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2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Road Test
Model Mix

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TO THE POINT What’s New? The 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee is completely redesigned this year, with only a V8 engine and basic design and engineering philosophies carried over from the old model.
Selling Points: True off-roading capability, powerful Hemi V8, dramatically improved front seats
Deal Breakers: Small cargo space, glossy interior materials, tight rear seat leg room, poor fuel economy with V8 engines
Our Advice: Totally redesigned for 2005, the Jeep Grand Cherokee is more refined but has lost some of the moxie that made it so cool, rendering it a bland, overpriced and undersized SUV.

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Click to enlarge. 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Model Mix Jeep sells the new Grand Cherokee in two trim levels and a single body style with either 2WD or 4WD, but there’s lots of room to play with powertrains and options.

Chevrolet introduced the Suburban in 1936, and lays claim to marketing the world’s first sport/utility vehicle. But Jeep says it created the world’s first “true” SUV in 1963, with one of the 2005 Grand Cherokee’s predecessors. Who’s right? Who cares? It’s all marketing gobbledygook anyways.

Like its two predecessors, the 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee is offered in a single SUV body style seating five passengers. Decorated in base Laredo and upscale Limited trim, the Grand Cherokee can be equipped with either 2WD or 4WD, with the wheels powered by a six- or an eight-cylinder engine.

Standard equipment on the 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo includes a V6 engine, traction control, antilock brakes, an eight-way power driver’s seat, a vehicle information center, power windows, power door locks with remote keyless entry, power mirrors, air conditioning, an engine immobilizer anti-theft system, a CD player, and privacy glass. If you buy the 4WD model, the light-duty, single-speed Quadra-Trac I transfer case comes standard.

Grand Cherokee Limited models add a V8 engine, 17-inch polished alloy wheels, adjustable roof rails, power adjustable pedals, rain-sensing automatic wipers, a memory system for the seats and mirrors, a leather-wrapped steering wheel, a four-way power passenger’s seat, an electrochromic rearview mirror, a HomeLink programmable transmitter, an in-dash six-disc CD changer with MP3 capability, a 276-watt digitally amplified Boston Accoustics stereo, and leather seats. Quadra-Trac II is the standard 4WD system, and it includes low-range gearing.

Key options for the 2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee include a powerful Hemi V8, a sophisticated Quadra-Drive II 4WD system, side curtain airbags, and an off-road package with tow hooks and skid plates. Chrome wheels, a rear seat DVD entertainment, a Uconnect Bluetooth wireless communication system, Sirius satellite radio, a navigation radio, ParkSense rear parking assist, and heated front seats are also available at extra cost.


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