Jeep Cherokee (2014 – 2019) Review

The US brand’s insistence that all of its cars perform brilliantly off-road means the Jeep Cherokee is more capable than most rivals in the dirt. However, on the road, where these cars really earn their keep, it is let down by poor refinement next to competitors such as the Subaru Forester, British-made Nissan Qashqai and big-selling Kia Sportage. Read on for our full Jeep Cherokee review.

There were high hopes for the Jeep Cherokee in 2014. Bold looks, allied to input from new partner Fiat, gave the company and customers plenty to look forward to.

For a start, the model moved upmarket. Jeep realised it could not merely trade on its outdoorsy image as it once did, so it was no surprise to see big improvements from previous models in terms of quality and design to draw in family car buyers.

The Jeep Cherokee was certainly distinctive – especially from the front with its odd nose, which featured the traditional Jeep grille, but with a new take on the old design.

All four-wheel-drive models feature Jeep’s Selec-Terrain traction control system with four driving modes – Auto, Snow, Sport and Sand/Mud. The system electronically coordinates and optimises the car’s ABS, ESC and powertrain controller to ensure complete stability.

The engine line-up consists of a 2.0-litre Multijet II diesel delivering 170PS, mated to a nine-speed automatic gearbox. There was also a 140PS version of the 2.0 unit, which was offered with a six-speed manual gearbox.

In 2015, a much better 2.2-litre diesel was offered, with a nine-speed automatic transmission as standard. You could also order the Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk model with a 3.2-litre V6 engine, but it’s vanishingly rare as a used car.

As an alternative to mainstream SUVs, the Jeep Cherokee has plenty going for it, in particular a strong image and that genuine off-road capability. 

Of course, how many owners really want or need the latter is another matter, and for those who do, the Land Rover Discovery Sport, although now several years old, still holds plenty of appeal.

But you can expect plenty of standard kit with the Jeep Cherokee and it’s certainly a distinctive choice.

Fancy a second opinion? Read heycar’s Jeep Cherokee review.

The practical approach taken in designing the Jeep Cherokee’s cabin pays dividends when you start using the car for family life, but it looks a bit drab to begin with.

You get two-way adjustment for the steering column and plenty of movement in the seat position to aid comfort. There’s also lots of room up front for the driver and passenger.

Move into the back, and you’ll find a bench that can slide back and forward. You will need to push it all the way back to provide enough room for most back seat passengers’ legs and knees, as it’s a bit cramped.

Children will enjoy the raised height, which gives a good view out, but if the optional sunroof is fitted, headroom is noticeably restricted for taller teenagers.

With the back seat in its rearmost position, boot space is greatly reduced, so this is a compromise you will have to work out if you can live with.

Push the seat forward as far as possible and there’s a 591-litre luggage capacity, which is much more generous – but obviously this impacts on rear legroom.

The Jeep Cherokee is not the most handsome of SUVs, but it certainly stands out.

It’s a shame, therefore, that the interior isn’t as daring. It’s a fairly traditional, conservative design, although it gets the basics right.

Quality and finish are two areas the company focused on, and while both are better than in Jeep offerings of the past, that’s not a ringing endorsement.

It feels well built enough, though, and soft-touch materials on the dash and a good-quality leather steering wheel raise the feelgood factor.

It’s not up to premium car standards – the door inners have a fair bit of flex in them, and it doesn’t feel particularly special or stylish – but it’s solid nonetheless.

The controls are all intuitive and well located, while the Uconnect system – which was first seen on the Jeep Grand Cherokee – was an excellent media system for its age. It’s simple to use and has a lovely crisp display.

Nowadays, though, it feels dated and the sat-nav is a long way behind what your smartphone can offer.

Around £7500 will be sufficient to net you a nine-year-old Jeep Cherokee with the 2.0 Multijet diesel engine. This will be for a car with around 50,000 miles on the clock and in Limited spec.

A later low-mileage car with the 2.2-litre turbodiesel motor and four-wheel drive will cost as much as £16,500.

The earlier 170PS 2.0-litre Multijet turbodiesel engine came with a claimed combined fuel consumption of 48.7mpg.

It returns a true 36mpg according to our Real MPG data, while the 140PS unit delivers 46.6mpg in real-world use, as opposed to its claimed 50.4mpg.

The 2.2 turbodiesels are roughly similar in their economy, but we’d avoid the 3.2 V6 motor in the Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk due to its claimed 29.4mpg and hefty 223g/km carbon dioxide emissions, even if you pick one up that is liable for the flat rate of £180 for road tax for cars registered from 1 April 2017.

Road tax for rest of the line-up will see you pay between £200 and £240 for cars registered before the above date.

Insuring a Jeep Cherokee costs much the same as it does for key rivals, with the range stretching from groups 19 to 29. The highest rating is reserved for the V6 Trailhawk, which is another reason to avoid this model.

Similarly, servicing the Jeep Cherokee will cost much the same as any other mid-size SUV or family car.

This version of the Jeep Cherokee upped its game when it comes to handling.

Traditionally, Jeep handling has been soft and soggy, but this model offers good body control and responsive steering, albeit with an artificial feel.

It’s strong in corners and gives you plenty of confidence – not something you could say of Jeep models in the past. The ride quality is reasonably good too, although it is a touch noisy over rough roads.

That is complemented by way too much road and wind noise, so despite the improvements, it’s poor refinement that is the defining characteristic of the driving experience.

From the outset, the Jeep Cherokee used a Fiat-sourced 2.0-litre Multijet II common-rail diesel that comes in two versions.

There’s a lower powered 140PS model with a manual gearbox that’s available with either two or four-wheel drive, or a 170PS version that is paired with an automatic gearbox as standard.

A more off-road oriented variant called the Trailhawk, which is powered by a 3.2-litre V6 petrol, was also available, albeit in very limited numbers in the UK as a ‘special order’ model.

Neither diesel model is especially quiet on start-up or when pressed into hard work, but in everyday driving the four-cylinder diesel is not too obtrusive.

It pulls well, with both versions delivering 350Nm of torque from low down, so there’s no reason to really work the engine hard. The 140PS version is good enough and rarely feels sluggish, while the six-speed manual gearbox offers reasonably positive changes.

The more powerful 170PS engine would be our choice, but mainly because it’s the only one that comes with the automatic gearbox.

This nine-speed auto works particularly well with the Multijet II diesel, delivering swift yet smooth changes. It avoids the often common problem of hunting for the right gear at town speeds, and is responsive when you ask it to kick down.

If your budget allows, though, we’d recommend aiming towards the 2.2-litre turbodiesel engines available from 2015 onwards, with 140PS and 185PS on offer.

Both versions of the four-cylinder engine pull strongly, with 440Nm of peak torque and a caravan-friendly towing capacity of 2.5 tonnes.

The 0-62mph sprint can be completed in less than nine seconds, while the nine-speed auto box was tweaked to provide even smoother changes.

The Jeep Cherokee scored a five-star rating from Euro NCAP when tested in 2013.

It has seven airbags, including one for the driver’s knees, as well as ESP traction and stability control, ABS anti-lock brakes, a speed limiter and a tyre pressure monitoring system.

Options included lane departure warning, adaptive cruise control, collision warning and blind spot monitoring. 

Most Jeep Cherokees of this generation, with the exception of the least powerful diesels, can pull up to 2495kg with a braked trailer.

That makes them very useful tow cars, while an unbraked maximum of 450kg across the board is decent for this class of car.

Three trim levels were offered. Standard equipment in the entry-level Jeep Cherokee Longitude includes body-coloured door mirrors, LED tail-lights, 17-inch alloy wheels, dual-zone climate control, Bluetooth, DAB radio, a leather-wrapped steering wheel and rear park assist.

It also has Hill Start Assist and a touchscreen infotainment display.

The Jeep Cherokee Longitude+ adds a Uconnect media centre with a larger 8.4-inch touchscreen, satellite navigation with Bluetooth and nine speakers with Alpine sub-woofer.

You also enjoy heated and ventilated front seats, wireless phone charging in later versions, leather upholstery, automatic wipers and a powered tailgate.

A trail-rated Jeep Cherokee Trailhawk version added distinctive looks, suspension lift and special off-road equipment including Jeep’s Active Drive Lock system.