 1 lakh more than the 4x2 variant, which costs Rs 10.65 lakh (ex-showroom,  Delhi). 
Read more

Maruti 800 replacement coming soon.

By -
Image
Authentic Cars  broke the news on the upcoming Maruti 800 way back in July last year   and now we bring you more info on the car that will finally replace the venerable Maruti 800.  This new car, to be called the Alto 800 (codename: YE3), is based on the Alto, but with significant modifications done to make it cheaper. Not to be confused with the Alto sold in Japan, the new Alto 800 is based on the current generation Alto (YG4) but with a new body and interior. As seen in the pictures, the design is rather basic but there is more than a passing resemblance to the Japanese Alto, especially from the front. The nose gets high-mounted headlights, a slim, slot-like grille and there is a huge secondary air-inlet opening above and below the bumper. The styling is in line with the current-generation Suzukis, and details like the slanting window-line point to an aggressive tip-forward stance. Also, there is a prominent character-line that runs on the sides, right from the head...
Read more