2005 Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo Test Drive
Hemi LusterNo, we didn’t drive the Hemi. Don’t get me wrong, we certainly wanted to, but it priced the Jeep out of our range so we opted to drive the plain old 4.7L V8 Laredo.
The exterior of the Grand Cherokee is pretty eye-catching. It is obviously a Jeep and keeps the general look of the last model, but is updated and looks larger and more aggressive due to the squarer front end. It’s not as slab sided as Chrysler’s new models like the Magnum and 300C, and I think that gives the Grand Cherokee a more timeless design.
I had a little trouble closing the rear door, because the handles are placed backwards. I’m not sure why Daimler-Chrysler insists on placing handles the same direction as you pull so your hand slides right off. I had to pull the door partly down with my right hand and then grab it with my left to close it the rest of the way. That’s fine on a clean car, but drive it through the rain and the door will be so filthy you won’t want to touch it. One way around that, however, is the nifty pop-glass back window. Hit a button on the remote and it opens for you. I can just barely reach it to close it, and I wouldn’t be able to lift anything heavy high enough to use it, but it’d be great when I just want to stow my purse or camera bag in the back.
The Grand Cherokee’s interior was a little bland. Everything is very monotone - grey in this particular model. The dash was grey, the seats were grey, the steering wheel was grey, the roof was grey…you get the picture. The air vents, gauges, shift base and various buttons were black, but otherwise it was a sea of grey. Jeep attempted to spice up the console with some color, but it was shiny grey and the attempt fell flat. Different shades of grey would have been welcome or perhaps more texture – anything to break up the monotony.
Fit and finish isn’t quite where I hoped. The a-pillars are cheap-looking rough plastic, and the plugs to cover the fasteners weren’t fitted well. The plugs bothered me a lot because they’re right in your line of site. You can even see the mold seams on them.
Once in the driver’s chair, I had some problems getting used to the steering wheel. It comes out farther at the rim than it does at the center, so I felt like I was sitting way too close but in reality the airbag was about the right distance away. I had to play with the adjustable foot pedals and seat recline quite a bit, but never felt fully comfortable with the wheel. The seat doesn’t lower as much as I’d like to accommodate my 5’1” frame, but it could be raised high enough to allow a four-year-old to drive. I raised it just to see how much play it had, but stopped when I became in danger of mashing my head into the roof – and it had more yet to give. Interesting feature, but I would have much preferred that the seat be able to lower an extra inch or two.
Our test model had adjustable pedals, steering wheel radio and cruise controls, a sunroof, a DVD entertainment system, and Homelink. It did not have memory seats and mirrors, or dual climate controls, but both features are available on certain models.
The Grand Cherokee’s gas pedal was incredibly twitchy, but after pressing it about 4 times I got the hang of it and thought about it no more. I also stopped thinking about the steering wheel as we proceeded on our test drive. The roof and a-pillars are a lighter grey than the rest of the car and are huge thanks to the way the grab-handles are built into them. They crowded my sightline and reminded me of the Audi TT with its forward roof, and kept me focusing on the cheap plastic they were made of.
The rear seats in the Jeep were comfortable enough for adult travel, but I squished my fingers in the poorly-engineering cup holder. The rear does have air vents, although it’s lacking controls for them. The rear seats fold almost flat and directly behind them are two small storage bins.
The 4.7L had plenty of go; in fact, once I got used to the twitchy pedal I didn’t think of the engine again. The ride was smooth down our favorite bumpy road. The Jeep never felt too tall or tippy, even when turning corners.
Part way through our test drive I announced that if we bought this, it would be Chris’ car. I just wasn’t impressed with any of it. But I decided to take a longer test route and after driving for a while found that I didn’t dislike it nearly as much. The longer I drove it, the more it grew on me. The only part that never did feel comfortable was the brake pedal – something about its size or placement felt very 1980s to me. I can’t even explain what that means except that I was aware of the brake pedal the whole time.
Overall Impression
My opinion changed from “ugh this is such a man’s car” to “hey, not bad” after just a short time driving. My opinion really improved when I glimpsed the interior of the Limited model, which had wood tones that really helped break up the monotony of the cabin.