Ford Everest vs Jeep Grand Cherokee

What's the difference?

The Everest is a very impressive seven-seat 4WD wagon, with real off-road capability.

As standard, it has a lot going for it. It’s quiet and refined on-road, very capable off-road and packed with features.

Do you need any of the Wildtrak additions? No, but if you have the cash and fancy a nice-looking, feature-packed off-road wagon you could do a lot worse than an Everest Wildtrak.

I still like the Sport, though…

A wise man* once said "Being first can sometimes feel like being wrong" and perhaps that's how it is with the 4xe, but at least Jeep Australia is giving the large SUV hybrid realm a good ol' try.

* Former CarsGuide Big Kohuna, Glen Knowles.

The company's first plug-in hybrid, the Grand Cherokee 4xe, is not perfect by anyone's standards, however, it is a definite move in the right direction.

It's a quiet and refined drive, it retains the brand's renowned 4WD capability, and even its hefty price-tag likely won't dissuade Jeep loyalists from giving it a go.

The Everest Wildtrak retains the same dimensions and design as regular grades, but its few styling differences boil down to a front bumper with darker accents, LED fog lights, black wheel arch flares and window trim, as well as Wildtrak badging and branding.

As mentioned, it has 20-inch Asphalt Matt Black alloy wheels with all-season tyres – but you can option 18-inch ‘Boulder Grey’ alloys and all-terrain tyres for no extra cost.

On the inside it has 'Ebony' leather upholstery with 'Cyber Orange' stitching, a panoramic sunroof, 360-degree camera, and interior ambient lighting.

Exterior paint jobs include the no-cost 'Arctic White', or choose from 'Aluminium', 'Meteor Grey', 'Absolute Black', 'Blue Lightning', 'Equinox Bronze' and the Ranger Wildtrak’s distinctive like it or loathe it 'Luxe Yellow' paint on our test vehicle.

As with any vehicle, some will like it, some won’t, and some simply won’t care all that much. 

The 4xe certainly has a distinctive Jeep look to it.

A few exterior design cues hint at its PHEV leanings: the plug-in point on the front left-hand panel and a ‘4xe’ designation on the rear door.

The leather-appointed interior is comfortable and functional, but in the Wildtrak everything has an extra level of classiness to it.

There are plenty of storage spaces with sizeable bins, bottle holders in each door, cupholders for everyone – even third-row passengers get cupholders and places for their bits and pieces.

The driver and front passenger have access to two 12-volt sockets and two USB ports.

The portrait-style touchscreen is easy to use although there’s a confusion of choices going on and sometimes it takes a few substantial taps on the screen to activate the function you want.

The power-adjustable front seats are comfortable and supportive, without ever being too much of either. 

The cabin feels a bit too cosy – narrow but tall – and second-row seating is a bit squeezy for three adults, especially in terms of hip and shoulder room for larger blokes, but it’d be fine with slighter adults and even gangly teens. 

Second-row passengers get a pair of pop-out cupholders in the armrest, and can control their air con temp and fan speed, as well as open or close their air vents as they see fit, and use a 230-volt or 12-volt socket from their seat.

The second-row has a 60/40 split-fold seat back and the third-row has a 50/50 split-fold. There are five child-seat anchor points, and two ISOIX anchor points in the second row.

Third-row seats can be manually deployed or stowed away. The third row is for kids only, I reckon, with shallower room all-around.

When all seven seats are in use there’s a claimed 259 litres of cargo space in the rear; 898L when the third row is stowed away; and 1823L of cargo space when the second row is also lowered. The area behind the third row has bag hooks each side, and luggage tie-down points on the floor. 

There is a 12V power outlet in the rear cargo area, plus the Wildtrak has a hands-free power tailgate.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit Reserve 4xe PHEV retains the regular model’s level of functionality but adds a reasonably classy touch to everything.

All seats offer adequate comfort, support and room.

There are plenty of storage spaces, cupholders etc, and charging points - two USB-A and two USB-C plus a 12V socket in the front and two USB-A and two USB-C plus a 230V point in the back.

Controls are generally easy enough to locate and operate although some buttons are positioned in awkward places – including drive-mode buttons under the steering wheel – and it sometimes takes a few finger-stabs at the multimedia touchscreen to get to where you want to go in the operating system.

In terms of packability, the rear cargo area has a listed 1067 litres of space, and, with the second row folded and out of the way, that space opens up to 2004 litres.

The five-seat Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit Reserve 4xe PHEV has a MSRP of $129,950 (excluding on-road costs).

Standard features include a 10.1-inch multimedia system (with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto), a 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster, 19-speaker audio system, quilted Palermo leather-trimmed seats, air suspension and 21-inch alloy wheels.

It also has a heated steering wheel, 12-way power-adjustable seats and four-way power lumbar adjustment with memory for driver and front passenger, driver and front passenger seat massage function and heated and ventilated seats (driver, front passenger and rear outboard passengers).

A Mode 2 charging cable is also included.

An 'Advanced Technology Group' pack is available as a $5500 option and that includes a head-up display, a 10.25-inch screen for the front passenger, wireless phone charger, and night vision camera.

Exterior paint options include 'Bright White', 'Diamond Black', 'Silver Zynith', 'Velvet Red', 'Baltic Grey', 'Rocky Mountain', 'Midnight Sky' and 'Hydro Blue'.

The Ford Everest Wildtrak has a 3.0-litre V6 turbo-diesel engine producing 184kW at 3250rpm and an impressive 600Nm from 1750rpm to 2250rpm and a 10-speed automatic transmission.

The Wildtrak has a full-time 4WD system with selectable two-wheel drive (2H), four-wheel drive high-range (4H), four-wheel drive low-range (4L) and four-wheel drive automatic (4A = 4Auto) that sends drive to the front and rear axles as needed, and which can be used on sealed surfaces.

It has selectable drive modes including 'Normal', 'Eco', 'Tow Haul', 'Slippery', and for off-roading: 'Mud/Ruts', and 'Sand'.

These all adjust engine outputs, throttle control and transmission behaviour to best suit the terrain you’re on and the driving conditions you’re exposed to.

The Wildtrak has a locking rear diff.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit Reserve 4xe PHEV has a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-charged petrol engine, two electric motors (one on each axle) and a 17.3kWh battery.

Combined engine and electric outputs for power and torque are 280kW and 637Nm, respectively. The 4xe has it over any of its stablemates equipped with the 3.6-litre Pentastar V6 petrol engine because that yields 210kW and 344Nm.

The 4xe has an eight-speed automatic torque-converter transmission and regenerative braking.

Drive modes include 'Hybrid' (with combined engine and electric motor providing “maximum instant torque and impressive acceleration”, according to Jeep), 'Electric' (“zero emissions”) and 'eSave' (aims to save battery power). 

There are a few options available when it comes time to charge the 4xe.

The 4xe vehicle has a Mode 2 charging cable so you can charge it at home in less than 10 hours, according to Jeep.

With a full charge, the 4xe has a claimed driving range, on electric charge alone, of 52km.

Jeep reckons a Mode 3 (wall box) single-phase electric vehicle charger will fully charge the 4xe in less than three hours.

If out and about and looking for a charge, a 4xe driver can use the onboard 'UConnect' system to locate an appropriate public charging station.

Official fuel consumption is 8.5L/100km on a combined cycle. 

Our fuel consumption on this test was 15.4L/100km after a lot of 4WDing.

The Everest has an 80-litre fuel tank, so, going by those fuel figures, if your trip involves a lot of high- and low-range 4WDing, you could reasonably expect a driving range of about 520km out of a full tank.

As mentioned, the 4xe has a listed electric-only driving range of 52km.

On our official test day, we drove just under 50km on a full electric charge and then the rest of the trip was courtesy of the good ol’ petrol engine.

Jeep's official figure for the combined cycle is just 3.2L/100km, but that's predicated on keeping the hybrid battery charged at all times. On fuel-only we recorded 11.6L/100km.

The 4xe has a 72-litre fuel tank (you need 95RON premium to fill it), so going by that on-test fuel-consumption figure, you could reasonably expect to get a driving range of about 620km out of a full tank.

Add an approximate electric range of about 50km on a full charge to that figure and you have a total estimated driving range of 670km.

The Everest has always impressed me as a refined drive and it’s one of the best large SUV wagons on-road.

The V6 is a gutsy unit, consistently delivering sustained power and torque at low and high speeds. It’s torquey and plenty of its 600Nm is available across a broad rev range. 

The 10-speed auto transmission has had the previous-gen’s thrashiness between ratios smoothed out – and if you want to take over duties yourself you can do so via the 'e-Shifter' in this 4WD wagon. 

At 4940mm long (with tow receiver; 4914mm without) with a 2900mm wheelbase, and at 2207mm wide and 1837mm high, the Everest is a sizeable SUV, but it never feels too bloated to steer accurately, with a well-weighted helm keeping it under control. 

But you do have to drive with absolute focus, otherwise it’s long undercarriage may suffer the consequences – but more about that soon.

The cabin is very quiet, with nothing much intruding in terms of NVH (noise, vibration and harshness), other than low-level wind-rush around the wing mirrors. 

The suspension set-up – with coil springs at every corner – helps to produce smooth, composed ride and handling.

So, while it is impressive on-road, it’s not too shabby off-road, either.

For a large 4WD it feels nimble, even on tight overgrown tracks, but, as mentioned earlier, it requires the driver’s full attention at all times.

Approach angle is 30.2 degrees, departure angle is 25 degrees, and ramp break-over is 21.9 degrees.

The Everest has a long wheelbase making its undercarriage vulnerable to scraping rocks, tree stumps or exposed tree roots, especially during more technical 4WDing sections.

The sidesteps are also pronounced enough to be magnets for damage when off-roading.

Low-range gearing is good and the Everest has an electronic rear diff lock to enhance this wagon’s dirt-grabbing abilities.

Driver-assist tech aimed at making 4WDing safer and easier for everyone includes off-road driving modes such as Mud/Ruts and Sand, which adjust engine outputs, throttle, transmission, braking, traction and stability controls to best suit the driving conditions.

Hill descent control kept the Wildtrak to a controlled 3.0-4.0km/h while we tackled short steep downhills.

Wading depth is 800mm and while I didn’t get to test it this time – no mud around – I have tested the Everest previously through water and it has performed admirably. 

The Wildtrak as standard has 20-inch alloy wheels on Goodyear Wrangler Territory HTs (255/55 R20). A 20-inch tyre doesn’t give a 4WDer much flexibility in terms of how much air you can drop out of it for off-roading and correct tyre pressures are crucial for 4WDing.

Ford offers an easy fix, though, in the shape of 18-inch black alloys on all-terrain tyres as a no-cost option.

If you’re thinking about using your Everest as a touring vehicle be mindful that the Wildtrak’s payload is 741kg, gross vehicle mass (GVM) is 3150kg, and gross combination mass (GCM) is 6250kg. 

The Everest’s towing capacity is 750kg (unbraked) and 3500kg (braked).

We’re all time-poor, right? So, why should I take up your time and rattle on about the 4xe for a thousand words when I can get the essence of it across to you, the reader, in a few sentences? Call me, Mr Thoughtful.

This is generally a big, quiet and refined, easy-steering large SUV, but it feels bulky at times and tends to be quite fussy on irregular surfaces, exhibiting a jittery ride on even brief sections of light corrugations on dirt tracks.

The 4xe’s PHEV set-up is smooth and highly responsive on-road and you can switch between the aforementioned drive modes to suit the circumstance.

Driving range on electric only is listed as 52km. I only recorded a total distance of just under 50km, and it’s a very quiet and smooth drive while relying on electric power.

It regenerates power rather quickly down big hills and via braking, but we’d exhausted all electric charge by the time we’d reached our 4WD test track.

As expected, this Grand Cherokee tackled every off-road challenge without any strife. 

The air suspension, set to full off-road height, is a bonus.

Our 4WD test track consists of difficult set-pieces, including one small steep rocky hill that I’ve seen heavily modified vehicles struggle to conquer and, to the Jeep’s credit, it climbed the incline, no sweat.

The 4xe’s efforts were only ever hampered by its 'all-season' Continental CrossContact tyres (275/45R21) which are much better suited to blacktop driving and the fact the 4xe costs upwards of $129,950 and I didn’t want to risk any damage to it.

The 4xe has a listed wading depth of 610mm but our test track was dry so I never had the chance to do any water crossings. 

The Grand Cherokee has a solid enough rep as a towing vehicle but, take note, the 4xe is rated to tow 2722kg.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit Reserve 4xe PHEV has the maximum five-star ANCAP safety rating from assessment this year.

Safety gear includes AEB with pedestrian detection, blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert, adaptive cruise control, lane-keep assist, driver monitoring, traffic sign recognition, intersection collision assist, and a surround-view parking camera.

The Summit Reserve spec brings with it 'ParkSense' parallel and perpendicular park assist and (low-level autonomous) 'Active Driving Assist'.

It has eight airbags including front, side, and knee (for driver and front passenger), sides (for second-row passengers) and full curtain airbags.

The Everest is covered by a five-year/unlimited kilometre warranty.

Ford offers a five-year roadside assistance, and a capped-price service plan.

Service intervals are scheduled for every 12 months or 15,000km and the maintenance cost for the first 48 months/60,000km (the first four services) is capped at $329 a pop for MY22 or MY23 Everests.

As always, check with your preferred dealer for up-to-date pricing.

The Jeep Grand Cherokee Summit Reserve 4xe PHEV has a five-year/100,000km warranty and a lifetime roadside assist service.

Servicing is set at 12-month/12,000km intervals and capped price servicing keeps what you pay for each appointment at $399 for the first five.